Are you trying to cut back or stop altogether? Are you going through situations or feelings that make this goal harder to reach? Like most people who have developed an addiction to substance abuse (alcohol, cannabis, etc.), you also run the risk of having a few slips or even relapse during withdrawal.
Before we continue, it is important to distinguish between a slip and a relapse. Both often begin in the same way, but the difference lies in your reaction in the face of gambling again. In the case of a slip, you quickly regain control of yourself. Relapsing means going back to losing control and gambling after a period of abstinence. It is an important phase to understand and one that an excessive gambler can work on.
Does relapsing worry you?
You and your loved ones may have a tendency to either view your relapses as setbacks or on the contrary, to trivialize them. Giving up or minimizing are not behaviours that can help fight a gambling addiction. On the one hand, taking a relapse lightly increases the risk of missing the signs of further loss of control. On the other hand, dramatizing a relapse could affect your motivation and lead you to believe that you are unable to change your addictive behaviour.
Know that a relapse does not equal failure but is instead an integral part of the Cycle of Change as shown by psychologists Prochaksa and DiClemente at the end of the 1970’s with their model of six stages :
- Pre-contemplation
- Contemplation
- Preparation
- Action
- Maintenance
- Relapse.
In light of this, if you do relapse, continue with the steps you have already undertaken and ask for help towards achieving a sense of well-being or at least to improve your situation. Relapsing allows you to engage in a new Cycle of Change. You are not back at square one again. You have made many efforts and the starting point will differ from one time to another. At this point, analyse the context in which you relapsed. It is a good time to identify new elements for the next step in the process of change and to put in place new strategies for winning your battle against gambling.