Relapse prevention plan: what goes in it, a filled-in example and a free template

Where relapse prevention plans come from

The idea goes back to Marlatt and Gordon's cognitive-behavioral model of relapse, developed in the 1980s by psychologist G. Alan Marlatt and colleagues. In their model, relapse is not random. It tends to happen in high-risk situations that you don't have a ready way to cope with. Your confidence drops, you expect the old habit to help, and a first lapse follows.

Some triggers are much more common than others. In Marlatt's analysis, negative emotional states (anger, anxiety, depression, frustration, boredom) and conflict with other people were behind more than half of all relapse episodes. Social pressure accounted for more than 20 percent.

The model was built for alcohol and drugs, and most of the evidence comes from there. Its parts map closely onto behavioral habits like porn, gambling and compulsive scrolling: the triggers are similar, the urges rise and fall the same way, and the slip-and-spiral pattern is the same.

Relapse is a process, not a moment

Clinicians often describe three stages. The act itself is the last one, which is why a good plan aims at the first two.

• Emotional relapse. You aren't thinking about the habit, but you are isolating, skipping support, sleeping or eating badly, or focusing on everyone else's problems.
• Mental relapse. Part of you wants to go back. You crave it, romanticize it, play down what it cost you, bargain ("just once") or look for a chance.
• Physical relapse. You act on it. Many relapses happen when you expect no one to notice.

Marlatt also described apparently irrelevant decisions: small choices that seem harmless but walk you towards a high-risk situation. Taking the phone to bed "for the alarm". Keeping the betting app "just to check scores". Your plan should name yours.

What to put in a relapse prevention plan

1. Your goal and your reasons, in your own words.
2. High-risk situations: people, places, times, feelings.
3. Early warning signs from the emotional and mental stages.
4. Apparently irrelevant decisions you tend to make.
5. An if-then plan for each trigger: "If X happens, then I will do Y."
6. An urge plan for when a craving hits anyway.
7. People to contact, with names and numbers.
8. Changes to your environment: blocks, routes, what stays out of the bedroom.
9. What you will do after a slip.
10. Healthy routines that keep your life in balance.

The if-then part has unusually strong evidence. A meta-analysis of 94 tests found that plans spelling out when, where and how you will act (implementation intentions) had a medium-to-large effect on reaching goals. Writing them in advance means you don't have to decide in the moment.

Relapse prevention plan example

Here is a filled-in example for someone quitting porn and late-night scrolling. It is an illustration, not a real person. Copy the structure and replace every line with your own.

The 5 D's for cravings

There is no single official list, but Health Canada's version for quitting smoking is a good one, and it translates well to other habits:

1. DelaySet a timer for five minutes and repeat if the urge is still there. Cravings get shorter and weaker over time.
2. DistractDo something that needs concentration: a game, a call, a task with your hands.
3. Deep breathingBreathe in slowly through your nose and out through your mouth. Some people use a 4-7-8 count.
4. Drink waterA glass of cold water changes what your body is doing and keeps your hands busy.
5. DiscussTalk to someone you trust, and afterwards look at what triggered the urge.

Other versions swap in "de-catastrophize": answering the thought "I can't stand this" with "this is uncomfortable, and it will pass". Use whichever five you will actually remember. For a longer technique, see urge surfing.

When you slip: plan for the spiral

Marlatt drew a line between a lapse (a single slip) and a relapse (going back to the old pattern). What decides between them is often your reaction. Guilt and a sense of failure after a lapse, the abstinence violation effect, make a full relapse more likely: "I've blown it anyway."

So the plan has to say what happens after a slip, written while you are calm. Stop as early as you can. Tell your person. Look at what led up to it as information, not a verdict. Close the gap and go back to the plan the same day. Some clinicians warn that the lapse-relapse distinction can become an excuse, so don't treat a slip as allowed. Treat it as data.

How to make the plan work

• Keep it to one page and put it where you will see it: the fridge, your wallet, the first screen of your phone.
• Share it with one person who knows what to do when you call.
• Review it weekly in the first month, and after every slip.
• Build a life you don't need a break from. Marlatt's model treats exercise, relaxation and enjoyable activities as part of relapse prevention, not extras.

A widely cited clinical review sums up recovery in five rules: change your life so it is easier not to use, be completely honest, ask for help, practice self-care and don't bend the rules. A good plan puts each of them on paper.