Core Relapse Prevention Skills of an Inpatient Rehab Program in Tiverton 

The country’s battle against the addiction crisis has always revealed heartbreaking numbers, like a fight we were constantly losing. 

But slowly, things have started to change for the better. The latest numbers from the CDC (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) show that the terrible tide of overdose deaths is turning.

Data shows that in the 12 months ending in April 2025, nearly 73,690 Americans lost their lives to an overdose. While this number is still devastating, it’s a noticeable improvement. For context, the year before, by April 2024, we lost over 100,000 people, and one year before that (2023), the peak was over 110,000 lives.

So there’s definitely improvement, due in part to better rehab programs and prevention efforts. For example, a well-rounded inpatient rehab program in Tiverton detoxifies your body and teaches you doable prevention skills that can keep you away from addiction. 

That’s why we have dedicated today’s article to relapse prevention skills you learn during an inpatient rehab program in Tiverton. Keep reading to learn how this treatment strengthens your willpower that stays with you much longer! 

Main Skills You Learn During an Inpatient Rehab Program in Tiverton 

Once you decide to regain control over your life after a long struggle with alcoholism or substance use disorder, an inpatient rehab program in Tiverton is the best way forward. Besides detoxifying your body and managing your withdrawal symptoms, it works on your willpower. And since abstaining from drinking or using again largely depends on your self-control, it focuses on multiple relapse prevention skills. 

The following few skills support your sobriety after your rehab ends:

Identifying and Managing Triggers

If you don’t want to relapse, understanding your triggers is the most important thing. That trigger can be a person, place, feeling, or situation that reminds your brain of past substance use. That’s why an inpatient rehab program in Toverton gives you a strong awareness of these triggers so you can disarm them.

For instance, your triggers are split into two groups: External (things outside you, like a using/drinking friend or place) and Internal (such as stress, loneliness, or boredom). 

While you can consciously avoid most external triggers, the personal struggles hold you down more strongly. Therefore, an inpatient rehab program in Tiverton teaches you to pause when those uncomfortable feelings arise and recognize that the feeling is the signal, not the urge to use.

This relapse prevention gives you control so you can navigate your daily life with a confident strategy to protect the hard-won sobriety.

The “HALT” Self-Check

The HALT self-check is one of the most effective relapse prevention skills. It’s a reminder that you are most vulnerable to cravings and poor decisions when you are in one of these four specific states—Hungry, Angry, Lonely, or Tired (hence the acronym, HALT). 

These states can make it incredibly easy for your mind to drift back toward old coping methods. Therefore, the rehab focuses on this skill, so instead of questioning your willpower, you check your immediate physical and emotional needs first.

Here’s why ruling out these situations is important:

• Hungry: Low blood sugar can mimic anxiety and drain your mental strength. The healthy solution is immediate and practical: eat something.
• Angry: Anger can make rational thought nearly impossible, so instead of letting it build, the fix is to pause and talk it out with someone trusted or practice deep breathing to calm your nerves. 
• Lonely: Smoking, drinking, and substance abuse happen more when one feels isolated. So to keep this major relapse risk at bay, an inpatient rehab program in Tiverton encourages you to reach out. You can go to a meeting, call another person in recovery, or connect with a supportive family member.
• Tired: Exhaustion lowers your defenses and makes stress feel overwhelming. That’s when you seek your comfort food, place, and, in this case, the substance. So when that’s the case, simply rest and don’t let anything drain your energy any further.

Surf the Urge Technique

The “Surf the Urge” technique fundamentally changes how you experience cravings. Because when an intense urge hits, it feels immediate and endless, which eventually pushes you to use/drink. In that moment, doing the thing looks like the only solution, or that urge won’t stop.

But once you learn to surf the urge, you realize that a craving is not a command. It is a temporary sensation, much like a wave in the ocean which builds, peaks, and then, inevitably, passes.

Here are the three stages you learn during an inpatient rehab program in Tiverton to surf the urge:

1. You must notice and name the urge (“I am having a craving right now”) rather than immediately reacting to it. It will create a separation between you and the feeling. 
2. You must ride the feeling and acknowledge its intensity without fighting it or acting on it. For example, you can visualize the urge as a powerful wave beneath you. You should note the physical sensations in your body, like tightness or restlessness, without judging them. 
3. Then, wait for it to pass. Through experience and counseling during an inpatient rehab program in Tiverton, you learn that even the most intense cravings typically peak and subside completely within 15 to 20 minutes.

This hack impacts your sobriety because it replaces panic with patience and power. Instead of feeling trapped by an urge, you know that you only need to endure a short period of discomfort to come out of it. 

Time to Turn the Tide

Addiction might have held you down for a long time, but an inpatient rehab program in Tiverton is capable enough to get you out. It lets you grow out of your immediate withdrawal symptoms and then prevents a relapse even after you return to normal life. 

So if you’re ready to overcome an addiction in a compassionate environment and with experts’ help, reach out to Rhode Island Addiction Treatment Center. Our rehab programs are meant to make you feel seen and overcome your challenges in a safe environment. Call us at 888-541-4028 today, and let’s end this evil together.