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                        The preceding six stages are the stages you will go through as you consider and finally achieve recovery. Please understand that when you relapse all is not over. You need to get back in touch with the new and clean friends you made in recovery and stay away completely from your past environments. Recovery is a process where you must completely change your thinking and reprogram your mind. It's sort of like brainwashing. Until you are fully brainwashed to your new way of thinking you will be susceptible to slips and relapses. You are more vulnerable to relapse when your mind has not fully reached the point of being fully reprogrammed. Until you fully cross that line to where you are not mentally vulnerable to old suggestions, you will need to take special care when you are around old triggers. If you do happen to slip, understand that you have gone through a teriffic amount of change mentally to get to this point.  Don't turn the slip into a relapse by immediately getting back in touch with those who have helped you and again avoid the triggers (people, places and influences) that caused you to slip. Go see other friends you have met in recovery and confess your issues with them. They know and understand you and want to be there when you need them most. The recovery community is a wonderful community with great support. Nearly everyone has a slip or two as their mind goes through the 6 stages of change. Pat yourself on the back for the mighty effort you have been undertaking. Take every step cautiously and do not get overwhelmed. It took me over 3 years from when I first decided to quit drinking to the point that I finally did quit. This was my 3 years of going through the contemplation stage. Thats the stage where I knew my alcoholism was destroying my life and I desperately wanted a change. Looking back, I know what would have made me quit drinking sooner, that would have been my acceptance of other people helping me. I was too egotistical and ashamed to allow other people into my sad world of addiction. I strongly felt that I could do it all by myself. How wrong I was. The 6 stages of change do not happen overnight and thats because every situation is unique. The 6 stages are a process that will occur based on the factors that led you to become addicted in the first place. As long as you continue to be honest with yourself in searching for the true causes and influences surrounding  your addiction, coupled with understanding the 6 stages you will go through as you begin to quit, you can then see a much clearer map of what you need to do to be free from alcohol or drug addiction. Regardless of what your life situation may be due to your addiction, you need to know that you will find renewed respect from those around you when they find out that you have really decided to stop your addiction. Your family and close friends will really applaud you but your partying friends will detest your decision to get clean.

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