Gary Blanchard presents a new, positive approach to relapse prevention that focuses on having success rather than avoiding failure. Based on years of study and practice, this book offers information as well as a series of exercises to aid the recovery process. The following is an excerpt from the book:

 

You are committed to making a major change in your life. The path of recovery is not always easy, and it is not always smooth, but it is better than the path of addiction.  While you need to be aware of the possibility of relapse, you also need to think in a more positive way. If you go to the doctor for a check-up, you can think of it as building your health, or you can think of it as preventing death. While there is no change in what happens in the doctor’s office, you will feel better if you think about the visit as building your health. In the same way, you can think about building your recovery or preventing relapse. You will have the same result, but you will feel better if you focus on the positive.

 Too much of life is filled with negative thoughts. If you watch the news, you might believe that the world is a terrible place. Yet, if you look around, you can find so much that is good. If you focus on the bad things, you will feel bad. If you decide to focus on the good things, though, you are more likely to feel good. I am not suggesting that you go into denial and don’t acknowledge the negative things in life. The negative will always be there. If you make that your focus, though, you might forget the good.

When you focus on building recovery, you focus on doing the things that make you stronger. You build skills that allow continued growth. You make connections with people who support your new life. As long as you build recovery, you will continue to eliminate the negative people, places, and things from your life. This will prevent relapse and will allow you to feel better in the process.