My Long-Haul Plan

Early recovery has a lot of intensity and support around it. The long haul is quieter - and that's where many people drift, because the crisis has passed and the structures quietly fall away. This worksheet helps you plan for the long game: how you'll keep your supports alive, catch yourself if you drift, and respond to a slip without spiraling, months and years from now.

The long haul is won by staying connected, not by staying scared: You won't keep this up on fear and intensity - those fade. You keep it up by building recovery into your ordinary life so it survives the calm stretches. Plan for the quiet times now.

Keeping it alive

Tick the supports you'll commit to keeping, even when things are going well.

• [ ] Staying connected to my group / community
• [ ] Regular check-ins with someone
• [ ] Periodic therapy or tune-ups
• [ ] Keeping access limits in place
• [ ] Reviewing my warning signs now and then
• [ ] Keeping my outer-circle life full

If I drift

Honest signs that I'm drifting from recovery (even with no slip yet):

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My plan to get back on track if I notice that drift:

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If I slip

A slip is not the end of recovery - it's a moment that tells you something. The plan is to catch it fast, tell someone immediately, and get back to your tools - not to spiral into shame and 'I've blown it all.'

My exact first three steps if I slip (who I tell, what I do):

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Recovery is built one ordinary day at a time: The dramatic part is the start. The lasting part is the quiet, daily choosing - long after the crisis. You've got the tools and the people. Keep them close, and keep walking. You can do this for the long haul.

Go deeper

Ready for more? These lessons pick up where this worksheet leaves off.

• Your New Path: Integration & Staying the Course, from Sex Addiction Recovery. The capstone of the recovery course: integrate every tool into a sustainable life, expect a non-linear path, and stay the course for the long haul.
• Relapse Prevention: Seeing the Warning Signs, from Sex Addiction Recovery. Relapse is a process, not an event.
• Connection Over Isolation, from Sex Addiction Recovery. Isolation fuels addiction; connection starves it.