1. TRIGGERS — External, interpersonal, and intrapersonal. Which areas are the riskiest for you? Which do you have the most difficulty combatting? Rate each category from 0-10 (where 10 is the riskiest or most difficult).
   
   a.____ Conditioned responses in certain settings
   b.____ Unpleasant emotions
   c.____ Unpleasant physical sensations
   d.____ Pleasant emotions
   e.____ Pressure from others
   f.____ Conflict with others
   g.____ Socializing
   h.____ Testing personal control
   

1. IMAGINING/FANTASIZING — Start to imagine what it would be like to... how you would feel.., how you would think and act ... then...
   

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3. “STINKING THINKING” — Irrational beliefs, cognitive distortions, and rationalizations that you used to convince yourself to take the backward step.
a.____Negative exaggeration; awfulizing; catastrophizing.
b.____Self-downing / self denigration.
c.____ Rationalizations:
              “It won’t really matter."
               "I deserve it.”
              “I will only have one.”
             “It’s been a long time.”
d.____Low frustration tolerance:
              "7 can’t stand it.”
              “It’s awful.”
e.____The tyranny of the should:
              “It shouldn’t be so hard.”
               “I shouldn’t have this problem.”
                “S/he shouldn’t speak to me that way.”
                 "The world stinks, and it shouldn’t!”

4. PLANNING

1. —‘Tll just go down to the store and buy a bottle.”
   
2. —“I’ll finish this project and then go to the bar.”
   
3. —‘Tll take some money out of my other account.”
   

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Teach yourself how to respond at each step. Even though it gets harder to intervene at each step along the way, it can be done. Practice rehearsing relapse preventive self-talk in SMART Recovery group meetings (role-playing is an excellent exercise), out loud at home, into a tape recorder, or in writing.