Get Resources to Prevent Relapse and Stay Sober with Purpose
The urge surfing technique is an extremely valuable coping skill with its basis in dialectical behavior therapy. You can ride out the waves of your cravings and emotions to maintain your sobriety. Our printable urge surfing worksheet provides the framework for coping with unwanted behaviors.
Purpose Healing Center provides a safe place for you to land when you need more intensive help with unwanted urges than you can manage on your own. From inpatient rehab to intensive outpatient, we offer the Joint Commission-accredited services needed to get these issues under control.
Keep reading for more resources on curbing addictive behaviors with this instant digital download from our expert clinicians at Purpose Healing in Arizona!
1. Set Yourself Up for Success: Preparing to Surf the Urges
As the wave begins to crest, you need to put yourself in a position to be successful. Remove yourself from busy and chaotic environments, retreating to somewhere comfortable and calm. Take a seat and simply notice how you feel.
You can download our PDF Worksheet here, and work through it as you read our resource as well.
This is where you can ask yourself questions to get to the bottom of how you feel. Many clients have a difficult time understanding what their bodies are trying to tell them. These prompts can help you place the feeling and ultimately lead to more successful surfing. (Rate each one on a scale of one to ten.)
- Rate the tension in your shoulders, jaw, back, and other key places where you are known to hold difficult emotions.
- Rate how difficult it is to redirect your thoughts away from the urge onto more productive or useful outcomes.
- Rate how hard it is to focus on naming a single part of the body where the urge originates.
- Rate how hard it is to resist the trigger that brought you to this point.
Scores that are close to ten may be indicators that you need more help or counseling around this issue. If you can focus on the sensations of the body, you may have more success riding the wave, which can ultimately keep you from breaking your sobriety.
2. Practice Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills
Eventually, you’ll have to redirect your energy and effort away from the tension found in your body and start to make moves toward a different outcome. Dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) can help you with mindfulness techniques, but here are a few ways you can harness their power until you get to a group therapy session:
- Name 5 things you can see, 4 things you can feel, 3 things you can hear, 2 things you can smell, and 1 thing you can taste.
- Imagine each of your thoughts and urges as a leaf, falling from a tree. Watch them float gently to the ground without acting on them or picking any of them up.
- Relax your body incrementally, starting with your feet and working your way toward the crown of the head.
- Focus on mindful breathing, inhaling for four seconds, holding for seven seconds, and exhaling for eight seconds.
Pretend that your breath is going to be your new surfboard. It’s the only thing you can control about your urges, and you will have to ride the wave as your desire peaks and then falls. You’re about to go surfing and ride the waves, so do what you can to prepare yourself here and now.
Purpose Healing Center can help you review some of these mindfulness techniques so that you have them available when you need them.
3. Time Your Surfing Sessions
When you sit down to start to suppress the urge, set a timer so that you have a benchmark for how long it takes. Most people find that they can accept their urges in thirty minutes or less. This tool helps you to better recognize your progress as surfing sessions become shorter and shorter.
How long does it take you to move from the first inkling of an urge to the peak of the desire? Over time, you may find that your entire process takes less time and you’re able to get yourself back on track with minimal downtime. Don’t get up from your surfing session until you’re sure that your urge has passed.
While you sit and practice some of these DBT skills, you’ll come to realize when you’re no longer at risk of giving in to temptation.
4. Limit Yourself to Time
If you’re struggling with how long it takes you to conquer your addiction urges, you may want to journal about what feels reasonable to you at this point in your recovery. Some people can tolerate up to thirty minutes of surfing while others live in a moment-by-moment reality.
For right now, think about this: can you sit with this intense urge for one minute? Two minutes?
This is a lot more manageable than trying to white-knuckle it until your urge passes. A technique that limits your time spent surfing can be quite powerful for those who are in early recovery or dealing with particularly strong cravings.
Think about the picture of a wave cresting and know that it will eventually abate so that you can return to what matters most in your life. For each minute that passes, know that you’re one step closer to the end of the wave. While you’re in this vulnerable position, make sure there are no new triggers in your environment that would tempt you further.
5. Reminder to Seek Support
While this urge surfing handout can give you the tools necessary to ride the wave, you may find that your urges are coming more frequently or are feeling more intense than you can bear. When this is the case, seek additional support. This could look like attending a 12-step meeting or a counseling session.
Purpose Healing Center can help with both inpatient and intensive outpatient treatment programs. If you find that you need help, don’t hesitate to reach out. We can help you get the skills you need to be able to reflect on alcohol and drug misuse so that it’s easier for you to surf.
Get More Help with the Urge Surfing Technique at Purpose
This urge surfing handout is a great starting point when it comes to attempting to overcome patterns of old and unhelpful behaviors. Purpose Healing Center wants to support you with evidence-based ways to handle your emotions and substance use. We help you tap into the psychology behind decisions. When you’re ready to conquer these unwanted behaviors, self-control isn’t the only thing you need. You also need support from experienced clinicians. Call our enrollment team today to learn how we can help you with your urges and verify your insurance benefits!
480-579-3319