What life skills do people build in recovery?

There is no official list of seven life skills in recovery; the number is an informal convention. Sources that describe treatment and recovery support name skills such as managing stress and emotions, communicating, solving problems, refusing offers, using support, finding and keeping work, and building a meaningful daily routine, which the editors have grouped into seven below.

How the seven were chosen

The grouping rests on three kinds of sources: SAMHSA's description of recovery, NIDA's treatment guides, and a peer-reviewed review of cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for substance use disorders. Skills that no opened source supports are left out. In particular, sleep routines and money management are often mentioned in recovery advice, but the sources used here do not teach them as skills, so they are not on the list. Different publishers would produce a different seven.

1. Managing stress and difficult emotions

NIDA says behavioral approaches aim to increase life skills for handling stressful circumstances and environmental cues that can trigger craving. The CBT review groups emotion regulation skills as distress tolerance and coping, using problem-solving exercises to find non-drug alternatives to distress. Strategies it names include using social supports, doing pleasurable activities, and exercise. NIAAA adds that after heavy drinking, a hypersensitive negative emotional state can persist during protracted withdrawal, with symptoms such as irritability and sleep disturbances, which is one reason this skill set matters. For more, see dialectical behavior therapy and mindfulness-based approaches.

2. Communicating clearly

The CBT review says interpersonal skills building can target repairing relationship difficulties and effective communication. A NIAAA-published coping skills manual notes that communication skills training was part of the research behind its program, and that skills practiced in role play can reduce misunderstanding with a significant other. See interpersonal therapy.

3. Solving problems step by step

The same manual teaches problem solving early because it gives a common framework for the crises that can lead to early relapse. A later review says the basic steps apply to almost any difficulty.

4. Refusing offers and avoiding high-risk situations

NIDA describes CBT as helping people recognize, avoid, and cope with the situations in which they are most likely to use drugs. The CBT review adds that rehearsing responses to offers of alcohol or drugs gives people a stronger skill set outside of sessions. These are covered in the five recovery skills.

5. Using social support

SAMHSA lists community, relationships and networks that offer support, friendship, love, and hope, as one of four dimensions of recovery. The CBT review lists "increasing the ability to use social support" as an interpersonal goal. Options are described in mutual-help groups and supporting a family member.

6. Finding and keeping work

The CBT review notes that skills that served a person during active use may translate poorly to obtaining and maintaining a job, reconnecting with family, and building healthy life activities. The Project MATCH manual added training in job seeking and interviewing, and NIDA's description of the Community Reinforcement Approach includes vocational counseling. SAMHSA places work, school, volunteering, and caregiving under its "purpose" dimension, together with the independence, income, and resources to take part in society.

7. Building a routine of meaningful activity

The CBT review points out that when substance use is reduced, people can be left with a sense of absence where time was dedicated to use, and that increasing pleasant, goal-directed activities alongside reducing use can be crucial for starting and keeping abstinence. SAMHSA also lists a stable and safe place to live as its "home" dimension of recovery, the practical base for a daily routine. A related page covers enjoyable activities in recovery.

Limits of any list

Skills are learned unevenly, and none of the sources promises that learning a set of skills prevents relapse. Which ones matter depends on a person's history and circumstances, so a qualified clinician is the right person to help prioritize. Skills teaching is often delivered through psychoeducation and counseling.