Stage 5 (maintenance)

Change becomes easier and your commitment grows with each success. Your sense of mastery and pleasure increases. Your sense of hope increases and you may begin to think of the possibility of a future without anxiety.

Stage 6 (lapse)

It’s to be expected that from time-to-time you may feel worse and that the symptoms you thought had gone for good may return. Don’t despair! It’s accepted and understood that recovery doesn’t guarantee that each day you’ll feel better than the last.

Overall, recovery means we feel better as time passes, but for small periods our recoveries are made up of disappointments and setbacks as well as celebrations and successes. This is an absolutely normal part of recovery! Over time our symptoms will reduce in intensity and return less frequently.