Recovery guides

Coping skills and practical guides for everyday recovery.

Short, practical guides on the skills and techniques used inside My Recovery Support — grounding, HALT, urge surfing, and more. Written from the same thinking behind the app, for anyone to use.

The 5-4-3-2-1 grounding technique

A simple five-sense exercise to interrupt a spiral and bring your attention back to the present moment.

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HALT: checking in on Hunger, Anger, Loneliness, Tiredness

A quick self-check used in recovery to catch the ordinary conditions that make urges and hard moments more likely.

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Urge surfing: riding out a craving instead of acting on it

A relapse-prevention technique for noticing an urge, staying with it, and letting it pass without needing to obey it.

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Writing a personal safety plan

A simple, written plan for warning signs, coping steps, people to call, and how to remove access to means — made before a crisis, not during one.

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Building a daily check-in routine

A short morning and evening habit for naming how you actually are, so patterns are visible before they become a crisis.

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Journaling prompts for early recovery

Simple prompts for days when a blank page feels like too much, built around noticing rather than performing insight.

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What sponsors and mentors actually do, and how to find one

What the roles mean, how they differ, and practical ways to find someone without it feeling like a cold approach.

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Understanding Your Recovery Insights

How to read patterns in check-ins, journal entries, and urge logs as useful information—not a scorecard for recovery.

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How Recovery Blocks Can Help You Reset

A short, hands-on way to give restless energy, focus, and reset practice somewhere useful to go.

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Tracking mood, urges, and sleep without judgment

How a few honest check-ins can reveal patterns and support better decisions without becoming a scorecard for recovery.

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STOP Skill: pause and proceed mindfully

A practical DBT skill for pausing, stepping back, observing what is happening, and choosing your next action with more intention.

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ACCEPTS Skill: safe distraction for hard moments

A distress-tolerance skill for creating space through activities, contribution, emotions, thoughts, and the senses.

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TIPP Skill: a fast body reset

A DBT distress-tolerance skill that uses temperature, intense movement, paced breathing, and muscle release to help calm a body alarm.

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PLEASE Skill: care for your body and routines

A practical emotion-regulation skill for reducing vulnerability by caring for physical health, rest, routines, and recovery needs.

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The 4 A's of Gratitude

A simple way to notice what is still good, steady, honest, and worth protecting today.

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What To Do During Cravings

A simple plan for getting through an urge without letting it run the whole moment.

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Recovery Compass: Daily Motivation

A daily reset for remembering why recovery matters and what next step fits today.

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What Happens After Relapse

A steady next-step guide for telling the truth, getting support, and coming back after a setback.

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Building a Support System

How to find safe people, stay connected, and let support make recovery less lonely.

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Transitioning From Treatment to Everyday Life

A practical plan for carrying recovery into routines, relationships, appointments, and ordinary stress after treatment.

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Practicing recovery skills privately, without provider surveillance

How alumni can use urge surfing, grounding, and check-ins on their own terms, with a private, non-clinical tool that keeps their entries their own.

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These guides share general recovery information and are not medical advice. If you are in immediate danger, contact local emergency services or call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline).