Relapse is predictable when addiction is misunderstood. If addiction is a strategy used to manage internal discomfort, then recovery has to address more than the addictive behavior. It has to address what addiction was trying to manage.

Recovery can go deeper than abstinence and self-control. This article explores addiction as a strategy that was trying to help, why surface recovery can leave something unresolved, and how deeper recovery includes understanding what addiction was managing and recovering access to authenticity.