Addiction glossary
Triggers
Triggers are the cues your brain has wired to using — the people, places, things, times and feelings that fire a craving, often before you've consciously clocked them. They're why a craving can seem to come from nowhere when, looked at closely, it almost never does.
They come in two kinds. External triggers are out in the world: a particular pub, payday, certain friends, a song, the end of a stressful week. Internal triggers are states inside you — stress, boredom, loneliness, anxiety — and especially the HALT states: Hungry, Angry, Lonely, Tired, when your defences quietly drop.
Why it matters
Relapse rarely comes out of the blue — there's almost always a trigger somewhere in the chain. That's actually good news: a trigger you can name is a trigger you can plan for. Left unnamed, it ambushes you; named, it becomes something you can see coming and handle.
What to do
Pin down your top few honestly, then design around them: avoid what you reasonably can, make a concrete plan for what you can't, and treat HALT states as part of your relapse prevention rather than optional self-care. When a trigger does land, remember a craving is a wave that passes — see fiending and the full cravings guide. If slips keep finding you, an honest self-assessment and a look at lapse vs relapse are good next steps.
Frequently asked questions
What are the most common triggers?
Drink, certain people and places, stress, payday, and the HALT states — being hungry, angry, lonely or tired. Many slips happen not in a moment of huge temptation but when someone is simply exhausted or isolated.
Can a trigger hit long after I've quit?
Yes — a place, a person or a stressful day can spark a craving months or years on. It's normal, it isn't failure, and with a plan it passes without becoming a relapse.
Keep getting caught by the same triggers?
Mapping yours and building a plan around them is exactly what one-to-one work is for. A private, confidential chat with Gary.
Book a confidential chat → Take the free self-assessment