Bifalgorithm post · Health Education · Behavior Change and Goal Setting
Later Stages
Later Stages (Health Education · Behavior Change and Goal Setting) — "People in the Action stage have changed their behavior within the last six months and nee…
Ideas in this flowchart
- Behavior change stages and relapse prevention
- Action stage
- Behavior changed within the last six months, requiring continued effort to progress
- Strengthen commitments to change and resist urges to return to unhealthy behavior
- Replace activities related to unhealthy behavior with positive activities
- Reward steps taken toward behavior change
- Avoid people and situations that encourage unhealthy behavior
- Maintenance stage
- Behavior changed more than six months ago
- Remain aware of situations that may trigger relapse, especially stressful situations
- Seek support from trusted people and spend time with people who behave healthily
- Use healthy activities to cope with stress instead of unhealthy behavior
- Relapse
- Resuming smoking, drug use, or alcohol use after successfully quitting
- People attempting to quit highly addictive behaviors face particularly high relapse risk
- Long-term behavior change often requires ongoing support
- Support may come from family members, a health coach, a physician, or another motivational source
- Supportive literature and other resources can help prevent relapse
