Overview of Session 5: Skill Topic 3, Coping With Cravings and Urges To Use
Total Time: 1 hour
Delivery Method: CBT-focused individual therapy
Materials (all forms are at the end of this section):
• Coping With Cravings and Urges (form 5A)
• Urge Surfing (form 5B)
• Daily Record of Urges To Use Marijuana (form 5C)
Goals for This Session:
• To enhance the client’s understanding about cravings and urges for marijuana use
• To identify specific triggers or cues for cravings (see Carroll 1998)
• To review and practice specific skills for addressing cravings
Session Outline:
1. Give reasons for focusing on cravings
• Provide basic information about the nature of cravings
— Cravings are experienced most often early in abstinence but can occur weeks, months, even years later
— Cravings may feel very uncomfortable but are a common experience
— An urge to smoke does not mean something is wrong
• Give client Coping With Cravings and Urges (form 5A)
2. Identify cues for cravings
• Give client examples of common cues
— Exposure to marijuana or paraphernalia
— Seeing other people using
— Contact with people, places, times of day, or situations associated with using
— Particular emotions and physical feelings
3. Discuss strategies for coping with triggers
• Getting involved in a distracting activity
• Talking it through
• Urge surfing (Urge Surfing, form 5B)
• Delaying decisions
• Using imagery
• Challenging and changing thoughts
• Using self-talk
4. Complete exercises
• Make a list of craving triggers
• Make a plan for managing craving
5. Assign between-session exercises
• Encourage client to review material on handouts before the next session
• Encourage client to practice urge surfing
• Complete Daily Record of Urges To Use Marijuana (form 5C)
6. Review and conclude session