Lindsay Lohan’s battle with addiction has been widely reported by the media. She fell into substance abuse at a young age and has made headlines many times due to bad behaviour while under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Lindsay was a child star so believes the pressure associated with this drove her to addiction. She has been making serious attempts to turn her life around over the last couple of years, but she recently admitted slipping up by drinking a glass of wine.
The Difference between a Slip and a Relapse
A ‘slip’ refers to a situation where a person very briefly returns to alcohol or drug use, but then stops again right away. In the case of Lindsay Lohan, she apparently only had one glass of wine and then stopped, so it would definitely be considered a slip. A relapse means the individual had a slip but just kept on drinking or using drugs until they were back where they started – this can happen very quickly.
What usually happens with a slip is that the person realises right away that he or she has made a mistake. As long as the person is able to recommit to recovery right away, it does not have to be too much of a big deal, although it is vital that the individual learns from what happened. It sounds as if Lindsay had a glass of wine but regretted it afterwards, so she was able to avoid a full-blown relapse.
The Dangers of a Slip
The fact that a person in recovery has a slip is an indication that something very serious is wrong with his or her recovery. If the individual just picks up where they left off, the chances are that there will be more slips in the future. It does sound as if her slip gave Lindsay a bit of a shock, but it is not clear if she made the necessary changes to prevent it happening again in the future.
It is important that individuals avoid beating themselves up too much over a slip, but this does not mean that they should just act as if nothing happened. A return to drinking does not just happen, so there would have been causes for the behaviour, which would need to be dealt with. A slip can be like a ‘wake-up call’, but it only works if the person significantly changes their behaviour afterwards.
Concerns about Lindsay Lohan’s Sobriety
Friends of Lindsay Lohan are not only concerned about her slip but also by the fact that she plans to attend a large music festival (Coachella) that is famous for its substance abuse problems. If she has recently had a slip, it will be really putting her sobriety at risk to attend such an event – some might even suggest that it is asking for trouble.
At the end of the day, only Lindsay can decide what her right path in sobriety is. It is encouraging that she was able to recommit to sobriety following her slip, and it is up to her to decide if she is strong enough to attend a music festival. It is also understandable that others are concerned about her because her behaviour is similar to that of a person who is about to relapse. The fact that she drank again shows that her commitment to sobriety was weak, but hopefully she has now overcome any ambivalence towards recovery. Only time will tell, but it would be a huge shame if Lindsay did not continue with the progress she has been making in recent years.
