Drug Abuse and Relapse Prevention Mechanisms: A Phenomenological Study on The Lived Experiences of Former Drug Users in Yogyakarta Indonesia

The relapse of drug abuse is the most difficult problem that former drug users must face. This problem will continue to exist Until the moment when the drug users are able to stop consuming the drugs. The process of recovery is a process which the drug users take as their efforts to stop consuming drugs and this process could be affected by many factors. The study aims to explore former drug abuse users’ experiences in an attempt to stop consuming drugs and relapse prevention. Qualitative research design with a phenomenological approach was used in this study. Eight former drug users in Yogyakarta were involved as the participants. The data was collected through in-depth interviews within 60-90 minutes for each participant. The data analysis used was the Collaizi seven stages method. Three emergent themes were drawn: internal triggers of drug abuse relapse, external triggers of drug abuse relapse, and memorable life events supporting drug abuse users in stopping the drug consumption, such as family, religious, government policy, police arrests and drug outbreaks. The conclusion of this study is that it is found that there are induced factors of internal and external factors and the protective factor of self-awareness in drug abuse prevention efforts developed from the most important event of the lives of former drug abuse users. Keyword—drug users; self-awareness; relapse prevention;