Therapy can be a crucial part of your healing journey—whether you’re navigating anxiety, trauma, depression, or working through substance use issues. For individuals in addiction treatment, especially, weekly therapy sessions often serve as a lifeline—offering structure, guidance, emotional support, and a sense of accountability.
But what happens when your therapist is unavailable?
Whether they’re away on vacation, medical leave, or simply between sessions during a holiday break, the sudden absence of your primary mental health support can feel unsettling, even overwhelming. The quiet in your routine can lead to emotional vulnerability, rising anxiety, and feelings of abandonment—especially if you’re still working through trust issues or early recovery.
But here’s the good news: your progress doesn’t have to pause just because your therapist is away. With the right strategies, you can stay emotionally grounded, practice effective self-care, and even discover inner strengths you didn’t know you had.
Let’s explore how to care for yourself—intentionally and compassionately—during the times your therapist isn’t available, with special focus on those engaged in or recovering from addiction treatment.
Why It Feels So Hard When Therapy Pauses
The relationship between client and therapist is often deeply emotional, especially for people who’ve lacked safe emotional connections in the past. Your therapist might be the first person you’ve fully opened up to—or the only person who truly “gets it.” Their absence, however temporary, can stir up:
- Fear of abandonment or rejection
- Doubt about your ability to cope without support
- Emotional regression or resurfacing of old wounds
- Temptation to numb emotions—especially with alcohol or old habits
This can be especially dangerous for someone in addiction treatment, as moments of emotional isolation can trigger cravings or relapse.
But it’s also a powerful opportunity to practice the self-care tools your therapist has helped you build.
Step 1: Acknowledge and Accept Your Feelings
One of the most compassionate things you can do for yourself is to acknowledge your emotions without judgment.
Are you feeling anxious? Lonely? Triggered? That’s okay.
Write it down. Talk to a friend. Cry if you need to. Just don’t bottle it up. Remind yourself: “This is a temporary absence, not abandonment.”
If you’re in recovery, remember that cravings often spike in emotional distress. Labeling your feelings early helps prevent reactive behaviors like reaching for a drink or isolating.
Step 2: Keep a Routine—Structure Is Self-Care
A disrupted routine can lead to mental disarray. When your therapist is unavailable, try to maintain your regular therapy time as a self-check-in slot. Here are some ways to use it:
- Journal about what you’re feeling or what you might’ve shared in therapy
- Meditate or practice deep breathing
- Review old therapy notes or homework assignments
- Listen to a mental health podcast
- Attend an online peer support group
If you’re in addiction treatment, use this time to attend a recovery meeting (such as Alcoholics Anonymous or SMART Recovery), watch recovery-centered videos, or read recovery literature.
Creating a reliable structure—even if you’re just following a simple morning and evening routine—builds emotional safety and consistency.
Step 3: Revisit the Tools Your Therapist Has Taught You
Now is the time to pull out the techniques you’ve been working on in therapy. These might include:
- Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) exercises
- Emotion regulation tools from DBT (like the TIPP or PLEASE skills)
- Grounding exercises and mindfulness techniques
- Guided meditations or affirmations
- Self-soothing practices (music, warm showers, sensory items)
Make a list of the ones that help most. Tape them to your mirror or keep them on your phone for quick access when stress spikes.
For those in addiction treatment for alcoholics, this might also include relapse prevention techniques—like identifying triggers, using distraction strategies, and reaching out to a sober friend.
Step 4: Reach Out to Your Support Network
Just because your therapist is away doesn’t mean you’re alone. Now’s the time to lean on other forms of support.
Here’s who you can turn to:
- A trusted friend or family member who knows about your healing journey
- A peer support group (online or in person)
- Recovery sponsors or accountability partners
- Crisis hotlines or mental health chat platforms
- Alumni networks from your treatment center (if you’ve attended one)
Having someone to check in with regularly can help you feel more grounded—and less tempted to spiral into negative thoughts or unhealthy coping.
If you’re early in addiction treatment for alcoholics, staying connected to your sober community is essential for avoiding relapse during emotionally vulnerable times.
Step 5: Practice Grounding and Mindfulness
When emotional overwhelm hits, mindfulness and grounding techniques can help you find calm and clarity.
Here are some simple yet powerful techniques:
- 5-4-3-2-1 Technique: Name 5 things you see, 4 you can touch, 3 you can hear, 2 you can smell, 1 you can taste.
- Box Breathing: Inhale for 4 seconds, hold for 4, exhale for 4, hold for 4. Repeat.
- Sensory Walk: Take a 10-minute walk and describe what you’re seeing, hearing, and feeling to yourself as if narrating a movie.
These practices are especially effective if you’re feeling triggered, dissociated, or emotionally dysregulated. For those in addiction treatment for alcoholics, grounding exercises help manage cravings and avoid impulsive behavior.
Step 6: Use This Time for Self-Reflection and Growth
Believe it or not, your therapist’s absence can become a turning point. This is a chance to test the coping tools you’ve learned and prove to yourself how far you’ve come.
Use this time to:
- Track your moods daily
- Reflect on what triggers you and how you’re managing
- Set small emotional goals (e.g., “I will sit with discomfort for 10 minutes today instead of avoiding it.”)
- Practice positive self-talk
These mini-milestones are incredibly empowering—especially for individuals who once relied on alcohol or unhealthy habits to cope.
Step 7: Know When to Ask for Extra Help
There’s a difference between feeling mildly unmoored and being in crisis. If you experience:
- Intense depression or hopelessness
- Urges to harm yourself or relapse
- Panic attacks or trauma flashbacks
- Extreme loneliness or emotional shutdown
…it’s time to seek professional backup.
Options include:
- Calling a crisis helpline
- Reaching out to your therapist’s emergency contact (if they’ve provided one)
- Scheduling a session with a substitute or on-call therapist
- Contacting your primary care doctor or psychiatrist
For those actively engaged in addiction treatment for alcoholics, it’s crucial to have an emergency plan in place for moments of crisis—this might include calling a sponsor or returning to a treatment center for support.
Final Thoughts: You’re More Resilient Than You Think
Yes, therapy is a lifeline—but you are the one doing the work. Your therapist is a guide, but your healing journey belongs to you.
When they’re away, it’s a chance to:
- Prove to yourself how strong and capable you are
- Reconnect with your inner resilience
- Strengthen your emotional self-reliance
- Reinforce the healthy habits you’ve built in therapy
If you’re recovering from alcohol addiction, this is also a powerful time to reflect on how sobriety allows you to face challenges with clarity and courage—something the old, drinking version of you might have avoided.
You’ve come this far. And even without your therapist in the room, you’ve got this.