Limits of habituation and extinction: implications for relapse prevention programs in addictions

Problems in the application of exposure techniques to the management of long term dishabituation in addicts are discussed in the light of human and animal evidence. Extinction and habituation of responses to drug cues or drug aftereffects are unstable and strongly dependent on context, thus limiting the effectiveness of cue exposure treatments in the prevention of relapse. Several strategies are suggested to improve the stability of extinction and habituation in order to enduringly prevent relapse in addictions. (i) Warning patients about the episodic resurgence of unexpected urges or cravings precipitated by conditioned contexts and exposing them to such contexts. (ii) To obtain a maximum protection against relapse, extinction should 'recreate' all the original learning contexts (i.e. all possible drug cues). (iii) The behavioral chains involved in self administering drugs ought to be incorporated into cue exposure treatments (without permitting consummatory responses) in order to decrease their signal value as cues for drugs.