Use this after a return to use, once immediate safety and medical needs have been addressed.
First, deal with safety
Call 000 if someone is unconscious or difficult to wake, is not breathing normally, has a seizure, is severely confused or is in immediate danger of harming themselves or someone else. Follow the emergency operator's instructions. Do not wait to complete this page or for a routine appointment.
After a break, tolerance may be lower. Returning to an amount used before can cause overdose. What was taken, mixing substances, health and the circumstances all matter. A familiar amount or appearance does not establish safety. Seek medical advice promptly about what to do next; this guide cannot assess the risk remotely.
Reconnect before trying to explain everything
Once immediate needs are addressed, contact your treating clinician, an alcohol and other drug service or a trusted support person. You can say what happened and ask for help without having a complete explanation. If there is an existing care or crisis plan, tell the clinician which parts you could use and which were unavailable.
Substance use disorders can follow a changing course. A return to use does not erase previous gains or mean treatment cannot help. It can change risks and require a care review. Recurrence is neither inevitable nor harmless. Ongoing care for a chronic condition should respond to what is needed now, without blame.
Reflect later, without putting yourself on trial
When you are safe and able to think clearly, look at one part of the lead-up. What was happening? What did you hope would change? What helped you limit harm or seek support? You do not need to reconstruct every detail or force an answer immediately.
Choose one adjustment to discuss: an earlier check-in, a different plan for a difficult situation or a review of treatment. Do not test yourself by recreating the situation. Learning from what happened can be useful, but reflection does not replace medical review or an agreed safety plan.
For health professionals
A place in the clinical conversation
Address intoxication, overdose, withdrawal and mental-health risk before reflective work. The card is not triage or a withdrawal plan. Use it later to support reconnection and one proportionate adjustment, without assuming recurrence is inevitable or benign.
Use the sheet alongside your clinical assessment. It does not produce a diagnosis, measure risk or determine treatment. If seeking a specialist opinion, state the clinical question and relevant history using the usual referral pathway.