Recovery · SMART
SMART Recovery ABC Worksheet
REBT-based tool to catch the belief that turns an urge into a using episode
SMART Recovery's cognitive ABC — an REBT-based tool to catch the belief that turns an activating event into a using urge. Fill this out AFTER an urge or slip and BEFORE the next high-risk situation.
A — Activating event (what happened, factually)
B — Belief (the demand, awfulizing, or low frustration tolerance)
C — Consequence (feeling and behavior)
D — Dispute (challenge the demand — is it a preference or a rule?)
E — Effective new belief
F — New feeling / behavior that follows
Urges are beliefs
'I NEED a drink' is a belief, not a fact. Dispute the demand and the urge loses its authority — even when it's still loud.