Spotlight on SMART Recovery: How Peer Support Can Strengthen Your Recovery After Detox

Completing a detox is a major milestone in the recovery process. It’s often one of the most physically and mentally challenging stages of recovery, but also one of the most empowering. By safely completing a detox, you give your body and mind the opportunity to reset, laying a strong foundation to move forward with greater clarity, stability, and focus.

At AIR Detox, we know that long-term recovery is supported by ongoing care, practical skills, and the right community around you. After your detox, our team helps you build a personalised recovery plan that may include GP follow-up, counselling or psychology, relapse prevention strategies, and peer support options tailored to your goals. We also provide 12 months of complimentary medical follow-up to help monitor your progress and support you over the longer term.

As part of this ongoing care, we’re shining a spotlight on SMART Recovery, one of the evidence-based supports we often recommend as part of a broader recovery toolkit. SMART Recovery helps bridge the gap between detox and everyday life, offering practical strategies, structure, and community connection. It provides a positive, skills-based, and empowering environment where you can learn proven techniques to stay motivated, manage cravings, and build a life that supports long-term recovery.

Below, we explain what SMART Recovery is, the evidence behind why it works, and how to get involved.

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What Is SMART Recovery?

SMART Recovery (Self-Management And Recovery Training) is a practical, science-based approach that helps people gain independence from addictive behaviours. Rather than focusing on labels or surrendering to a higher power, SMART Recovery teaches self-empowerment and self-management, using tools drawn from the following:

• Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT)
• Motivational Interviewing
• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT)

Meetings are free, supportive, and open to anyone wanting to make positive changes in their life. At the end of each session, you leave with a clear plan for the next seven days, breaking your recovery into manageable, practical steps. Its accessibility removes financial barriers and allows every person — regardless of location or circumstance — to benefit from structured, science-backed peer support as part of their ongoing recovery journey.

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The Evidence Behind SMART Recovery

SMART Recovery has been studied extensively both in Australia and internationally. Research shows it helps people reduce their substance use, improve mental wellbeing, and stay committed to change. Key findings include:

• A University of Sydney evaluation found that participants in SMART Recovery programs experienced significant reductions in alcohol consumption and greater confidence in maintaining sobriety.
• A systematic review published in the Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment found consistent evidence that participation leads to improved coping skills, motivation, and reduced substance use across multiple countries and settings (Beck et al., 2017).
• A 2023 mixed-methods pilot study in Australia, published in Addiction Science & Clinical Practice, confirmed that integrating SMART Recovery into outpatient treatment programs is feasible, effective, and highly accepted by participants. A majority of participants (94%) reported benefits relating to reduction or maintenance of abstinence, alongside significant improvements in mental health and connection with others (Manning, Roxburgh, Kelly, et al., 2023).
• A review of international research by SMART Recovery International concluded that peer-led models like SMART Recovery reduce relapse rates and increase engagement in recovery long-term.

Each meeting is guided by a trained facilitator (many with lived experience) who helps participants apply practical tools for managing cravings, emotions, and motivation.

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Types of Support SMART Recovery Offers

SMART Recovery Australia provides several types of evidence-based, free programs and tools to meet people where they are in their recovery journey:

• SMART Recovery Groups: regular peer-led meetings that focus on building motivation, managing urges, coping with cravings, and maintaining balanced living using practical CBT-based strategies.
• SMART Online Meetings: free, confidential sessions that can be joined from anywhere in Australia, offering flexible access for people who prefer virtual support or live in rural or remote areas.
• SMART Online Tools & Self-Guided Resources: A comprehensive suite of practical worksheets, exercises, and tools available online, including craving logs, cost–benefit analyses, goal-setting worksheets, and relapse prevention planning. These resources allow individuals to work through evidence-based techniques at their own pace, either alongside meetings or independently.
• SMART Recovery for Young People: age-appropriate support for adolescents and young adults.
• SMART Recovery in Prisons and Justice Settings: Structured programs designed to support people in custody or post-release to build skills and maintain recovery goals.
• SMART Family & Friends: A dedicated program for loved ones supporting someone experiencing addiction, focusing on communication, boundaries, and self-care (see below for more information).

You can explore all available programs, meetings, and tools at smartrecoveryaustralia.com.au/smart-recovery-programs and access their full list of self-guided resources at smartrecoveryaustralia.com.au/tool-listings.

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SMART Recovery Mobile App

SMART Recovery Australia also offers a free mobile app, available for both iOS and Android. The app allows users to track their urges, set goals, and monitor progress between meetings. It includes digital worksheets, mood tracking, and motivational tools drawn directly from the SMART Recovery program, making it easier to stay accountable and practice recovery skills anywhere, anytime.

You can learn more or download the app at smartrecoveryaustralia.com.au/smart-recovery-mobile-app.

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Support for Loved Ones

It’s important to note that addiction affects families and loved ones as much as it affects individuals. That’s why SMART Recovery also offers SMART Family & Friends, a program designed specifically for those supporting someone with an addiction. These sessions provide:

• Strategies to set healthy boundaries and communicate effectively
• Ways to look after your own emotional health
• A safe space to connect with others who understand

It’s a reminder that support people need support too, and that recovery works best when everyone is cared for.

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Why Peer Support Works

Recovery isn’t just about stopping the substance, it’s about building a life that makes you want to stay sober. That’s where peer support plays such a powerful role. People who join recovery groups gain more than strategies. They gain connection, accountability, and hope.

Research shows:

• Systematic reviews, including those related to the work of Kelly et al., have shown that participation in peer support can increase the likelihood of sustained abstinence by up to 2.9 times compared to clinical care alone, highlighting the power of connection and shared experience.
• Relapse rates are 30–50% lower among those who regularly attend structured peer groups (Best et al., 2020).
• Research consistently highlights that social support is a critical component of successful, sustained recovery. Studies on recovery capital, such as those by Laudet et al., demonstrate that positive social relationships, a strong recovery network, and affiliation with mutual-help organisations are essential for buffering stress, enhancing quality of life, and achieving long-term remission from substance use disorder (Laudet et al., 2006).
• Peer programs reduce isolation, stigma, and stress, while improving motivation and mental wellbeing (Tracy & Wallace, 2016).
• In Australia, participants in SMART Recovery report greater emotional wellbeing and lower distress within months of attending (Kelly et al., 2023).

Patients who connect with peers often thrive after detox. It gives them strength, perspective, and confidence to keep moving forward, even on tough days.

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How to Get Involved

SMART Recovery meetings are completely free and available online and in-person across Australia. Find your nearest meeting or register online at 👉 smartrecoveryaustralia.com.au.

If you’re still drinking or using and need help to safely stop first, AIR Detox offers doctor-led, in-home detox programs for alcohol, cannabis and cocaine, with personalised aftercare and 12 months of medical follow-up. You can learn more about our services work here.

Detox is the first step. Connection keeps you going.

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References

Beck, A. K., Baker, A. L., Kelly, P. J., Deane, F. P., Shakeshaft, A., Hunt, D., & Perry, C. (2017). Systematic review of SMART Recovery: Outcomes, process variables, and implications for research. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 75, 10–21. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsat.2017.01.003

Best, D., Musgrove, A., & Hall, L. (2020). The bridge between social identity and community capital: Transitioning from addiction through community engagement. Addiction Research & Theory, 28(5), 387–395. https://doi.org/10.1080/16066359.2019.1645947

Kelly, J. F., Humphreys, K., & Ferri, M. (2017). Alcoholics Anonymous and other 12‐step programs for alcohol use disorder. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 11, CD012880. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD012880

Kelly, P. J., Robinson, L. D., Baker, A. L., Deane, F. P., & McD Young, R. (2023). Piloting the integration of SMART Recovery into outpatient alcohol and other drug treatment programs. Addiction Science & Clinical Practice, 18(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13722-023-00406-w

Laudet, A. B., Savage, R., & Mahmood, D. (2006). Pathways to long‐term recovery: A preliminary investigation. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 38(3), 351–359. https://doi.org/10.1080/02791072.2006.10400585

Tracy, K., & Wallace, S. P. (2016). Benefits of peer support groups in the treatment of addiction. Substance Abuse and Rehabilitation, 7, 143–154. https://doi.org/10.2147/SAR.S81535

SMART Recovery International. (2021, March 18). SMART Recovery: A summary of the research. Retrieved from https://www.smartrecoveryinternational.org/news/2021/3/18/smart-recovery-a-summary-of-the-research

University of Wollongong. (2023). SMART Recovery research projects – Centre for Health Psychology Practice and Research (CHPPR). Retrieved from https://www.uow.edu.au/the-arts-social-sciences-humanities/research/centre-for-health-psychology-practice-and-research-chppr/addiction-and-mental-health/smart-recovery/