Nigerian cannabis users reframed recovery as a process rather than just abstinence | Research

The takeaway

Interviews with 97 cannabis-dependent users in Nigeria revealed that framing recovery as total abstinence made relapse feel like failure, while some participants redefined recovery as a process measured by reduced use and improved well-being.

Addiction treatment providers, harm reduction advocates, and anyone interested in how cannabis users define and experience recovery.

97 participants redefining recovery beyond abstinence in a Nigerian context

What the researchers found

Participants initially sought treatment hoping for total abstinence and identity repair. When relapse occurred, the abstinence-only framework made them feel they had failed. Some participants reframed recovery as "recovering" rather than "recovered," measuring progress by reduced use and improved overall well-being rather than complete cessation.

Why it matters

In many treatment settings, particularly in low-resource countries, abstinence is the only accepted recovery goal. This study gives voice to cannabis users who are finding that harm reduction approaches better match their lived experience and recovery trajectory.

The numbers in context

97 participants; ages 21-34; street-involved cannabis users; Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria

How the study worked

Qualitative study of 97 current cannabis users aged 21-34 in Uyo, Nigeria, recruited through time-location sampling. In-depth individual interviews were transcribed, coded, and analyzed thematically.

What this study cannot tell us

Street-involved cannabis users in one Nigerian city may not represent all cannabis-dependent individuals. Qualitative design captures depth but not prevalence of views. Cultural context shapes recovery narratives.

How to read the evidence

Rich qualitative data from a hard-to-reach population, but findings are contextual and not generalizable without further research.

When this study was published

Published in 2021.

The bigger picture

The tension between abstinence-only and harm reduction models of recovery is playing out globally. These Nigerian cannabis users' experiences mirror conversations happening in treatment systems worldwide, suggesting the need for more flexible recovery frameworks.

Questions still open

Would harm reduction-oriented treatment programs improve outcomes in this population? How do cultural and religious factors in Nigeria influence recovery definitions? Can treatment systems accommodate both abstinence and reduced-use goals?

Common questions

Is abstinence the only path to recovery from cannabis dependence?

Some participants in this study found that redefining recovery as reduced use and improved well-being was more sustainable than an all-or-nothing abstinence model, particularly when relapse disrupted their sense of progress.

Why did the abstinence model create problems?

When recovery was defined solely as abstinence, any relapse felt like total failure. This discouraged participants from continuing to seek help and undermined the genuine progress they had made in reducing use.

Read the original research

Redefining recovery: Accounts of treatment experiences of dependent cannabis users in Nigeria.

Journal of substance abuse treatment, 125, 108321

View on PubMed ↗Publisher’s paper ↗

Citation

Nelson, Ediomo-Ubong Ekpo; Essien, Nsidibe Francis. (2021). Redefining recovery: Accounts of treatment experiences of dependent cannabis users in Nigeria.. Journal of substance abuse treatment, 125, 108321. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsat.2021.108321