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A good rule of thumb is not to expose your friend to potential triggers. Try a painting class together or organize a fun board game night. There is a world of activities that have nothing to do with substance use of any kind. You may even find a new healthy habit to enjoy together. This gives you a quick and easy explanation for why you aren’t drinking.
Many counseling facilities have group therapy sessions overseen by a counselor. These groups are common in Intensive Outpatient Settings. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) classes are common. If you become injured or require surgery, you’ll want to pay close attention to Top 5 Tips to Consider When Choosing a Sober House for Living the medications your doctor prescribes. Your doctor should know your history and be mindful of what medications they provide. Additionally, you can advocate for yourself by asking if there are other ways to manage pain, like acupuncture, massage and physical therapy.
How to Stay Sober: 10 Tips
While in rehab, setting goals may appear to be endless. There is always something else to do and more aspects to work on towards achieving full recovery. It can be difficult to maintain focus and concentration on the path to recovery. However, the question is not about why you need to stay focused, but how.
- Sobriety is not an easy or quick fix to life’s problems.
- Your recovery will be bolstered by the confidence you gain in yourself (and the confidence you can pass on to others).
- You may relapse and stay intoxicated if you don’t handle these feelings properly.
- You can’t go into the situation thinking you can make someone stop their harmful actions.
- Remember that treating an addiction is treating a brain disorder.
Early in recovery, sensory reminders (visual, smell, places, certain people) are best avoided, but down the road some triggers may lose potency. Occasionally check in and see how your partner is doing and readjust accordingly. According to a national study, there are approximately 20 million people in the United States with a substance use disorder. And of those, 9% have recovered from or resolved an alcohol or drug problem.
Substance-Free Environment
Learn about 5 of the best things you can do to help your loved one or friend from here on out. For people who have little experience with recovery or addiction treatment, relapse can seem like the end of recovery. It’s important that you not look at a loved one’s relapse as a failure.
Why do people struggle to stay sober?
Addiction is largely hereditary, meaning if you have family members who have struggled with substance use, you are more prone to developing a substance use disorder yourself. Environment. If you currently live in a chaotic, hostile, or high-stress environment, it will be difficult for you to get and stay sober.
That can result in a lack of self-care, increased illness and sometimes struggles with depression and anxiety. Design for Change is a full-service addiction recovery center in Lancaster, California that offers tiered levels of treatment for drug addiction and alcoholism. When you have Substance Use Disorder, your body seeks to prevent death and injury by changing to a state opposite that of the drug’s effect. When your body perceives that you’re about to ingest the drug, it will go into that state in advance, anticipating a dose of poison. Recovery is your friend’s journey, and no two recovery journeys are alike. There is a difference between being an ally and being a helicopter.
Tips to Help You Stay Sober
Someone may ask you why you’re sober, whether it’s an old friend or family you don’t see often. Planning your response to these questions can help you along your recovery journey. For close friends or relatives, you can explain that substance misuse became a problem and you wanted a solution. As you consider all of your relationships, be honest with yourself about which ones support your recovery and which ones might threaten it.
Remember to care for yourself, seek supportive relationships, and consider seeking help from a therapist. If these emotions become excessive, they can hold you back from recovery. If you are trying to maintain a sober lifestyle, those feelings can become https://goodmenproject.com/everyday-life-2/top-5-tips-to-consider-when-choosing-a-sober-house-for-living/ toxic and contribute to relapse if you don’t deal with them properly. A therapist can help you learn new coping skills, develop new thinking patterns, and address any co-occurring mental health conditions that may make recovery more difficult.