Ways to Maintain Your Sober Living
You have worked very hard to overcome your addiction and achieve sobriety. Your sobriety represents an investment you have made in yourself. To maintain your sober living, you need to have a rock-solid individual recovery plan in place. The signs of relapse aren’t always visible and can be present long before you resume drinking or using drugs. Establishing healthy lifestyle practices to maintain your sobriety is key to reducing the risk of relapse and increasing your happiness and health in recovery. The following are ways to maintain your sober living and improve your quality of life.
Have Structure in Your Daily Life
Perhaps the best way you can maintain your sober living is by creating a structured daily schedule. In addition to your work, school, and family commitments be sure you have time in your day for support meetings, exercise, meditation, and other healthy activities. It is also essential to schedule time in your day to unplug from everything and have some “me time.”
Build a Support Network
To maintain your sober living, it is essential to surround yourself with people who are totally behind you in your commitment to your recovery. Your support network consists of friends, family, recovering peers, counselors, and other important people who provide a safe and supportive environment for you to grow in your recovery. These people share your small victories and, most importantly, will let you know when you are slipping or falling short.
Take Care of Yourself
Practicing great self-care is vital to maintaining your sober living. It is important to eat healthily and have a balanced diet. You also need to get regular strenuous exercise and get restful sleep every night. Additionally, you must practice excellent hygiene. If your body feels good and looks good, you gain self-confidence, self-esteem, and your body operate at peak performance.
Find Healthy Ways to Deal with Anger
Anger can be a destructive emotion—especially for those in recovery. While it is reasonable to feel anger at times, addicts often have far more difficulty in handling anger and other volatile emotions. In the past, addicts could rely on their substance of choice to help deal with their feelings. In recovery, it is crucial to find healthy ways to deal with anger. Meditation, going for a walk, and focused breathing are all techniques that can be employed to allow anger to subside and become manageable.
Make Peace with the Past
In recovery, guilt and shame are toxic emotions that can steer you to relapse. It is normal to feel remorse, shame, and guilt for what you did in the past while under the influence of drugs. While these feelings are common, it’s vital to realize you are not the person you once were. To help make peace with your past, make amends to those you have wronged and act to better your relationships with those people. Realize that your past is in the past, and the people that love you see the changes you have made to be a better person.
Getting sober is one thing, but staying sober can be fraught with challenges. Utilizing the tips mentioned in this article will help you maintain your sober living and improve the quality of your life.