Recovering from addiction is not an easy process. There are many struggles you must overcome to stay on the recovery path. Even after treating your addiction, you may find yourself slipping up again. In light of that, this article comes packed with tips to take control of addiction recovery.
These tips include things you must do before, during, and after addiction treatment. When you practice them, you give yourself a better chance of having a successful recovery. With these tips, you will know how to manage and cope with addiction rehab. If you are ready to quit your addiction, then the information you are about to explore will help you greatly.
You Must Decide to Quit
The main factor in stopping addictive behaviour is your decision to quit. It doesn’t matter the number of people trying to get you to stop. If you do not decide to stop, changes will never occur. The decision to quit the abuse of drugs, alcohol, etc. is yours to make.
When you decide to quit your addiction, you must be clear about what you want to achieve. Having a clear goal makes it easier for you to practice the measures needed to achieve that goal. Ensure you set a goal that is easy to achieve. It is always best to start with more manageable goals before going over to more challenging targets.
Achieving the more manageable goals leads you to attain your main objective, which is quitting your addiction in its entirety. It will also make your path to addiction rehab less stressful.
Get Ready to Quit
After deciding to quit your addiction, you must take the necessary steps to do so. You shouldn’t just decide and take no actions. For example, if you are an alcoholic and you want to stop, taking away the things that will cause you to drink is one way to go. Your social behaviour may be significantly affected by some of these steps. Hence, it is important to build relationships with those who will support you in these times.
You can tell them about your goals so that they can support you and be there for you. It is also essential to speak to a professional. Such a person can give you expert tips to take control of addiction recovery. Overcoming addiction can get tricky, so you will need all the help you can get.
When you quit your addiction, you are likely to suffer some withdrawal symptoms. Enrolling with addiction recovery services make it easier to cope with these symptoms. It also helps you cope with your recovery effectively. Hence, if you speak to a professional, they will give you the best advice on what to do depending on your addiction level.
Get Treatments to Overcome Your Addiction
There are several addiction treatment options available. If you decide to quit, you may need one or more of these treatments to cope with addiction rehab. These treatments include:
- Detoxification, which means getting substance or drugs out of your system.
- Behavioural Counselling
- Medication
- Long-term Follow-up
- In-Patient (Residential) Treatment
- Outpatient Treatment
- Sober Living Communities
One of the tips to take control of addiction recovery is finding a treatment that suits your needs. Besides treating your addiction, the treatment should set you on your path to staying free of addiction.
Do Not Go It Alone
You need to remain positive and have support during your addiction treatment. It is one of the essential tips to take control of addiction recovery. When you have the support of your close friends and family in this period, it goes a long way to help you. You must also build new relationships with sober people who will support your recovery.
Other steps you can take in ensuring you have the best support during addiction recovery include:
Individual Therapy
Enrolling for therapy sessions such as cognitive behavioural therapy will help you while on your recovery path. During treatments such as these, you will understand yourself better and know why you behave in specific ways. Hence, you will learn how to control your emotions better and reduce your dependency on alcohol or drugs.
Go For Regular Check-ups
You can effectively manage addiction rehab by having regular check-ups with a medical professional or addiction treatment services. This way, you get to track your progress and see your improvements. It also ensures you are healthy, which is a right way of maintaining your addiction rehab.
Join Support Programs
During and after your treatment, it is right for you to join support programs or their alternatives. An example of 12-Step Programs is Alcoholics Anonymous. An alternative program you can join is the Self-Management Recovery Training (SMART). SMART teaches you how to control your addiction using methods proven by research.
Build a Fresh Social Life
During addiction rehab, you will learn so many things, including those you never thought were possible. As someone recovering from addiction, you must understand the things you will learn will affect your life socially. Therefore, it is good to prepare for these new changes and new activities you will learn during recovery.
You have to engage in new social activities to replace those activities that led you to addiction. Some of these activities include video games, music lessons, volunteering, dance lessons, etc. These activities ensure you do not get bored and contemplate going back to your old habits.
One of the essential tips to take control of addiction recovery linked to your social life is having new friendships. If your old relationships cause you to indulge in activities that led you to addiction, it is crucial to stop them. Keep friends with sober people who have fun the right way. If you do these, you reduce the chances of having a relapse.
Do Not Replace Addictive Behaviors With New Addictions
Sometimes, when people quit their addictive behaviours, they tend to replace them with new addictions. For example, a person who recovers from drug addiction may start overeating. Hence, they become overweight, leading to health problems. This replacement behaviour comes as a result of the reward feelings, and sensations addiction creates.
To avoid replacement behaviours, you must tackle any mental health issues you may have. Your addiction masks these problems, so when you quit, they show themselves in other forms. Going for psychological and neurological therapies can uncover these underlying problems and make addiction rehab effective.
Learn to Control Your Behavior After an Addiction
You can want to indulge in some activities that can lead to addiction even after your recovery. For example, if you recover from alcohol addiction, you may want to drink occasionally without doing it excessively. While this is possible, you must be clear about what you want to do.
If you plan to drink with your friends, you must have one drink and nothing more. Do not forget all the things you learned during addiction rehab now. Have self-control. If you doubt yourself, then you shouldn’t put yourself in that situation.
Try to Avoid Relapse
One of the essential tips to take control of addiction recovery is avoiding a relapse. The road to addiction recovery is a tough road to travel. You may face many ups and downs. However, when you fall at any point, it doesn’t mean you have failed.
If you experience a relapse, you must try to figure out the cause instead of feeling beat down. One of the most common reasons for relapse is cravings. You suddenly find yourself wanting a drink or a puff many months after your recovery treatment.
It is essential to learn how to cope with these cravings, no matter how intense they may be. They will definitely come at one point or the other. However, if you experience a relapse and understand the cause, you must also know your triggers and weaknesses. When you do these, put structures in place to avoid relapsing again.
Conclusion
In this article, you have become familiar with the important tips to take control of addiction recovery. Practicing these tips will help you on your road to addiction recovery. However, you must understand it will not be a quick and easy process. You must stay committed to living a sober life.
Have you decided to quit your addiction? Are you ready to start an addiction treatment? If your answer to these questions is positive, you may want to know how you can remain sober after treatment. Do not worry. You have all the help you need. Contact 1000 Islands Addiction Rehab & Treatment Centre for addiction treatment programs.
Related article: How To Build Positive Relationships During Recovery