Family and friends supportive of recovery can help by reinforcing new behaviors and providing positive incentives to continue with treatment. If you or a loved one are considering sobriety, you may wonder what it looks like and how to get there. Sobriety can be a particularly challenging pursuit for someone with an addiction like alcohol use disorder. If you’re involved in a 12-step program, you likely already know the importance of milestones. In these programs, it’s customary to receive plastic chips as you progress to the one-year mark, at which time you receive a bronze coin.
- Recovering addicts have a 20% to 50% chance of relapse, and this figure can be as high as 80% for individuals who are trying to quit without professional help.
- Staying out of risky situations means taking deliberate steps to avoid people and situations that can trigger cravings.
- Alcoholism is a disease and requires effective treatment to manage its symptoms and the underlying cause.
- There are many effects of using drugs or alcohol that go beyond feeling high or drunk.
- Going through detox and stopping all substance use is only the first step; the real work at staying sober happens in the weeks and months following detox.
Creating goals and setting yourself up for success is one way to accomplish this. What are the key questions that you should ask yourself to help get and stay sober? We don’t have all the answers, but we might have the key to helping ask the right ones.
I don’t like to preach, or pretend like people who do drink are bad people for doing so. Everyone has the right to do what they want with their lives. Getting support doesn’t have to mean going to rehab, although that is an option.
The less downtime you have, the less likely you are to suffer a relapse. This does not mean, however, that you have to be perpetually busy. It means having balance how does abstinence violation effect impact recovery in one’s life, for rest, productive work, and play. Staying sober is usually more challenging than getting sober for anyone trying to recover from addiction.
Tips to Stay Sober
Give a good hug or a handshake knowing that you are clean and sober, and that your past does not define who you are. Some days you just might feel a bit more squirrely than others. Remember, the answer has never been and is never to drink or use. Seth brings many years of professional three inspirational recovery stories experience working the front lines of addiction in both the government and privatized sectors. Once detox is complete, your body will be free from alcohol and ready to begin physical and psychological healing. When used in small amounts, the depressive effects are not dramatic.
Learn to Manage Stress
If you can’t remember, again, ask someone you love to remind you how horrible life was when you were NOT sober. Is your freedom what keeps you walking the sobriety line? If so, think about it the next time you consider using drugs or alcohol. Not using drugs or alcohol is almost like a “stay out of jail free” card. Using drugs does not help society, it actually hurts society.
Other people won’t be able to tell the difference just by looking at your glass. This gives you a quick and easy explanation for why you aren’t drinking. It also gives you a sense of purpose that can help you stay focused.
What Does a Recovery Lifestyle Involve?
You get to be present to help out with homework, attend their games and recitals or bond over old-fashioned ice cream on a hot summer day. Recovery lets you develop real relationships with children. You no longer have to carry the guilt and remorse of ignoring or yelling at them. Apps like Pocket Rehab can connect you with others that will offer immediate support. If you’re having trouble staying sober, check your app and take a nice, long look at your WHY! Whether it is someone you love, your children or wife or husband, your parents or your freedom or something else—your WHY is the reason you stay sober today, tomorrow, and every day.
Ready to build a sober routine? Check out this 6-week guide to changing your drinking habits.
We provide customizable rehabilitative services to help people struggling with addiction learn the skills they need to live independently. Drug and alcohol addiction can pull you away from the people who mean the most—family and friends. Despite what you may think, it’s never too find a halfway house late to repair these relationships. Staying sober will give you the best chance of healing and building new connections. From the first sip or hit, the chase begins whether you really want to get high or not. Think of those firm resolutions of going on the wagon for keeps.
All of these things work hand in hand with sobriety to help boost your self-worth and self-love. I’d be floating around the world in a lonely bubble rather than belonging to an awesome tribe of like-minded people. People who fully understand what it’s like to beat an addiction to alcohol. I love sharing honestly about the ups and downs of my sober life with people who totally get it because they’re living the same way. Belonging to an awesome online tribe of kick-arse sober warriors is one of the absolute joys of my life. And I wouldn’t have it if I bought that poisonous shit back into my world.
When you’re using or drinking, it’s hard to think about anything besides your addiction. Sober living allows you to focus on responsibilities you need to keep your life in order, like going to school, applying for jobs, paying bills, buying groceries, and more. You have the power to stay sober, and the good news is that you don’t have to do it alone.
If you are trying to maintain a sober lifestyle, those feelings can become toxic and contribute to relapse if you don’t deal with them properly. You may also experience what is commonly called sobriety fatigue, which refers to the overall exhaustion that may occur as a result of the emotional and physical stress of staying sober. So, it’s extra helpful to have a support network available to you when you need it.
Get Help Getting Sober at Renaissance Recovery
These healthy coping mechanisms are more sustainable than numbing pain or trying to drink away your past challenges. There are many effects of using drugs or alcohol that go beyond feeling high or drunk. There are alcohol blackouts, meaning you don’t remember anything that happens. When you’re in recovery, you don’t have to think about the effects of hangovers or blackouts. When you’re using drugs or alcohol, you can feel like you’re skating through life, but never really feeling or being in any of the moments. Living a drug-free life or an alcohol-free life means not only that you can be present, but that you’ll remember everything in your life in a clear-headed way.