People seek addiction treatment and recovery for all sorts of reasons. This sometimes includes self-improvement, improving one’s health and well-being, and saving one’s life. Whatever your reasons are for recovery, these reasons can help motivate us to continue maintaining recovery. Treatment is only a single step in a much larger process. Recovery is a lifelong journey, and staying motivated can become daunting over time. Keeping a mental catalog of all the reasons you sought recovery in the first place can help you stay motivated and maintain the healthier life you’ve created.
West Coast Recovery Centers believes everyone is capable of embarking on an individualized path to lasting, self-determined recovery. We inspire and empower people to change through traditional and non-traditional treatments. You’re capable of such change, too. Discover your reasons for recovery and contact us at West Coast to start your healing journey today!
What to Expect in Your First Fear Years of Recovery
The first few years of addiction recovery can be particularly unique and challenging. Upon leaving treatment, clients will face many challenges. These challenges can be managed with several of the tools learned during treatment. However, even with these tools at one’s disposal, there’s still no sure way to predict what your first few years of recovery will bring.
Before even leaving treatment, individuals must accept that their struggle with recovery is a lifelong journey. That thought may be daunting, initially, but remember, there are millions of people trying to make it through their first years of recovery just like you. For that reason, having a support system of peers is invaluable, especially when starting out.
Having this support and utilizing the tools learned during treatment is critical to avoiding pitfalls, reducing the risk of relapse, and keeping things fresh in your recovery journey.
Avoiding Pitfalls
Throughout recovery, it’ll be necessary to prepare for pitfalls, specifically the potential triggers that could cause them. Of course, there’s also no foolproof way to avoid them. In many instances, we have no choice but to learn from experience, which is sometimes the most effective teaching tool.
With that being said, there are still steps people can take to cushion the blow of a potential pitfall. That may include utilizing alumni or aftercare services, regularly attending support meetings, and connecting with peers and professionals.
Reducing the Risk of Relapse
Taking the steps to avoid pitfalls also helps reduce the risk of relapse. Some believe that relapse as a part of the process. Instead of focusing on the guilt of relapse, we must focus on how we respond and what to do after relapse.
If a relapse occurs, it’s critical to lean on your support system, practice self-care and mindfulness, and brush up on healthy ways to cope with cravings and triggers. Of course, at the moment, it’ll simply be nearly impossible to focus on these healthy practices. However, they’re necessary.
Keeping Things Fresh
Along with reducing the risk of relapse and avoiding pitfalls, it’s also necessary to keep things fresh in your recovery journey. A successful, sustainable recovery follows many schedules and routines. These structures are invaluable to staying sober, but they can become tedious.
Unfortunately, boredom can be a trigger for relapse in and of itself. Changing things up and keeping things fresh can help with this. Another excellent way to do this is by remembering your reasons for recovery.
Discovering Your Reasons for Recovery
Again, people decide to get sober for all kinds of reasons. Some of the reasons may include:
- Desires to reclaim your life, as alcohol and drug dependency often dictate our life choices
- Hope to repair the damage to relationships – romantic, familial, and professional – that have been damaged because of substance use
- Need for health improvement, either to prevent the development of physical health conditions or to improve existing ones
- Improve your mental health by learning healthy, more effective ways to deal with symptoms of co-occurring mental health conditions
- Rediscover your passions and hobbies, find your purpose, and get things back on track so that you can live the life you’ve always longed for
Reasons for recovery are personal, but keeping them in mind can help you with maintaining your recovery.
How Can Your Reasons for Recovery Help You Stay Motivated?
Consider your family, spouse and children, parents, friends, and other loved ones. What do you want your life to look like? Do you want to allow these addictions to decide your life for you? These are the questions you must ask yourself, and these are the reasons to consider addiction treatment and recovery.
Addiction treatment is a single step in a much larger process of recovery. Consider beginning that journey with West Coast Recovery Centers today.
Acknowledging one’s struggle with addiction, accepting these struggles, and seeking help are all critical steps in your overall addiction recovery. However, they’re simply steps that must be taken in a much larger, longer process. Recovery is a lifelong journey, and while this notion can be daunting, it’s important to know that you don’t have to go through it alone. An effective way for individuals to maintain their sobriety is by reminding themselves of their reasons for recovery. Those reasons may vary from one person to the next, but whatever the case, it’s necessary to remember these reasons to stay sober. Find your reasons for recovery and start your journey by calling West Coast Recovery Centers at (760) 492-6509 today!