Other definitions, however, focus on the process of recovery and coping habits that support health and wellness over the long term. Recognizing and celebrating your recovery journey can boost motivation and reinforce the reasons you chose sobriety. Just be sure your rewards align with your healthy lifestyle habits. Avoid anything involving your triggers and instead choose experiences, activities, or items that support your well-being. Trying to stay sober while sticking to the same old habits, places, and people only increases your chances of relapse. You need to actively create a different environment and develop healthier patterns.
Engaging in Meaningful Activities
An alternative to learning something new is volunteering. If your passion is service for others, providing those services can be your focused distraction. That is crucial for them to receive your letters graciously, and hopefully, those people will respect your boundaries. If someone refuses to honor your boundaries, then they’ve become toxic. I’ve been seeing my therapist in person, but I’ve heard great things about virtual therapy. There are different drug classifications for antidepressants.
Meditation
Even pamper yourself with the odd spa day whenever you feel like it, so that you can just unwind and relax. When you have achieved recovery, the next step is to maintain your newly established sobriety. Lasting sobriety requires lasting changes in your life, where you make your sobriety a priority every single day of your life. The reason being, relapse is a huge risk even during or after your recovery. So, in this blog, we shall explore how to stay sober long-term and focus on 13 tips that can enable you to stay sober.
Find Balance in Your Life
Sobriety in its most basic context is defined as complete abstinence, not being under the influence of any drugs or alcohol. However, the word is commonly used in many contexts. Incorporate some of these tips and take pride in celebrating your sober life — it’s a meaningful achievement worth honoring. Jay Bridwell, a recovery counselor at Red Rock Behavioral Health in Oklahoma City, often uses the acronym HALT with patients in addiction recovery.
Go for a 15 minute walk and you’ll be better for it. Walking helps clear your head, increase circulation, and promote better heart health overall. You need to put your health at the forefront of your day-to-day activities and a 15 minute walk should be possible regardless of the weather or time of day. When something is wrong with you and you don’t understand it, it’s infinitely more scary.
Observing situations objectively, such as when you end tips to stay sober up having too many beers, can help you address the root cause of the problem. You’ve got this, and your sobriety journey is worth every effort. Stay strong, stay centered, and most importantly, stay proud of how far you’ve come. However, if at any point you feel anxious or feel the urge to indulge in an alcoholic drink again, have an exit strategy or an escape plan in place. This will allow you to escape the situation before it gets too overwhelming. Creating a new environment that supports your sobriety is essential.
Use Technology for Support
- For example, When day 14 arrives, you would have gone two weeks without using drugs.
- I’ve experienced several remarkable benefits of prayer journaling in recovery.
- Becoming sober is a gradual process that can take weeks, months, or years.
- It becomes an internal struggle and your outing becomes ruined.
- And don’t forget—Affect’s app has mindfulness exercises that can help.
However, chaos can make you feel overwhelmed and stressed out. Creating a self-care routine, like going to a day spa or maintaining a calendar, is a great way to keep your stress levels in check. Prioritize self-care to maintain your physical, mental, and emotional well-being over the holidays. This includes ensuring you get enough rest, eat healthily, and take Substance abuse time out for you. By taking care of yourself, you are better equipped to handle any challenges that come your way. Setting boundaries is a healthy practice that can help you maintain your sobriety.
Acupuncture in Addiction Recovery
Something simple like working at your local (walking distance) deli. You’ll save money on gas, potentially groceries, and keep yourself busy in a productive manner. If you do relapse, don’t let it slip back into full-out abuse.