When you first get sober, you might be in an unusual state of mind. You might be feeling raw, vulnerable, lost, confused, worried, or afraid. At the start of your recovery, you might begin drug addiction treatment in a state of concern. You may not know what it’s going to be like. You may be worried about your wife and children. You might be have been admitted to drug treatment, but you may not even be totally committed to sobriety. Perhaps you started treatment because you had to, because you couldn’t keep going on the way you were, or because life was only going to get harder. So you’re eyes are on what you’re moving away from versus what you’re moving toward. However, at some point, as soon as you’re ready, drug addiction treatment is going to require all of your participation in order for it to be successful. At some point in your recovery, you’ve got to give all that you have to sobriety.
Perhaps this sounds like a strong statement. However, you might notice the range of people you meet throughout recovery and their commitment to sobriety. You might begin to see that there are some men and women who are in drug addiction treatment who are there unwillingly. They are there because they have to be, not because they want to be, and they might end up relapsing. Perhaps you’ll notice that there are a handful of people who talk about missing the good old days or who talk about drug addiction treatment as though it were a prison. There’s a chance that some of these people may relapse because they’re not seeing the purpose of it all.
There’s no question that recovery and staying sober is hard. There’s no question that you’re going to face triggers and cravings along the way. And this is precisely why drug addiction treatment requires your full participation. Without it, a craving might cause a relapse, you may begin to think that drug addiction treatment is a waste of time, or a phone call from an old buddy might encourage your desire to go back to your old life. So, what does full participation mean? It means, as much as possible, staying committed to sobriety and taking action throughout your recovery.
Here is a List of Recovery Action Steps
- repair relationships that may have been damaged because of the addiction
- heal yourself physically, emotionally, and psychologically
- attend a support group
- work through the 12-steps
- go to individual therapy
- eat healthy foods to help repair your body
- learn new coping tools so that challenging emotions don’t get the best of you
- as much as possible, forgive and let go of the past
- form new friendships that are drug and alcohol free
- build a strong support network
It’s not easy to participate in drug addiction treatment. However, if you’re going to do it, you may as well do it in the right way. You may as well give your full participation to your recovery so that can go on to live a full, happy, and sober life.
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