In early recovery the good news that “life continues to happen” can be a double-edge sword right? True, it is an absolute blessing that the gift of life is restored and promised, but life, for everyone, holds both good and bad circumstances. So how are you going to get through the tough stuff sober? The first thing to do is identify what they are. It is easy to get wrapped up in the feelings, produced by oppositions, instead of tacking the root and the cause of them. Luckily, you are not alone, and many of the challenges in recovery are shared experiences by so many of your sober supports.
Getting It Out of Your Head is the First Step to Freedom
More often than not, addicts experience a financial fallout in the end of their substance use. They use all means that they have and then some. It can leave you with very little to move forward with, and a lot of anxiety about the wreckage in your debt. You did not lose everything overnight, and you won’t get it back overnight either. Still, you must focus on your reality. You may not have what you want, but you have everything you need right now! This realization can help reduce anxiety, allowing you strategize the financial side of things.
The first step is to make a list of all recurring expenses, like housing and food, and all debts outstanding, including student loans, etc. Once you do this it is real and manageable, as it is not spinning in your head daily. From there, decide what expenses can be temporarily trimmed. Remember, this is not forever! If you can get by with a smaller, less expensive cell phone plan for now, trim it. Even the smallest adjustment and changes will impact your well-being significantly. The last step, is to explore all services offered for assistance. This may require and unfamiliar level of humility. If your current needs reflect the demand for assistance, get real and receive it!
The Outside Is Not as Important as The Inside
It may feel that the most uncomfortable problems are the external ones, but they are minor compared to the importance of your healing internally. If you are newly sober, your supports will pay a huge part in your emotional recovery and your medical supports will be equally important to your physical recovery. It is crucial that you are completely honest will both support systems, because your life depends on it. You can not stay sober if you continue to pretend to be emotionally stable, and your body will not withstand any issues that are not communicated with those who can help. When you heal and grow on the inside, beautiful things can flourish on the outside.
Your beauty will not go unnoticed as you grow either! In fact, it can attract people who see and relate to the new you and new way of life, and it can attract people who are still sick and want to bring you down or position you to “save” them. The truth is, you can’t afford much distraction from either of the above. I like to use the “added bonus” model as a rule of thumb. This means that relationships sought should always have a stable existence outside of you and allow you to have the same. Your union is best when it is simply an added bonus amenity and not a necessity. You are just learning to exist outside of the dependency on substances, and it can be easy to latch on to another entity to base your existence on. You deserve more than this, and you will be more comfortable with your solitude with every passing day.
Sobriety Does Not Promise a Life Exempt from Difficulty
Life will continue, and you will be blessed with a blend of good and bad in your journey. The effect they have on your life and actions you take in dealing with them are entirely up to you. There is beauty in a breakdown, but the real beauty comes in the build-up!
We have launched the process, of a life in recovery, for thousands of clients to date. We take as much pride in our life-skills training as we do in the beginning, detox processes. This is why we are set apart from other treatment centers that push a “quick fix” model. Royal Life Centers is the place that will take you from beginning to end, in your recovery. Call us if you or a loved one is ready to begin a new path today! (877)-RECOVERY
