AURORA CENTRE: Positive Habits in Recovery

Addiction cannot be cured, but it can be managed.

Drug addicts and alcoholics often have rituals that surround their drug use or drinking. Part of recovery is learning healthier skills and habits to replace these negative behaviours.

The recovery process requires giving up the familiar social situations, environments, friends, and activities that led to and supported the addiction. Getting rid of these is an important step in recovery. Yet, rather than simply stopping these behaviours, it’s vital to replace them with new healthy habits that fill the void that has been created.

While there are countless habits that can be incorporated into daily life to support your recovery, the following are a few of the most successful habits that are used by individuals in recovery to live healthier, more fulfilling lives.

1. Make your recovery a priority – put yourself first and stay in touch with trained professionals who know you and can provide you with comprehensive treatment options and sound advice throughout your recovery.

2. Take it one day at a time – recovery is a process, not a destination. Do not let thoughts of use or old habits get the best of you. Learn techniques to overcome any negative thoughts and feelings

3. Communicate – addiction can be very isolating so talk to your friends and family about your challenges. While it may be tough, the support system you create will give you an enormous boost. They will be there when you need them and will help you stay motivated and focused.

4. Change your environment – one of the best ways to maintain a healthy recovery is to replace your bad habits with healthy, new ones. Surround yourself with positive people, things and experiences. Search out cultural events and activities in your area that can stimulate your body and mind in a new, exciting – and healthy way.

5. Change your friends – some of your friends may have been enabling your addiction instead of helping you control it. If you have friends that may jeopardize your recovery, it is time to find a new circle of friends. The right friends will help you to maintain a healthy recovery.

6. Improve your diet – in addition to exercise, eating right is another key ingredient to a successful recovery. Whether you get help or do it on your own, improvements in diet will make you healthier mentally and physically.

7. Join a support group – whether you join a church based group, AA or other social support network, they can provide wonderful value, help and wisdom to your recovery efforts

8. Work - being productive at your job will do wonders for your self-esteem. Making a positive contribution at work will give you a wonderful sense of accomplishment and pride.

9. Never give up – whatever you do, regardless of the challenges or obstacles you face, do not give up or give in to the disease. Rely on your family, friends and support tools to keep going in the face of temptations and difficult days.

10. Exercise - The benefits of regular exercise are multi-pronged. It is a proven reliever of anxiety and stress because it produces increased levels of dopamine and feel-good endorphins. It also creates more clarity, improves sleep, and obviously improves your overall physical well-being. The key is finding the exercise that is right for you, whether that’s running, yoga, swimming, or some other source of physical activity. spending 30-60 minutes walking or at the gym will just a few days a week will do wonders for you. Exercise will not only boost your physical strength; it will boost your mental health as well.

11. Journaling -- Writing can be an extremely therapeutic activity for those in recovery. Regularly contributing to a daily journal helps to get out emotions and feelings of resentment. It’s also beneficial for chronicling what you’re grateful for on a daily basis.

12. Volunteering --Researchers have found that the act of helping others releases endorphins in much the same way exercise does. In other words, you get when you give!

13. Socializing --Being isolated is a set up for relapse. If you tend to retreat from others when you’re feeling stressed, down, or just blue, it’s an indicator that you need to change this habit by becoming more social in a healthy, substance-free environment. Join a group, a club or attend regular 12 step meetings and participate. Sharing with others and actively listening to them can go a long way toward supporting your recovery.

14. Starting a Yoga or Meditation Practice -- Adding a practice that helps calm or restore your mind to your daily routine can help improve your life considerably. If your life is constantly full and you feel that you are always having to be on the go, taking 15 minutes to half an hour each day to slow down, take several deep breaths, and calm your thoughts can cut your stress levels considerably. Over time, a regular yoga or meditation practice can allow you to better control your emotions.

Yoga and meditation can also help you improve your life and well-being in other areas. The boost you get from yoga or meditation can encourage you to eat a healthier diet, for example, so that you feel better all over. Some types of yoga can also increase dopamine levels in the brain, which can help if you are seeking treatment for addiction.

15. Spending Time with People Who Love You -- Your true friends and loving family members can and should be a support system for you. The friends and family members you want to spend time with are those who encourage your positive habits and who offer advice and encouragement when you are feeling down.

Spending time with people who really love you can go hand in hand with limiting the time you spend with people who are a negative influence on you or people who seek to bring you down. Those people include the friends you had while you were using, a family member who regularly talks down to you or who won’t accept that you’re changing for the better, and friends who are constantly under stress and whose stress rubs off on you.

16. Rejoicing in the Small Successes --Your life can change for the better when you strive to take things one day at a time and when you aim to celebrate the small, but positive strides you make. Each day, take a look at the little things that make your life go more smoothly and be thankful for them. Those little things can range from celebrating another week of staying sober to being thankful that you didn’t miss the bus or that you managed to avoid traffic on your commute. Remember to be happy in life’s small successes will help you be happier and even more thankful when you have a bigger success or when you hit a major milestone.

17. Remembering to Laugh --Laughing more can make your life much more enjoyable. It can be a release valve when you find yourself in an unpleasantly tense situation, for example. Laughter has a number of benefits for your physical well-being, too. It helps your muscles loosen up and relax and can help your immune system function better. It also makes you feel better overall, since it triggers the release of endorphins in your body.

18. Setting Goals --Taking the time to ask yourself where you want to be in six months, a year, or five years can help change your life for the better. Setting goals can keep you from floundering or from wandering aimlessly through your life. Your goals can also help keep on you track when recovering from addiction. If you know that you want to start your own company or own your own home within two years, you will be more likely to have the resolve not to give into cravings. You are also more likely to surround yourself with people who can not only help you work towards your goals, but who can help you continue on the road to recovery.

Adopting positive habits or learning to think positively doesn’t mean you are ignoring the bad things in life. Instead, it means that you’ve come to a place in life where you are able to see the negative things, but are able to focus on the positive instead, working your way towards a happier, more peaceful, and more fulfilled existence. A holistic approach to addiction treatment, which focuses on your physical, psychological and emotional needs, can help you learn certain positive habits. These habits will not only help you as you overcome your addiction. They can also have a positive impact on your life overall.

Both positive and negative habits create powerful neural pathways in your brain. Changing them doesn’t happen overnight, but it is very possible to replace negative habits with positive ones. Start small and build your confidence incrementally. You’ll soon find that you’ve replaced negative responses with healthy habits that you can embrace for a lifetime.