My Five Tips to Help Addicts Stay Sober and Free
Escaping addiction is a great achievement. The rewards for taking this step are sure to follow – at least this has been my experience anyway. There is always a risk though that recovery can stagnate. If we want to stay free of alcohol and drugs then it is important that we continue to keep our recovery strong. There are certain things that we can do to boost our recovery, and here are just five suggestions;
1. Get healthy. Feeling physically healthy is important in recovery because if our body feels good then our mind will feel good as well. A healthy body is confident and full of energy, and you will be unlikely to return to addiction while your body and mind is feeling so good.
2. Help other drunks or addicts. This is a great way to strengthen your own recovery from addiction. This is an important part of the Alcoholics Anonymous programme, but you don’t need to belong to AA in order to benefit from this activity. The help you offer drunks or addicts might be of the direct variety where you volunteer for an organisation which works with them. Another way that you can help is over the internet by joining an online recovery group where you can offer support to people struggling with their addiction. Just telling people how good life in recovery can be is a great way to help other drunks or addicts. This type of work can really boost our own recovery and remind us of where you have come from
3. Get spiritual. This does not have to involve believing in any bizarre notions, hugging trees, or joining any cultish group. Getting spiritual means getting more in touch with yourself; this could be through an exercise like tai-chi or yoga, or it might involve a more formal meditation practice. Going for long walks and observing the nature around us is another way for us to get spiritual.
4. Think about others. As drunks on addicts we have spent much of our lives self-absorbed and living selfishly. Thinking about others and helping them will benefit us greatly.
5. Learning a new skill or starting a new activity. Keeping things fresh is a great way to strengthen our recovery from addiction; it has also been shown that it helps us live longer. We should always be willing to try new things, and experience all that a sober life can offer.
