Staying Sober Through Good Times

The nights of drunken debauchery are over, we received alcohol treatment, and we are finally free from our alcohol addiction. What do we do now? Fun can be had in sobriety; there is a common fear for most people getting sober that living sober can’t be fun. This is nonsense! Having fun in sobriety is definitely possible. There are many options from fellowshipping after a meeting to having a sober get together for a game night to going to events hosted by sober companies. You just have to find good people who are interested in the same things you are.

 

Do What You Truly Enjoy

Now that you’re sober, trying new things can help you figure out what the real you actually likes to do. Want a good mellow night? Go to a local coffee house and play a game of cards with some friends.  There are several sober companies that host events that you can go too. Also, there are young people’s committees that take the time to plan and host events for you and your friends to go to. Getting involved in the addiction recovery process can also be a great way to meet like-minded people that are sober as well. We didn’t get sober to simply exist. We got sober to live life which includes cutting loose, having fun and make great memories. Make a list of things you’ve always wanted to try and cross some things off your bucket list. Enjoy every moment. Sobriety isn’t meant to be an end to having fun it’s supposed to be the beginning of living life to the fullest.

Finding Work in Sobriety is Possible - How to Get Ahead

In this day and age it can be hard enough to find a job let alone admit we have a problem with alcohol addiction, decide to get sober, receive alcohol addiction help, and gain recovery from alcoholism on top of looking for employment. For many of us the search can seem exhausting. We can become easily discouraged when we don’t get an interview or a job offer. The fact is, now that we are sober we need to suit up and show up for life regardless of the outcome. We can do the things that we set out to do and reap the benefits. We never know what opportunities might present themselves if we are present and follow-through with the goals we make with ourselves and others.

One Day at a Time

It is understandable if you feel overwhelmed by the idea of having to go on a job search. We can take everything one day at a time and sometimes even one minute at a time. We don’t need to worry about the future. It can be easier for us in all areas of our recovery if we take everything step by step. If you are having a hard time writing a resume, cover letter, finding places, or with the interviewing process, just know that there are plenty of people in recovery that have gone through the same thing. Perhaps talking to people who have experience with the anxiety, difficulties, or fears of job hunting and asking them how they got through it can help. If we have people that are able to share their experience, strength, and hope then the idea of finding a job can begin to seem much more doable. Now go out there and start a path to your future!

Learning to be Okay with Being by Ourselves

Sometimes one of the best relationships we build after going to 12 step treatment, AA, or Above It All is the one we build with ourselves. When we first get sober and receive rehabilitation it is normal to need a lot of support and be surrounded by people. However, when we stay sober we get to start working on loving ourselves and being okay with not having people around us constantly. We get to spread our wings and find out what it is that we like doing. We get to find out what we are about, what we stand for, and what makes us tick. We become okay with those situations that used to make us feel awkward such as seeing a movie alone, going to a party where we don’t know that many people, and just showing up for life despite our feelings or doubts. Through continuing to work on ourselves, we learn that we can do anything as long as we are spiritually fit. What comes out of this is the opportunity to start showing up for ourselves for the first time as well as learning how to enjoy those moments where we are alone just as much as those moments when we are around people. There is a sense of self love and being competent that comes from being independent. When you get to the point where your happiness is not contingent on any particular person, place, or thing, but rather a feeling that comes from within, then you will begin to experience what true freedom actually is. This is one of the many gifts that sobriety has to offer.

Dealing With Change and Loss in Sobriety

Just because we get sober and receive rehabilitation does not mean that everything is perfect. Life is still life. There are going to be ups and downs. Just like the good times pass so do the bad times. When we go to AboveItAllTreatment, AA, or alcohol centers we learn how to live life on life’s terms regardless of the situation. We get to learn how to stay sober no matter what. Alcoholics have a hard time when it comes to change or anything that brings up emotion for us. Losing a friendship, relationship, family, or job can all be things that we find unacceptable to us. These things that seem unfair are actually opportunities to grow and heal. Through the hard times we get to come out better people then we were before that experience. If we have faith that we will be okay no matter what, we will be able to hold our heads up, learn, and change. We get to strengthen our sobriety and learn how to handle situations that used to baffle us. We get the chance to learn that we don’t have to drink to start over and that feelings are not facts. Our feelings do not have to dictate our actions. We can act with dignity and grace regardless of how uncomfortable we feel. And we get to wake up and try to do a little bit better than we did the day before. All we can do is continue to try our best in any situation we encounter.

Learning How to Value Ourselves in Sobriety

 For most of us our self-esteem was extremely low prior to receiving help from 12 step programs and getting sober. This may continue well into our sobriety until we learn to love ourselves. Many of us have compromised our values, morals, and beliefs. We have learned to take scraps because many of us don’t believe we deserve more, but we do. We all deserve happiness. When we get the gift of desperation and go to Above It All Treatment Center, AA, or alcohol and drug rehab we can begin to work towards our ideals and become the men and women we have always dreamt of being. We deserve out of life what we put in. If we learn to have faith in a power greater then ourselves then we can learn how to live life on life’s terms and be happy regardless of what is going on around us. We can begin to see that we are in our own special way valuable and worthy of happiness. No matter how far down the scale we have gone we can still see how our experience can benefit others. We can spread the message of hope and joy and show others that it is possible for anyone to stay sober as long as they do the work. We can be restored to sanity and find that over time we have once again become useful, functioning, and contributing members of society. We have become dependable people and we are all worth something.

Learning How to Treat Ourselves and Others

Prior to receiving alcohol detox many of us did not know how to treat ourselves or others well.  This was mainly due to the fact that we had little or no connection to ourselves or a power greater than ourselves. How could we make healthy loving connections with others when we couldn’t have one with ourselves? How could we treat others well when we treated ourselves so poorly? Most of us prior to going to AboveItAllTreatment, AA, or a recovery center were used to just trying to get our fix regardless of the cost or consequences. Many of us were not too concerned with building meaningful bonds because we were wrapped up in the bondage of self that stemmed from this seemingly hopeless state of mind and body. We were enslaved to this disease and many of us were just trying to survive. We did what we felt we had to do in order to stop the craving and need for drugs and/or alcohol. When we get sober we get to start repairing those relationships that were broken. Starting with the relationship we have with ourselves. We get to right our wrongs and clean up the wreckage of our past without creating more damage in the present. We get to approach situations trying to see what we can bring to the table instead of what we can take. We get to start showing up for life, ourselves, and others. We get to become the type of man/woman that people can depend on and as a result we get to experience what it’s like to truly be happy, joyous, and free!

Changing Our Perspective in Rehabilitation

Sometimes when we are having a hard day or a hard time in general it can be as simple as needing to change our perspective. As alcoholics both before and after going to alcohol detox, AA, or Above It All Treatment we can go to extremes when it comes to our emotions. Everything in our minds is either really great or really bad. There is rarely an in-between for us. What we need is balance and stability, but most of us don’t know how to achieve that. When we receive rehabilitation we can begin to think in Technicolor as opposed to black and white. We can begin to see that while things may not be the way that we want them too that it doesn’t mean everything is horrible, it just means that we didn’t get our way. We are also able to start living in gratitude for the things we are blessed to have instead of focusing on what we don’t have. Many of us begin to see that if we want what we need then we will always have what we want. We start having faith and building a relationship with a power greater than ourselves. Through this relationship we are restored to sanity and see how sometimes all we need to turn a negative situation into a positive one is a change in perception. Through sobriety we are able to let go of being closed-minded, learn how to remain teachable, and continue to work towards growth and acceptance.