Letting Go of Labels
Despite some progress society has made in recent decades, there is still a stigma around substance misuse and mental health disorders. Even people who have been sober for years might feel compelled to apologize for addiction as a shortcoming or a fall from grace.You may have issues with substance abuse, but your life is larger than the label of “addict.” Recovery can free you to discover a passion for things like cooking, painting or spiritual practices such as yoga or meditation. To move past the guilt and shame associated with addiction, you need to embrace yourself as a whole person instead of focusing on one dimension of your experiences.
Replacing Shame With Positivity
Shame is a natural human emotion. Everyone has at least one thing they wish they could go back and change about their past, but dwelling on it is a sign that you are overly focused on negative thinking.If you often feel worthless, or undeserving of love and happiness, you need to remember you are equally as valuable as everyone else. Eliminating negative self-talk can improve your mood and your self-esteem, and allows you to live the rich and fulfilling life you should strive to pursue.
Many people in early recovery incorrectly believe that any setback, no matter how small, means they are not good enough, or that they haven’t put in the right amount of effort to deserve the rewards that accompany sobriety. However, there is no such thing as perfection. Instead of getting frustrated or beating yourself up about mistakes you’ve made, welcome them as a learning experience that is helping you make progress.
Learning to Talk Through Your Feelings
Actively maintaining an addiction often requires secrecy and deceit. You may have kept your spouse in the dark about where you were or what you spent money on. Perhaps you were dishonest with your boss about having to leave work early for a dentist’s appointment, when in reality you were going to meet up with your dealer to buy more drugs. And you almost certainly lied to yourself about the extent of the damage you were causing to your health and happiness by abusing drugs or alcohol.Now that you are clean and pursuing your recovery goals, you might find these old deceptive habits are hard to break. However, it is essential to be as open and honest as possible if you’re working on getting out from under the burdens of addiction. If you need help, feel lonely or are having a stressful day, reach out to your sober support network and talk to a friend, a sponsor or your therapist. Don’t get trapped in a cycle of negativity and guilt. Those feelings can erode the progress you’ve made.
Experiencing Gratitude
Learning to embrace gratitude is a vital part of recovery. You have received a unique opportunity to reinvent yourself, free of the substances that were crushing your spirit. Your addiction will always be part of who you are, but it’s not your whole story.At Complete Harmony, we believe in a holistic approach to recovery that helps heal people physically, mentally and spiritually. If you are ready to explore our treatment options and learn how to find a healing home at our beach retreat, contact us today.
