How Spirituality Can Play a Role in Your Recovery

The idea of spirituality might make you envision New Age concepts like astrology, tarot cards, healing crystals or chakras. The reality, however, is that spirituality can be more accessible than you think. Essentially, it boils down to any practice that helps you find the meaning amid all the chaos of daily life.

Spirituality can be especially valuable for people in addiction recovery because of its ability to help you understand yourself, find greater meaning in life and make you feel a connection to the world at large.

What Is Spirituality?

Many people tend to conflate spirituality with religion. However, while spirituality is often a component of religious practices, it is not a belief system in and of itself. That means even skeptics and nonbelievers can find value in spirituality, and that there is no wrong way to incorporate spiritual practices into your life.

Another way in which your spirituality might differ from religion is that your definition of spirituality can and should be fluid and evolve throughout your life, whereas many people of faith do not deviate from or question their relationship with their god or higher power.

Anything that causes you to feel the interconnectedness of life and have a greater appreciation of your place in the universe can be a spiritual experience. For some, listening to a moving piece of music is profoundly spiritual, while others find solace in traditional worship services and prayer.

Benefits of Spirituality in Addiction Recovery

Substance misuse often makes people feel isolated from the people around them. In contrast, spiritual practices lead to feelings of connectedness. The result can be a sense of awe, gratitude and positivity. With regular spiritual reflection, you will gradually learn to become more compassionate, tolerant and generous toward other living beings.

Becoming a more spiritual person is also a worthy goal to work toward if you want to cultivate better overall mental wellness and peace of mind. You can respond more constructively to any anxiety and stress created by addiction and subsequent recovery.

Ways to Incorporate Spirituality in Addiction Recovery

Though spirituality takes many forms, here are some that can be particularly valuable for people trying to maintain their sobriety.

• Meditation: Meditation is a way to improve your mindfulness, equanimity and relaxation. While there are a vast array of meditation techniques, the most straightforward involves sitting still in a quiet place and focusing on your breath and any sensations you might be experiencing.
• Yoga: There is a close connection between yoga and meditation, because yoga also involves specific breathing techniques as you move through a fluid series of poses. The spiritual goal of yoga is to teach you how to quiet your mind and become more aware of your place in the world around you.
• Gratitude: The practice of gratitude helps you feel more positive and learn to live in the moment. You don’t have to add anything complicated to your routine. Merely taking a few moments out of each day to jot down notes about things you are thankful for can help you feel more connected to others and increase your sense of positivity.

Finding Serenity in Sobriety

It’s possible for you to go through addiction recovery and learn how to become more resilient along the way with tools learned through spirituality. At Complete Harmony, we can help you reclaim your physical, mental and emotional health with our non-12-step, holistic approach to rehab. Connect with us today to learn more.

5 Apps That Help You Develop Meditation Habits

It’s no secret meditation has an incredible array of benefits, from lowering stress to curing insomnia to helping you find a sense of inner peace. But if you’ve tried to build a meditation practice, you already know it can be a challenge. Clearing your mind sounds so easy when you read about it, but as soon as you sit down, those intrusive thoughts creep in – and before you know it, you’re thinking about what you’re going to make for dinner instead of focusing on your breath.

If you’ve ever gotten frustrated by your lack of success in building a daily meditation practice, the good news is that there are apps to help you. If you are ready to bring a better balance and perspective to your life through meditation, here are five of the best apps to help you achieve that goal.

1. Calm

You may have learned about Calm from seeing their instantly soothing “Do Nothing for 30 Seconds” TV commercial, or perhaps you became familiar with this app after hearing that Apple named Calm its 2017 App of the Year. Calm is effective because it comes with a range of meditation lengths, as well as seven- and 21-day programs for people who need help developing a healthy habit. For users with insomnia, Calm offers “adult bedtime stories” that will relax you off to dreamland in no time.

2. Headspace

Headspace likens itself to having “a gym membership for your brain.” Its easy-to-follow guided meditations are categorized by theme, but there are also one-off meditations you can do whenever you need a quick break. Going through an especially rough patch in your day? The “SOS” meditation option is ideal for anyone who needs to prevent a mental meltdown. Headspace also offers meditation geared toward kids.

3. Buddhify

If you struggle with anxiety, you might want to install the Buddhify app on your iOS or Android device. Buzzfeed rated this beautifully designed app as their top meditation app to ease anxious thoughts. Buddhify differs from other apps in that its meditations are structured to fit into a busy lifestyle. With Buddhify, you can meditate on the go, no matter where you are. Even if you only have four minutes to squeeze in a meditation session, Buddhify is there for you. Choose your meditation based on what you are doing or feeling at a specific moment. Buddhify also allows you to share the good vibes by sending a meditation to brighten a friend’s day.

4. Stop, Breathe & Think

Available for both iOS and Android devices, Stop, Breathe & Think teaches users to check in with what they are doing and encourages them to take short breaks. After you tell the app where you are mentally, it will provide you with a recommended list of tailored meditations you can try. The app can also provide motivation that keeps you on track with developing your meditation habits by allowing you to view your progress.

5. 10% Happier

If you’ve been curious about meditation, but have found yourself skeptical about its benefits, 10% Happier is the app for you. An offshoot of journalist Dan Harris’ bestselling book of the same name, the app presents the facts about meditation so you can learn how to apply it in your life. This app offers guided audio meditations for coping with stress and anxiety, as well as for specific daily activities like walking and falling asleep.

Your Path to Inner Peace

At Complete Harmony, we have integrated holistic healing treatments like meditation into our hybrid addiction treatment model. Our California drug and alcohol rehab facility offers an integrated approach for clients who wish to undergo healing in a therapeutic setting that treats them as a whole person and allows them to address the roots of their addiction from a mind-body-spirit perspective. Contact us to learn more about beginning your recovery journey.

Are You Making These Meditation Mistakes?

By now you likely know the numerous benefits of meditation for people in recovery from a substance use disorder. To recap: It will help you stay focused on drug-free healing; enhance self-awareness; improve impulse control; quell anxiety; push away thoughts of self-criticism and blame; find a deeper spiritual connection; and more!

Still, especially when first starting out, many people struggle with some meditation mistakes. Here are four common ones:

• You’re doing the wrong kind of meditation: Just like no two recovery paths are alike nor are two minds. This is why it's important to find a meditation style that works for you. For example, you might benefit from transcendental meditation over guided visualization or mindfulness over Qi Gong. The best way to find out is to experiment and see which technique best helps you meet your meditation goals.
• You’re not giving it enough time. Meditation is a lifelong practice and you may need a little practice to make it work for you. Don’t give up: Take a week and schedule it into your every day and you’ll likely start reaping some of the many benefits.
• You’re expecting to completely clear your mind. Unfortunately, you can stop thoughts from coming to your mind, but you can learn to not react to them. Think of yourself as an air traffic controller, say experts. The goal is to learn how to choose what you focus on and what you let go of in order to stay mentally healthy.
• You’re not convinced that meditation really works. We said it once and we'll say it again: Meditation is really good for your recovery. Give it a chance and let it work its magic for you!

Finding Holistic Treatment 

At Complete Harmony, we specialize in different cutting-edge techniques to help patients recover from addiction, including meditation, yoga, massage therapy and acupuncture. To learn more about our programs and rehab facility, call today: 866-930-4673. 

Mantras for Addiction Recovery

Mantras, or repetitive slogans, can be a powerful part of your recovery toolbox. By adopting a few key words or phrases, you can change your behaviors, thought patterns, and emotions. 

Perhaps the best part about mantras is that there are no rules and no special equipment; you can chant them anytime and anywhere to make yourself feel at peace.

And they don’t have to be complicated either. For example, you can chant something as simple as “calm, calm” to help ease anxiety or say to yourself, “I will not give into cravings,” if you’re feeling tempted to use again. 

Here are a few mantras to try today – or get creative and come up with your own slogans that will help you stay focused on your sobriety. 

“I’m a deserving and worthwhile person.” It’s normal to battle with feelings of self-depreciation or low self-esteem during recovery. By uttering this phrase, you can remind yourself that you are worthy of a healthy, rich, and sober life.

“I’m in control now.” Now that you’re in recovery, addiction is no longer in the driver’s seat. It’s up to you to steer your thoughts, actions, and destiny – and this mantra can help keep you going in the right direction.

“I’m not alone.” By now, you’ve likely cultivated a community of friends, family members, and addiction professionals to walk beside you as you embark on your recovery. Even so, feelings of isolation can creep up and threaten your sobriety. Use this phrase to remind yourself of your support system.

Staying Centered at Complete Harmony
Taking a few moments to meditate at work, in the car, or before stressful situations can lead to healthy, mindful decisions and the strength to remain sober. We teach our clients how to add this simple, yet powerful tool to their addiction recovery arsenal. To learn more, call 866-930-4673.