(Newswire.net — April 26, 2020) —
Recovering from an addiction to drugs or alcohol is always a challenging task. While it can be hard when the rest of your life seems normal, the current pandemic that requires social distancing and a lot of alone time can seem to make it even harder. Fortunately, there are a variety of tips that can be followed that could help anyone manage their recovery while social distancing from friends and their support group.
Virtual Support Groups
One of the best things that you can do while you are isolating from others is to attend virtual support groups. Regular meets with your support group is always one of the best things that you can do to keep focused on your sobriety goals. Since these are not a practical option during the pandemic, finding another solution is a great option. Fortunately, there are many virtual support groups taking place at all times that can give you the same outlet. If your group does not have one established already, you can even easily organize your own.
Maintain Contact with Friends and Family
While going through recovery, it is always important that you maintain a connection with your friends and family members. You should get into the habit of trying to call at least one person per day. While it is important that you maintain contact, it could also help to lift the spirits of someone that you care about.
Have a Plan
Maintaining sobriety will always require that you have a plan in place. This can include setting milestones and figuring out a way to get through a day. When you are practicing social distancing, this can be even more important. Every day, you should set a schedule for yourself that will ensure that you are focused on something other than using drugs and alcohol. Ideally, you should set yourself up to be busy and have a plan set each night for the following day.
Activities at Home
One of the hardest challenges to deal with during your self-quarantine is not having anything to do at home. While you can spend time online or watching TV, you can quickly find yourself bored. To ensure that you do not get bored and end up trying to drink or use drugs, you should try and participate in some new activities at home. This can be a great time to try and learn a new musical instrument, do an online fitness class, or anything else that can help to clear your mind.
Stay Positive
A challenge that a lot of people are having with the pandemic and social distancing is that it is hard to know when the process will end. While it is not clear what life will be like after the pandemic, the process of social distancing will end and people will eventually be able to get back to normal. During this process, someone in recovery needs to stay as positive as possible. By maintaining a positive and healthy state of mind, you can improve your chances of staying sober.
One Day at a Time
Most importantly, when you are going through recovery, it is important to take it one day at a time. The thought of staying sober for a long time can be daunting. If you end up thinking too far down the road, it may seem impossible to stay sober the whole time. Due to this, you should remember to only think about the current day that you are in. Eventually as time passes, you will be amazed at how much progress has been made with your sobriety.
There is no doubt that social distancing can make it harder to manage your recovery. However, those that are dedicated to their recovery can have a much better chance of staying sober during the challenging times. By following these tips, you can continue to stay sober even while you are at home and isolated from others.