These days we can download any book for free from a library or other website, or for little money. We have access to a lot of resources and should take advantage of this. We spend a lot of time at work, so it would make perfect https://www.healthworkscollective.com/how-choose-sober-house-tips-to-focus-on/ sense to be happy in what you are doing. If you like clothes, then work at a clothing store or a clothing design office. If you love cars find a job selling cars, or if you like fixing cars then work on being a mechanic.

• At Turnbridge, the young men and women in our sober living program are all considered unsung heroes.
• Remember, relapse might be a part of recovery, and it is never too late to pick yourself up and try again.
• There’s the sense that if you’re not using drugs or alcohol, somehow life is boring or uninteresting.
• When you are in recovery, you can overcome the symptoms of addiction and instead have a healthy lifestyle.
• Some fellowships like Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) define sobriety as achieving a good level of mental health.
• Depending on the type of dependency, PAWS can last from six months to two years after you stop using drugs or alcohol.

Your therapist may recommend that you attend group counseling sessions. Like 12 step meetings,  these entail sharing, but they are monitored by trained counselors who may offer more professional guidance (AA and NA are not led by trained professionals). In rehab, many people grow to appreciate the sharing and camaraderie they find in group counseling. Addiction is How to Choose a Sober House: Tips to Focus on a condition where you get increasingly isolated,  so making friends and leaning on each other is critical to getting better. You may find someone right away with whom you “click,” or you may have several sponsors throughout your life as your sobriety evolves. You may speak to your sponsor daily and go through the 12 Steps, or you may just chat when you need to.

I learned what is important in life and what isn’t.

For many people struggling with alcohol abuse and addiction (myself included), the answer to those questions might not be obvious. Happiness, success, peace of mind, family, stability – these are the goals. For those of us who abuse alcohol, sobriety is the only vehicle by which we can achieve any of these things. If I could get sober, I would effectively eliminate 90% of the problems in my life and shut down the internal war that had been waging in my brain. When you first quit drinking, it feels like the hardest thing you’ll ever do in life, like attempting to run a marathon without training first.

Which is not to say that if you never address those issues head-on, you’ll definitely go back to drinking. But you’ll need to do more if you want to live a good life and turn things around significantly. And there are days that make you contemplate shoving a fist through the wall. Hair-tearing days that make you question the value of sobriety. So now I’m sober, and I have zero choice but to be me in all situations. Community stories from across Colorado and updates on your favorite PBS programs, in your inbox every Tuesday.

Remove Yourself from Your Old Lifestyle

It means making conscious choices to prioritize your physical and mental well-being over substance use. It may also be helpful to get to know yourself on your own, first. Spending sober time becoming familiar with your body intimately can help you better communicate your needs to someone else when you feel ready for that step. When I was drinking, it never occurred to me that I was an introvert. I would have classified myself as someone who loved to be around people and go out with them at night.

It’s been over six years since I first started seriously questioning my relationship with alcohol and considered a life without it. That’s six hard, beautiful, glorious years during which I not only stopped drinking, but also finally moved on from all recreational drugs as well as a history of bulimia. Having ups and down is a part of life and we all go though it. We go through emotions and try to live our lives to the fullest. Don’t let your thoughts take control of you, because your thoughts are not supposed to control you.

And that process takes time.

Although improving your appearance shouldn’t be the only reason you choose to get sober and stay that way, it’s a great perk that comes with it. When you abuse substances for extended periods of time, it exaggerates any mental health issues that you have. This is especially true since you’re likely not taking care of your physical or mental health as it is while suffering from addiction. However, living a sober life will help improve your physical, and in particular, your mental health. Whenever you suffer from addiction, you’re willing to spend every last penny that you have on alcohol or drugs.

• You CAN do this and you WILL eventually settle into a sober life.
• It’s part of the sobriety package, and it’s not necessarily a bad thing.
• As a result, you may be able to rebuild relationships that broke due to addiction.
• In these programs, it’s customary to receive plastic chips as you progress to the one-year mark, at which time you receive a bronze coin.