After completing a recovery program, many people feel like they should be able to return directly to their normal daily lives, free from addiction and not needing any further support. Unfortunately, this expectation can set a person up for failure in recovery, because it doesn’t account for the importance of personal growth during sober living.
Maintaining sobriety after addiction treatment is an ongoing process. Continuing to employ the empowering strategies learned during therapy is the only way to stay sober, and the majority of these strategies are centered around the idea of personal growth.
Abstinence Alone Does Not Resolve Existing Issues
While sobriety in and of itself is a crucial goal when battling addiction, it can sometimes feel like sobriety ends up causing more problems if someone in recovery can no longer turn to their substance of choice to escape their problems. Personal growth during sober living involves more than just abstinence; it requires a commitment to increasing self-awareness and improving the quality of life.
This commitment turns what can seem like a struggle for sobriety into a rewarding personal journey. Sober living homes can help strengthen someone’s determination to remain sober and to create a life that is meaningful and fulfilling.1
Every Addiction is Unique
Every individual is unique, and addiction begins within the individual; therefore, no two addictions are exactly alike or have exactly the same root causes. While a structured recovery environment and a caring and insightful counselor are indispensable components of recovery, the answers to the problem of addiction lie in the personal work of therapy. Through journaling, meditation, visualization and other mindfulness-based practices, personal growth during sober living can help those in recovery to understand why they were driven to use in the first place, which can strengthen their resolve and ability to resist cravings for the long-term.2
Personal Growth During Sober Living Increases Self-Acceptance
Many people suffering from addiction frequently experience feelings of inadequacy or worthlessness. Failure to address these feelings leads too many people in recovery to relapse, because they simply don’t feel like they deserve anything better. A deeper understanding of addiction leads to a deeper understanding of self, and continued personal growth can eventually help people to learn to feel self-acceptance and compassion for themselves. Learning to forgive oneself has lasting benefits that resound in all areas of life.
Staying sober after completing a recovery program is never easy, and staying in the mindset of personal growth during sober living can seem impossible without a solid support system. Sober living homes offer a safe environment to focus on personal growth, while learning or re-learning how to function in everyday life and finding a sense of community among people who know exactly what you are going through.
If you or a loved one are ready to go deeper in your own personal journey in a compassionate and understanding environment, contact Casa Nuevo Vida to find out how we can help you live life to the fullest in a sober living home.