“People are defeated by easy, victorious, and cheap successes more than by adversity.”
— Benjamin Disraeli
In recovery as in life itself, adversity is inevitable. How we respond to adverse situations is key to a positive outcome. No one promises easy, life can be difficult at times. When we are working on living a life abstinent from mind-altering drugs and alcohol, we must prepare ourselves with the tools needed to overcome adversity when it hits. Adversity comes in various forms and in all areas of our lives. Sometimes it is mental, psychological, physical, emotional, or spiritual.
We’ve Helped Thousands of Individuals Overcome Drug and Alcohol Addiction
What are some of the tools for Successful Recovery?
Accept Your Addiction/Alcoholism… This is the first step to recovery. If you recognize you have an issue, then and only then can you work on overcoming it! Coming to terms with the concept of addiction as a “Disease” is not the goal. The goal is to recognize that mind-altering substances has had a negative effect on your life and you must take action to overcome the negative consequences. If you make the decision to abstain from all mind-altering substances for now you are on the way to your recovery.
A.A. Typically, when you hear those two letters spoken together in the context of addiction you think Alcoholics Anonymous! But that is not my point here, A.A. is my Attitude and Action in my life. I need to adjust my attitude to accept my issue and determine that I am going to abstain and do it with a positive mindset. Then I will take action!
Taking Action!
Support Group… Having a support group is essential in warding off adversity. Having the ability to bounce challenges off of one another is helpful. In the mental sphere, we all have bad days. The days where nearly everything we think, say or do turns out wrong! Having a sponsor, mentor, or buddy to discuss the issues can turn a day around quickly especially when we learn that our cohorts in recovery have experienced the same thing!
Attend Mutual Support Meetings… Attending mutual support meetings is often the “how” of developing a support group. So it is imperative to be cognizant of the difference. Meetings are formal support systems that meet at a set time regularly. A support group is your Tribe! Friends that are heading in the same direction as you are. These are people that are at the same, less advanced and more advanced in the recovery process than you are currently. This mixture of friendships enables you to help others, work with people at your level, and have mentors leading the way!
Seek professional help… Yes, we all need some professional assistance in our recovery journey if we want to advance emotionally quicker or more thoroughly. Having a therapist, counselor, or coach goes a long way in cutting short some obvious mistakes many of us make in early recovery and beyond.
Medication-Assisted Therapy… Yes, utilizing medications to assist in your recovery may be prudent. There are medications to help stabilize your mood, prevent or limit the compulsion to drink or drug and assist you in having a successful and rejuvenating night’s sleep to name a few reasons.
In Conclusion… These are a few of the tools to overcome addiction or alcoholism. Sometimes you may need assistance to get on the right path. Often “Rehab” is the start of the recovery process. There is no shame in asking for help. Often your health insurer will assist you in paying for treatment. A medical evaluation followed by a medically supervised detoxification is in order. Always ask your doctor what is best for your health. Then do a search for the best rehab for your specific needs. You can start by checking out our Top Ten Rehab in the United States page located here…
