When you are recovering from substance use disorder (SUD), many factors may interfere with your ability to maintain sobriety – even as an alumnus. Isolation is one of many challenges that can lead your thoughts and emotions astray in recovery, especially if you previously used alcohol or other drugs to self-medicate feelings of loneliness. Fortunately, alumni programs can provide the social support and accountability that you need to fight isolation when it arises throughout long-term sobriety.
At NorthStar Transitions, we offer an alumni program to former clients to ensure they have a place to connect with others who understand what they are going through. When you are surrounded by a sober support system, you can feel more confident and prepared to avoid the pitfalls of early recovery as well as commit to positive change in your life. Fight isolation by participating in our alumni program.
Before understanding the value of alumni programs for fighting isolation, it is necessary to highlight the dangers of isolation in recovery. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) defines and acknowledges the relationship between social isolation and loneliness, stating:
Loneliness is the feeling of being alone, regardless of the amount of social contact. Social isolation is a lack of social connections. Social isolation can lead to loneliness in some people, while others can feel lonely without being socially isolated.
Moreover, according to the International Journal of High Risk Behaviors, “Feeling of loneliness is a psychologically destructive and terrifying experience that [informs] severe psychological and physical problems.” Additionally, loneliness “has a direct relationship with the emotional domain and individual cognitive function and causes lack of adaptation in cognition, experience, and social expectations.”
As both social isolation and loneliness can make you more vulnerable to engaging in high-risk behaviors, there is no question that these experiences may have played a role in facilitating your initial substance abuse. Like many others, you may have previously used substances in an attempt to treat or resolve your feelings of loneliness or other emotions, like depression and anxiety, that may have surfaced from your isolationist behaviors. In a similar way, you must recognize that isolation and associated emotional distress can also increase your risk of relapse throughout long-term recovery.
Despite isolation and loneliness interfering with your ability to secure and sustain lasting recovery, social support can serve as a protective factor against these experiences. Social support can provide feelings of belonging and acceptance, which can be critical in building confidence in both early and long-term sobriety. In addition, social support can also provide you with comfort, advice, and support during times of emotional need.
Social support exists in a variety of formats. Some examples of social support include:
One of the most valuable forms of social support can be accessed via alumni programs. Simply put alumni programs foster opportunities for you to remain in contact with your treatment team and other treatment alumni throughout long-term recovery.
One of the most important benefits of alumni programs is that you can choose how involved you'd like to be without experiencing pressure or guilt from staff or other alumni. Often, alumni programs offer a variety of networking opportunities – such as weekly meetings, monthly events, or other virtual programming – to ensure that they can meet the unique needs of all alumni involved.
Alumni programs can help you fight isolation during long-term recovery by providing ongoing opportunities for connection and support, including a soundingboard whenever you may need it. You will be surrounded by other alumni who have walked in your shoes, offering advice and new perspectives for sobriety. In addition, alumni programs can offer the opportunity to build new friendships and, in turn, individuals who you can celebrate your successes and accomplishments with throughout recovery.
At NorthStar Transitions, we recognize that completing treatment is an achievement worth celebrating. However, we also recognize how quickly isolation and loneliness can interfere with recovery progress, especially as you return home from treatment. Thus, we offer an alumni program to help you stay on track and fight isolation throughout your long-term recovery journey.
In our alumni program, you will be equipped with new tools, support, and guidance to help you maintain a lasting, drug-free lifestyle. We offer an abundance of opportunities for alumni to stay in touch and reconnect with one another every month. Some examples of the opportunities we foster through our alumni program include:
There is no resource more accessible in fighting isolation with social support than alumni programs. Let us help you get connected today.
If you or a loved one has recently completed a treatment program, it can be valuable to consider participating in an alumni program for sustained healing. Alumni programs can provide you with the social support that you need not only to prevent relapse but also to achieve a meaningful life in sobriety. At NorthStar Transitions, our alumni program fosters meaningful opportunities for our alumni to connect with one another in flexible, non-demanding ways. We offer a variety of resources to ensure that our alumni have what they need to fight isolation and its dangers throughout long-term recovery. To learn more about our treatment programs and options, give us a call today at (303) 558-6400.
