Returning home after treatment can be difficult. This is the first real test of your sobriety. Outside of the treatment center, it can feel like the training wheels of sobriety have been taken off and now you are afraid of falling. It is okay and completely natural to feel like this.
While having to manage your sobriety on your own can be scary, there are things you can do to set yourself up for success. These principles apply whether you are returning home to family or to home life by yourself. You will face challenges, but hopefully, these tips will help you stay sober even through the hard parts.
There is no particular order in which you need to implement the steps discussed here, but if there had to be a step one, it would be to create a safe space. This is essential to a successful recovery. In creating a safe space, you are creating a place free from triggers and stress where you can go to feel mentally, emotionally, and physically at rest. You can go there when you are feeling bad or good. It is a great tool to have in your recovery.
Use your safe space as a place of healing, a place where you can step out of a situation and breathe. You can collect yourself and reenter the situation with a level head. This place could be a bedroom, basement, or patio—wherever makes you feel comfortable and at peace.
Try not to have too many distractions in your safe place. You want it to be a place of healing and understanding your thoughts. Distractions like video games or TV are not going to help you here. They only temporarily mask the problems at hand.
Making an emergency plan can stressful. It can bring up thoughts that might suggest you cannot stay sober, or that you will never mentally recover. An emergency plan is not meant to imply that you are certain to have moments of failure. An emergency plan is there to give you and the ones you love the peace of mind that comes with knowing there are procedures in place if something should happen.
An emergency plan should be very detailed. It should cover not only what to do if you spiral and are thinking about using again, but also outline your warning signs. Maybe you become more reclusive when you are thinking about using. Maybe you get more irritable. Whatever your warning signs are, write them down and make copies to give to your loved ones so you all are on the same page about what to do if things get bad.
If things are bad now, there are ways to get help. There is a 24/7 service run by SAMHSA that can help you work through this crisis.
Belonging to a support group is crucial. They give you a community of like-minded people who have been or are going through similar experiences as you. This is a good way to meet new sober people. When returning home after treatment, you may be battling feelings of loneliness because of friends that you lost to sobriety. Support groups can help you regain friendships that you need for long-term sobriety.
Support groups also give you a place to talk through your problems. They offer you a safe space and a place to put your mind at ease. The great thing about support groups is you can find many in your community and many more online so you can attend virtually if you need or want to.
Communication is important if you are returning to a home with other people. You must make your feelings known and set boundaries. Communicating your feelings will help the others you live with know where you are mentally. It can be something as simple as a daily check-in. Communicating when you are having good and bad days will help those you live with understand how to help you.
Setting boundaries is also a key part of communicating your feelings. People are not automatically going to know what triggers you. You have to let them know so they do not do something that triggers you without realizing it.
This all may seem like a lot, especially when you are fresh out of treatment. It is easy to get discouraged or feel overwhelmed, and these are normal feelings to have. Keep in mind that all these tips are for the sake of your sobriety. While it may seem daunting, implementing them is necessary. In the long run, they will help put your mind at ease. Though it may be challenging, try to approach each thing on this list with a healthy mindset and you will be amazed at what you can accomplish.
Returning home after recovery can be difficult. It brings a set of new and unique challenges you have to face. It can be discouraging to have to do a lot of work when you arrive but it does get better. There is a light at the end of the tunnel and that light is a joyous and free life. With that being said, sometimes you need extra assistance and there is no shame in that. NorthStar Transitions, located in Boulder, CO, can be the place to find that help. Our experienced staff can help you and the ones you care about navigate this difficult period in life. If you or someone you know needs treatment, let our caring and knowledgeable clinical staff at NorthStar get you started on the path to sobriety. Take the first steps by calling us today at (303) 558-6400.
