Many people believe that recovery is the time for learning the positive ways to cope with addiction that fit with the positive aspects of yourself. Most individuals in recovery do not want to do the hard work of examining their negative characteristics and learning to change them; instead, they want to focus on their good parts and how they can improve these areas.
However, learning to identify the bad parts of yourself and then doing the work to change them can have more benefits than solely focusing on the good aspects. The work is challenging and is not meant to be fun, but it is worth lifelong recovery. By learning more about your negative traits, you can boost your recovery and live a happier life in sobriety.
Ignoring your negative traits will not allow you time to reflect on things you have done wrong in the past. While it can be painful to reexamine past mistakes, it is crucial for learning how to avoid them in the future. After all, no one is perfect, and you shouldn’t beat yourself up for falling once in a while.
Making mistakes makes you human, and learning from them is the best way to ensure your mistakes are worthwhile. If you were hanging with the wrong crowd and they introduced you to drugs or alcohol, reexamining this course of action can help you avoid doing so in the future, thus helping you maintain your sobriety.
When you avoid your negative traits, you become overly sensitive to when someone else points them out. You may feel that others are personally attacking you when they point out your flaws, but more often than not, they are doing so to help you grow because they care about you. Viewing criticism as constructive rather than as an attack will allow you to boost your growth in recovery because you will be less likely to react negatively to it. Instead, you will learn to view it as an opportunity for growth, thus making your receiving of criticism easier.
Addiction feeds off low self-esteem because it causes you to believe you do not deserve anything better than your current situation. Low self-esteem can slow your recovery because you will continue being hard on yourself for mistakes and bad things that happen to you. Experiencing negative thoughts when you have low self-esteem can cause you to become stuck ruminating on them. Therefore, you will have trouble overcoming them, thus prolonging your recovery.
Growing your self-esteem by examining your negative traits can boost your recovery because you become more sure of yourself. You won’t question your choices as frequently, and you will believe that you are a good person deserving of a happy, healthy life. Therefore, you will be capable of maintaining your sobriety for longer without a higher risk of relapse.
The constant need for other’s approval can cause you to feel insecure, thus pushing you to conform to other people’s expectations. Doing so is dangerous in recovery because falling in with the wrong crowd can have you once again picking up bad habits, such as drug and alcohol use.
When you identify your negative characteristics and put in the work to address them, you will be more sure of yourself and decrease the need for other’s approval. When someone insults your choices, especially those of your recovery, you will be more capable of brushing them off and continuing on your path rather than falling victim to the cycle of addiction once again. Additionally, be sure to seek others who support your recovery to reduce the risk of forming toxic friendships.
Addiction is a notoriously isolating experience because of the behaviors it prompts you to engage in. Your relationships with friends and family become strained because of the lying, stealing, and other negative behaviors you engaged in during active addiction. However, examining your negative traits can help you rid yourself of them and allow your relationships with loved ones to regrow.
When your family and friends see that you are serious about growth because you are doing the hard work necessary to do so, they will be more likely to offer forgiveness. Therefore, your relationships will grow more profound, and the bonds will be stronger. These are crucial for recovery because support from those you love most is what will keep you going on the hard days.
Few people want to admit they are flawed and have harmed those they care about in their lives. However, those in addiction recovery can boost their path to healing by examining their negative traits and growing from them. Doing so has numerous benefits for you, your recovery, and your mental health. While the process is challenging and may cause you to want to give up every once in a while, the benefits reaped from the process will be worth the blood, sweat, and tears you put into it. Recovery offers you an opportunity to change yourself for the better. If you need guidance during this time, NorthStar Transitions is here to help. Through various therapy programs and holistic wellness programs, we believe that anyone can find hope in their lives by overcoming the obstacles that held them back in the past. Learn more about our Colorado facility today by calling (303) 558-6400.
