Staying Sober After Treatment in Florida

When a person completes a stay at an addiction facility in Florida, the biggest challenge they face is taking what they learned during treatment and using it to navigate the challenges of the “real world.” While it’s relatively easy to avoid triggers and dangerous situations in the comfort of a treatment facility, life on the outside is rife with hurdles, stress and tricky situations.

It’s completely possible to stay sober after completing treatment. However, it takes a lot of knowledge and effort to remain on the road to recovery. Here are some tips to help you traverse this path.

Recognize What Situations and People Trigger You To Use

During treatment, your counselors and health team will likely emphasize to you the importance of understanding your personal triggers. A trigger refers to any person, place or thing that creates an urge within you to use your drug or substance of choice. For some people, a trigger comes in the form of a bar where they used to binge-drink. For others, a toxic friend will cause them to crave the escape of inebriation. It’s important that you recognize your personal triggers and do everything in your power to avoid them after leaving rehab.

Find Your Routine

For many addicts, the original desire to use harmful substances stemmed from a feeling of emptiness and a lack of purpose. This is why many addictions begin after a person has lost their job or has been forced to leave school. As human beings, we crave purpose and routine. When you first leave rehab, you might not immediately find employment or be enrolled in school. However, you can still create a routine by waking up at the same time each day and giving yourself a list of household chores and personal development goals to accomplish before the day is over. Although it might not feel like you’re accomplishing much if your only tasks for the day are to do the dishes or read a chapter of a book, the effects of a daily routine will do wonders for your recovery journey.

Stick To Your Medical Plan

When you completed treatment, your medical team didn’t simply say “good luck” and send you back out into the world. Instead, they gave you a detailed plan to ensure your continued success after you left their facility. Many addicts relapse after treatment because they didn’t stick to this plan. It’s easy to want to abandon your weekly meetings and counseling sessions if you feel like things are going well for you. However, even if you’re enjoying personal and professional success after treatment, stick to your recovery plan and don’t let a few good days give you a false sense of security that relapse is impossible. Relapse is always a possibility for an addict, no matter how good things are going for them.

Take The Opportunity To Reinvent Yourself

When people complete a treatment program, they often feel a bit confused and overwhelmed as to what to do next. Many patients did not have a strong sense of self when they were actively abusing their substance of choice. Instead, their entire world revolved around scoring and using. It’s normal to feel like you’re a completely blank slate upon exiting a treatment facility. However, use this to your advantage. Now is the perfect time to try to discover who you really are and to explore new passions. Some great hobbies and pursuits include:

  • Learning how to play an instrument
  • Studying a foreign language
  • Joining a local amateur sports team or fitness club
  • Volunteering for a worthy charity
  • Taking a free online course on an interesting subject

Remember, “reinventing yourself” doesn’t mean changing the core of who you are or trying to become someone who you are not. Instead, it means identifying the things that are great about you and finding channels through which to explore these unique and positive qualities.

The Journey Starts Now

Remember, there’s no such thing as a perfect recovery story. Even the most committed patients will occasionally have bad days or find themselves dangerously close to surrendering to temptation. What matters is that you stay the course and always remember that you’re worthy of a better life. If you’re at the very beginning of your recovery journey and want more information about how you can escape the turmoil of addiction in favor of a better life, please contact us today. Call 954-523-1167