Table of Contents
If you can make it through the first ninety days of recovery, you increase the likelihood of achieving long-term sobriety greatly. The usual reason why individuals relapse during these early months is that they fall into one of the common traps. We have listed some of these in the paragraphs below.
Believing That Giving Up Alcohol or Drugs Is Enough
Giving up alcohol or drugs is the crucial first step, but it is not enough to guarantee lasting happiness in recovery. The problem is that becoming physically sober just gets you back to where you were prior to becoming addicted. This means that all the problems that led you into substance abuse in the first place are likely to still be there. Even if you manage to stay sober, these problems are probably going to drive you into new maladaptive behaviours.
Refusing to Consider Any Type of Addiction Recovery Help
Some people do manage to break away from addiction and remain sober without any type of help. The reality is that this option does not work for most individuals. If you are serious about breaking away from addiction, you want to give yourself the best possible chance; this is what you do when you choose to receive addiction help. There is no telling how many more chances you are going to have to give up alcohol or drugs. It is important that you make the most of this opportunity in case you do not get to have another one.
Treating Recovery like Some Type of Prison Sentence
If you are not fully committed to this new way of life, you may become obsessed with counting of the days as if you are serving some type of prison sentence. The whole purpose of getting sober is so you can be free and able to find happiness. By not fully committing to recovery means that you are just waiting for the right excuse to relapse. If you do manage to stay sober, it will mean that you are white knuckling it; this means that your behaviour deteriorates and you become a dry drunk. Dry drunk this is where you are physically sober but act as if you were in the midst of addiction.
Not Properly Preparing for the Transition from Rehab Back to Home
Entering an alcohol or drug rehab can be a great decision because it gives you a solid foundation for your new life. In order to achieve lasting sobriety, you need to make sure that you plan carefully for the transition from rehab back to your home. This is because you will be moving from a protective environment back to one where you are suddenly faced with lots of temptation. The biggest mistake many make when leaving rehab is that they assume they are going to be able to manage without too much support. They feel strong in rehab and do not realise that that they may not feel so strong once they return home initially. You need to take this transition very seriously; it is going to be better for you to have a bit too much support than too little.
Returning Back to Old Habits and Old Haunts
If you return to your old way of life, it is probably only going to be a matter of time before you relapse. It is not a good idea to be spending time around those who are abusing alcohol or drugs; these people may be your friends, but they can easily pull you back down. You are also going to be taking a huge risk by visiting places such as bars.
