A lot of people fail in their attempt to remain sober. Yet others say that staying sober is easy. The fact is that statistics suggest that relapse rates might be as high as 75% in an individual’s first year of recovery. Furthermore, the majority of these will return to addiction within a few weeks of recovery. The reality is that staying sober is far from easy, however, these statistics don’t demonstrate the difficulty of staying sober but highlight the need to approach recovery in the right way.
The Myth of Recovery
So why is recovery viewed as such a struggle? There are a number of reasons why that is:
- Those who relapse during recovery may describe how it was a real struggle for them. And they blame the recovery process instead of examining where they went wrong themselves.
- Staying sober means that the individual has to make significant changes to their life, and this can be an overwhelming challenge.
- If an individual is not fully committed to their recovery, they will find it a struggle to stay sober. This is because they have not fully given up on their addiction.
- Some individuals may have an untreated dual diagnosis and may be dealing with depression or another form of mental illness along with their addiction.
Easy Ways to Recover from Addiction
How can an individual ensure that their progress in sobriety is relatively easy? Here are some ways:
- Going to rehab will let the individual learn the tools they need to stay sober.
- Be willing to do whatever it takes to stay sober. As long as individuals maintain this attitude they will never relapse.
- Be aware of all the common relapse triggers and develop strategies for dealing with them.
- Having an effective support network can make a huge difference to those individuals who are starting over in recovery. This can be family, sober friends, members of the same AA group, or even therapists.
- Helping other people who are also in recovery can be very beneficial to the person offering the help. This means they are not solely focused on their own problems. It can also make their problems appear less significant.
- Finding an appropriate program that suits the individual’s needs will make things much easier for them.
Ultimately, it is not necessary for addiction recovery to be a daily struggle. Treating challenges as a positive thing and a way to learn is what staying sober is about.
Each person has a unique experience with addiction. At The Villa Treatment Center, we will work with you to ascertain what your personal needs are and develop an individual treatment plan to put you on your personal path to recovery.