Addiction thrives on disruptions to your normal routine. When you struggle with addiction, daily tasks become less important than getting and using substances. In recovery, when things don’t go as planned, it can create uncertainty and cause stress. That is why a routine is essential after addiction treatment. A good routine can help keep you grounded while you learn to live a sober life. It will also help you feel confident and steady as you move forward with your recovery. As Benjamin Franklin once said, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.”
A Routine Can Help You Stay Grounded After Addiction Treatment
When you are in addiction treatment, you create a routine that makes it easy to not reach for substances. However, when you leave your program, going back to normal life can feel overwhelming. The unknown of what the future holds can create chaos in your mind.
Creating a routine can help you feel organized and accomplished. As you move through recovery, you might be able to get to a point where you do not have to schedule every second of your day. However, in early recovery, it is important to schedule everything so that you are not leaving your mind to boredom. Bordem is the antithesis of staying sober.
In the beginning, this may mean scheduling everything from the times you are going to eat to when you are going to work and even when you are going to sit down and scroll through social media. Setting up a schedule like this will allow you to fight boredom, which can help prevent relapse.
A Routine Can Help You Feel More Comfortable in the Sober World
The first few months of sobriety can be challenging. You may still be experiencing cravings and possibly even withdrawal symptoms at times. This can cause a lot of stress and anxiety throughout your day. Having a good daily routine can help you feel confident that you are not going to reach for substances. If you make a routine and stick with it, there will be no time to seek out drugs or alcohol. It can make us feel like we are in control of our life and not our drug of choice.
A Routine Provides a Sense of Accomplishment
Following a routine can create a sense of accomplishment about your ability to do things and get them done when you say you are going to. This can be especially helpful for people who have turned to substances because they feel like a failure. Building a positive routine will give them more confidence in their ability to stick to their word.
A routine also provides a sense of accomplishment. When you mark something off your list, it feels good. The sense of satisfaction you get when accomplishing things will get stronger and stronger until it becomes an integral part of who you are.
A Routine Gives You Something to Look Forward to After Addiction Treatment
Creating a routine can help you feel more confident about your future. It can help you set goals and actually accomplish them. When you plan things into your routine to work on the goals that you have, it can help you look forward to the way things can be if you stay on this path after addiction treatment.
Let’s say you really want to hike Camelback Mountain in Pheonix. However, you know it is a pretty difficult hike for beginners. Due to this, it would be a great idea to work on some smaller hikes. Maybe start with things like nature walks that are at a slight incline. Then move up to hikes with steeper inclines and longer hikes. Planning these things into your day will help you look forward to your time outside, along with looking forward to the big goal of being able to hike Camelback Mountain.
Routines Create Success After Addiction Treatment
The bottom line is that creating a solid routine can help you be successful after treatment. A routine can help you with the adjustment period after you leave a treatment facility. Those first few days, weeks, and even months after treatment can be difficult. They carry a lot of unknowns, and they may make you feel like you are not in control. However, by creating a routine, you will be a brand new person.
A routine will help you create and accomplish goals. It will give you a sense of confidence that maybe you never felt during active addiction or maybe ever in your life. You can do this. Take the time to create a routine. Maybe have someone help you, so you don’t feel overwhelmed. But just start. The moment you start is the moment you are setting yourself up for success.
When the time comes for you to leave treatment and go back to normal daily life, it can be overwhelming. Feeling like you might fail to stay sober can cause you a lot of stress and uncomfortable feelings. However, by taking the time to create a routine, you are setting yourself up for success. You are laying the groundwork for each day. It will help you get that feeling of accomplishment and will help organize your days and mind with all the things you need to do. If you or someone you love is struggling with addiction, reach out to Buena Vista Recovery today at (480) 741-9414. We can help set you up for success in recovery.
