Survival Guide for Your First Days Sober

Developing a structured routine can help you stick to your sobriety goals, make healthy decisions, and reduce the likelihood of triggers and relapse. Create a structured daily routine, but plan for days you may experience sickness or chronic illness flare-ups that could require adjusting your routine. Unfortunately, with DIY drug rehab, you’ll most likely miss out on some of these important aspects of treatment. This could lead to increased incidences of relapse and reduced satisfaction from a lifestyle of sobriety. Getting away from all the triggers in your home environment can be very refreshing and helpful when you’re trying to start over. A rehab center can provide a fresh start and a new environment that allows you to focus on the positive changes you’re making instead of focusing on the past.

You can learn to manage your problems without falling back on your addiction. When you're confident in your ability to quickly de-stress, facing strong feelings isn't as intimidating or overwhelming. Once you're sober, the negative feelings that you dampened with drugs will resurface. For treatment to be successful, you'll first need to resolve your underlying issues. During medical detox, doctors and nurses will be there to monitor your heart rate, take vital signs and ensure that nothing goes wrong. This monitoring is even more important when it comes to certain drugs and especially for heavy users.

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Other definitions, however, often focus on the process of recovery and developing coping mechanisms and habits that support health and wellness over the long term. Total abstinence may be the goal, but the reality is that setbacks are common. Sobriety means not being under the influence of a substance.

This is especially crucial if you transition directly from a highly structured residential program to complete independent living. If you move from residential treatment to a sober living home, you get the benefit of a semi-structured and drug-free environment in which to build routines. Whether you are participating in a residential addiction treatment program or attending outpatient alcoholism treatment, your initial three days of sobriety will involve many firsts. You’ll be meeting your care team, consisting of a physician, nursing staff, and therapists. You will also start getting to know some of the other participants in your program through group therapy or other activities. Much like any other goal in life, long-term sobriety is more manageable in small parts.

How to Curb Alcohol Cravings: Advice From the Ria Health Team

However, it’s important to keep in mind that alcohol detox can be dangerous if it’s done at home. Detox at a professional rehab facility is typically the most recommended method for addressing alcohol addiction and dependence. Once you’ve decided to make a change, it can be tempting to try to get it over with as quickly as possible. But there’s a reason many people continue to identify as alcoholics long after drinking their last drop. It is likely your partner has entered treatment of some sort and is receiving support and encouragement from peers and professionals who are now part of their life. Remember, proper self-care and support is important for you as well.

You might be able to make yourself feel better or look better, but only time will lower your blood alcohol level. Try drinking only beer for the night and avoiding mixed drinks. Shots of hard liquor get you drunk very fast, so avoid them.

Staying Social When You Quit Drinking

Anyone with a desire to stop drinking is welcome, regardless of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, income or profession. It’s important to be a positive force in your loved ones’ lives as they continue to work through negative emotions and impulses. Using alcohol and marijuana in combination increases your risk of experiencing uncomfortable side effects due to increased absorption of THC. If you’re in a 12-step program and you have a sponsor, keep in regular contact with them. You may want to make arrangements to talk more often than you normally have in the past—maybe twice a week instead of every other week. As much as possible, wake up at the same time every day and go to sleep at the same time.

These symptoms are impossible to manage on one’s own, as well as extremely unsafe to handle without medical supervision. The opposite approach to cold-turkey withdrawals is medical detoxification, which attempts to flush the alcohol out of your system as quickly as possible. This approach sober house may not be safe either, as it can cause chemical imbalances that worsen withdrawal symptoms during the first days of sobriety. Many individuals who struggle with alcohol addiction are also battling other medical conditions such as depression, anxiety, or personality disorders.

Medication may be used to manage withdrawal symptoms, prevent relapse, or treat any co-occurring mental health condition such as depression or anxiety. Usually the first step is to purge your body of drugs and manage withdrawal symptoms. This step-by-step guide can help you cope with cravings, deal with relapse, and overcome your substance use disorder. Detox gives you a chance to get the drugs out of your system while replacing them with healthy alternatives. Staying sober requires a person to dive deeper and begin unraveling why they were using the substance, their triggers for relapse, and how to avoid falling into a pattern of use again.

• Most people need to continue outpatient therapy, attend support groups, and find purpose in their everyday life to stay sober.
• Members work together to help the alcoholic who still suffers.
• The more strategies you learn to identify triggers, cope with stress, and manage your new sober life, the easier it is to prevent relapse.