When a person decides to make a positive change in his or her life by attending an addiction recovery program, he or she will receive an intensive amount of support and care from professionals. There will be a supervised detox, individual therapy, group counseling, cognitive behavioral therapy, educational sessions, professional preparation meetings, and more. Throughout all of these components of recovery, there is one thing that needs to be addressed throughout the entire process: self esteem.
After struggling to break the cycle of addiction for many years, addicted individuals can feel downtrodden, worthless, and hopeless. Throughout our addiction recovery programs at Intervention Drug Rehab Association, our educated counselors work one on one with clients to get to the root of their addiction and work through these feelings of shame and self loathing. Individuals who have poor self esteem have a lack of self confidence that is required to remain successfully sober. For this reason, it is extremely important to work through repairing the individual’s damaged self esteem while in recovery.
There are several idea to work on for positive change. These can be useful during treatment, but they are just as useful, if not more so, after you come home from your addiction treatment program. By incorporating these suggestions into your life, you will fill your life with more mindful positivity, and that is always a great thing.
Continued Therapy: Although you started the therapy process while in addiction treatment, it is important to continue with a therapist after you complete the program as well. There are many therapists who work for a reduced rate or even for free in conjunction with support programs like AA or The Alano Club. Having an unbiased individual to discuss your inner thoughts with is a great way to work toward repairing self esteem.
Sentence Completions – Start with a blank sheet of paper and complete this sentence, “I like myself because…” as many times as possible. This might seem overwhelming at first, but just start with one if you need to, and come back to the exercise the next day. If this is too hard, try, “I could like myself if…” instead. This one is often easier to start out with and gives you the chance to discuss those statements with your therapist, sponsor, or trusted friend.
Forgiveness: It’s important to remember that the process of forgiveness is about forgiving the person who wronged you and not the act itself. Throught the cycle of addiction, there are most likely many times you have been hurt and wronged, just as there have also most likely been times you have hurt or wronged others. It is important to make reparations with others and also to work on forgiving yourself. If you have completed an addiction recovery program, or even if you are considering attending, it is not too late for you. You haven’t done anything that can’t be resolved or forgiven.
For more information about the addiction recovery services offered by Intervention Drug Rehab Association, contact us today by phone or email.
