Acceptance is a highly important aspect of recovery, especially during the initial treatment stages. As it is important to establish acceptance early on, it may fade over time, making it difficult to maintain acceptance throughout the remainder of recovery or implement the mindset in other aspects of your life outside of treatment. This is why it is essential to learn how to continue to practice acceptance throughout your long-term recovery journey.
What Is Acceptance?
To better your level of acceptance, you have to understand what acceptance is and what it means from a recovery perspective. Acceptance in recovery means you are willing to truly accept the current situations and obstacles that come your way rather than isolating and avoiding the issues at hand. By accepting the challenges that come your way, you can properly handle them and move past them without disrupting your recovery success.
Importance of Acceptance
Acceptance is necessary for viewing the world around you realistically. It is easy to allow irrational thoughts to take over your mind and cause you to stray down a different path. Accepting the aspect of your situation, as well as the world around you, that everything isn’t always perfect can allow you to truly make the best of the situation rather than dwelling on the negatives.
Commonly implemented in addiction recovery, 12-Step programs have a core focus on acceptance. These types of programs follow the belief that you are under the influence of a higher power. Accepting that there are powers stronger than yourself and that some things are out of your control can help you to recognize the true weight of your addiction. Accepting the strength of addiction is important to overcome it.
Another important factor of acceptance is developing the ability to accept yourself. It is necessary to accept the situation you are presented with, but you also need to accept who you are as an individual. Connecting with yourself allows you to accept your current wants and needs as you move forward in recovery. As you continue through the life-long recovery process, you may have to reconnect with yourself to reestablish the importance of your needs.
Continuing Acceptance After Treatment
As you work to continue acceptance following the completion of a treatment program, you may notice specific challenges that can be associated with acceptance. For example, social acceptance is a form that often causes individuals to fall back into old habits and develop negative emotions. It can be hard to make social connections outside of treatment and refrain from assuming the worst of others’ opinions about you. Remember that the people who will truly make a difference in your life are those who will accept you for who you truly are.
At times, it may be necessary to stray away from certain social groups or individuals that consistently cause you to feel like you are not enough. Engage with people who build your confidence and help you feel accepted throughout recovery.
To continue acceptance throughout your life, you may need to put some time aside for a self-assessment. Through self-assessments, you can view your progress and potential factors that are hindering your success. Furthermore, you can observe areas you may be lacking. Having a viewpoint of full acceptance while you self-reflect is a great way to truly access your progress.
While there is no specific way to measure your level of acceptance, there are some clear signs that show you may not be accepting yourself or your situation. If you find that you are struggling with consistent relapses, are in a constant state of negative emotions, or tend to think irrationally or impulsively, you likely have some viewpoint of acceptance that is skewed. Reassessing your needs and discussing these matters with a mental health professional can help you regain focus on the path to success.
Holding Yourself Accountable
As you go through your recovery journey, you will likely hear various statements and suggestions about accountability. Holding yourself accountable is an extremely important aspect involved in maintaining a high level of acceptance. The ultimate thing that hinders acceptance is your mind. Holding yourself accountable for your thoughts and managing your thought processes can ultimately help you to accept any obstacles that may come your way in life.
One way to hold yourself accountable is to ensure you are viewing the influences of addiction and higher powers realistically. You may feel that you have full control over your choices after completing treatment; however, the effects of addiction can still come into play at any point. Admitting that you are powerless against these forces is an act of courage. With your spirituality and the strength of God, you can overcome the power of addiction.
Acceptance is an essential aspect of recovery. To become more accepting in the recovery process, you need to understand the obstacles you may be presented with and learn who you are as an individual – then you must face the reality of both. Without acceptance, you may fall into a state of self-isolation and avoidance of issues that are necessary to adjust. Acceptance has many important factors that play a role in your long-term recovery success. There are many practices that can ensure you continue to accept your reality and observe if you are lacking acceptance. Hold yourself accountable for your thoughts, actions, and awareness of what is within your control. Giving in to the higher powers and accepting reality as it is can allow you to have a clear view moving forward. To learn about continuing acceptance throughout your recovery journey, reach out to Renaissance Ranch today at (801) 308-8898.