Let’s face it, it took guts to get where you are today. Whether you are ten years sober or have recently finished your treatment program, it took courage and strength to admit you have a problem and seek help. However, the journey doesn’t stop when you leave your treatment facility, maintaining your success is a lifelong commitment.
It can be a little scary when you are coming out of treatment and embracing your new sober life. It’s important to feel good about your accomplishment thus far.
In treatment, you learned important skills to maintain your sobriety – below are a few more tips on how to stay sober and well now that you are a recovered alumnus.
Recovery as a Lifelong Process
Whether you just finished treatment or have been sober for many years, you probably know that life after treatment can be an adjustment. You have entered the period called recovery, also known as sobriety. What is recovery, though?
Recovery is the period after initial detox and treatment where you learn how to maintain sobriety using the skills you have learned during your time at the treatment facility. Just like treatment, recovery is a dynamic process. It requires that you use the sober living skills you learned in treatment (as well as new skills you have yet to learn) to build a new, healthy life.
Even after you leave the Renaissance Ranch facility, your support system stays with you. Everyone needs support, and your treatment facility has your back.
Your support system continues to expect you to do your part. Maintenance and sobriety are tough. Accountability is key to recovery success. In continuing care, you will be randomly drug tested while you are living at a sober living facility. You will also be in group therapy and have the support of your peers to guide you through the process.
The Pathway to Sober Living
Peer support and accountability are amazing tools in your sober living toolbox. Whether you are enjoying your weekly group meetings in recovery, monthly get-togethers at Renaissance Ranch, or the quarterly golf tournaments and other activities, your peers, counselors, and sober living team are here to see you through the path to recovery.
The methods taught in treatment are scientifically validated. You live the Twelve Steps every day. You know what the Big Book says. Those skills are important in your recovery as you move from treatment and into applying them to your everyday life.
In fact, studies have shown that those who continue to apply a 12-Step ideology are better able to cope and maintain sobriety in recovery. All it takes is a continued commitment to a healthy, sober lifestyle, a belief in a higher power, and continuing to work through the steps of the program.
9 Key Components for Living a Sober Life
Sometimes, life can come at you like a freight train. When life circumstances become chaotic, it can be difficult for anyone to get through it all. Here are a few key things to focus on to keep your focus on living a sober life.
- Maintain your sense of self-direction. Even when life is chaotic, keep focused on your path of recovery. You cannot control the circumstances around you, but you can control how you use your resources.
- Focus on your own needs and care. You cannot help the people around you if you do not first help yourself. Self-care and making sure your needs are met are top priorities.
- See how recovery is a holistic process. Every part of you is affected by your recovery. Your body, mind, and spirit are also healing. Remember to take time to focus on spirituality and mindfulness as you maintain sobriety.
- Remember that recovery is not a linear process. Sometimes, we face setbacks. The important thing about setbacks is that we get up and keep working toward the sober living goal.
- Keep building your strength. Part of recovery is building up your resiliency and coping strategies as you learn to live life without dependence.
- Know that your peers are there to support you. Supporting each other is a valuable step in the recovery process. While you are at it, you can also offer support. Recovery takes a village.
- Respect is key. You are learning to respect yourself again. You respect the process. When you respect yourself and the things you have learned, you are eliminating the discrimination and stigma you once had in your mind about your ability to achieve sobriety. When you respect, you can achieve great things.
- Be responsible. You are in charge of living responsibly. You can do it, and Renaissance Ranch is here to support you along the way.
- Always hope. Hope is the breath from your higher power that brings light into your life. Hope began this process for you when you hoped for treatment for substance use disorder. Now that you have achieved sobriety, you know for sure that hope works. Keep hoping for bigger and brighter things, and you can get there.
Living a New Life in Recovery
Now that you are in recovery, you have been inducted into an amazing group of people: the Renaissance Ranch Band of Brothers alumni support group. Within this group are amazing men just like you who are living their best life in recovery and are there to support each other and lift each other up.
The brotherhood you felt when you walked through the doors at Renaissance Ranch continues even after you exit the program. Remaining connected with other alumni is a great way to stay on that straight and narrow path and achieve your ultimate goal: a lifelong and successful recovery.
You have done the hardest thing you have ever done in life – you got help for your substance use. However, the work continues. Recovery is a lifelong, dynamic process of learning how to live again in sobriety. You might find yourself wondering where you go from here or what comes next. Facing recovery can be frightening, but your friends, peers, and support system at Renaissance Ranch are here for you every step of the way. They are committed to your future of sober living. Whether you are attending your outpatient group meetings, enjoying a barbeque with your peers, listening to the alumni podcast, or playing golf with your group peers, Renaissance Ranch has you covered. Your support system doesn’t end when you leave Renaissance Ranch; it begins when you arrive. Call Renaissance Ranch at (801) 308-8898 today and begin your journey to recovery.