In the world of recovery from addiction, personal motivation and the willingness to accept change should be a top priority. Most people who become addicted to drugs or alcohol will want to change their destructive behavior at some point in their addiction. Many people experience the disease of addiction as a series of chaotic situations and self-destructive behavior that results in humiliation and sorrow. As your substance abuse becomes worse and worse, your motivation to change will ultimately become more and more important.
The motivation to seek rehabilitation at an addiction treatment facility will always have to come from within. Your personal desire to want to change things in your life will help guide you to make the right choices. Maybe you have suffered long-term negative consequences as a result of your addiction, such as losing a job, getting arrested or ruining your personal relationships with friends and family. Or perhaps you understand that your addiction could completely drain your bank account and it could eventually kill you.
Choosing to seek treatment at a drug rehabilitation center could be one of the most important decisions you make in your life.
A good addiction treatment center will offer a safe, healthy environment for someone seeking recovery. A severe drug and alcohol abuse problem can significantly affect your cognitive reasoning and decision making skills. Beginning your recovery at a detox center is a great place to start. You will be surrounded by medical professionals and people who have been where you are that are willing to help you succeed. As you navigate your recovery over the coming weeks, these addiction specialists will help teach you how to handle the intense physical and emotional changes you are going to encounter throughout your recovery. The emotions you encounter will be difficult to process, but with the help of treatment professionals you can enable the changes necessary to start your new, healthy life in sobriety.
Regardless of the source of motivation, once you go to treatment your journey is only beginning.
When substance abuse becomes a prominent part of someone’s life, motivation can become severely lacking. Many find their motivation by simply recognizing how messed up their life has become. Through the challenges of withdrawal symptoms, your motivation to change can become difficult to maintain. Many will experience the psychological symptoms of anxiety or depression through the early withdrawal process. Often times these psychological problems were part of the reason you began using drugs or alcohol in the first place. Learning how to live with out your drug of choice as your coping mechanism is very important during this phase of recovery.
Keeping the motivation throughout your recovery is not only crucial to becoming sober, you have to keep a strong desire to STAY sober once you leave an inpatient rehab center. Many people who complete recovery at a drug treatment center think once they quit using they are cured. There is a persistent view that once you get sober, everything is “fixed” and will return to normal. Some people will even use the triumph of being sober as an excuse to start using again. This becomes a trap that many people enter, thinking they are cured simply because they graduated from drug therapy. It is of utmost importance to have the motivation to quit using on day one, but the real challenge is to stay sober every single day after that.
Relapse is a normal part of recovery from addiction.
Most people who complete a drug rehabilitation program will relapse. Relapsing is a normal part of addiction recovery. As you begin to encounter the challenges of reintegration into everyday life, problems you had been avoiding by getting high will have to be dealt with. The other problems created out of the consequences of your past drug abuse will have to be addressed here as well. This will require an ongoing motivation to stay sober.
Developing purpose and meaning in your life is a great tool to keep your spirits high and keep you motivated to stay sober.
By now you have realized that giving up certain things has helped you gain other positive outcomes in your life. Your addiction will be at constant battle with your recovery. You have traded one for the other and you must continually realize that you are making the right choice. Being constantly mindful of the pros and cons associated with your choices will help you to strengthen your motivation. Now you understand that continuing your addiction wasn’t worth the price you paid for it. This is essential to keep you going down the right path.
Recovery can be a whole different animal for each and every individual. No one person’s treatment schedule will be the same. Some are able to quit cold-turkey, no problem. Those cases are few and far between, but most people will require some guidance along the way. Professional help is recommended for most people who have experienced a struggle with addiction. Continuing with help from a 12 step program outside of the treatment center will greatly improve your chances for a successful recovery. Utilize your resources from friends and family who care about you. Talk to them regularly and be honest with your feelings. Most importantly however, be honest with yourself and your needs throughout your recovery. Setting your mindset to one of fully-integrated honesty with yourself and others is a great policy to keep you on the right track.
Spend your time learning sober activities as these will positively reinforce your recovery. Building confidence and self-esteem should be consciously sought out as an essential component to your continued success. Full recovery is only truly possible when you are ready, willing and able to accept change. Once you have that motivation, continue to maintain it by seeking praise and approval from a trusted support system, like family, friends and loved ones. These social support structures will greatly benefit your continued motivation.
New SAMHSA data shows that in 2017, 18.7 million people in the United States had a substance use disorder. With over 72,000 Americans dying from a drug overdose in 2017, the time to get serious about addiction recovery is now.
If you, or a loved one is struggling with addiction, please contact 10 Acre Ranch. Our licensed, professional, caring staff has the tools you need to successfully complete your journey to sobriety. We are available 24/7 to help you. All you have to do is come up with the motivation to make that first call:
