Sober living

6 Common Fears in Addiction Recovery and How to Face Them

Posted On December 22, 2022 at 7:15 am by / Comments Off on 6 Common Fears in Addiction Recovery and How to Face Them

fear of being sober

This one happened for me relatively early on, and that’s WITH pregnancy brain. It is an incredible feeling to have that fog lift. By the end of my drinking days, it was a wonder to me that I could do anything. Because I’ve been there, I know what an unsatisfying answer can be, so to give you a morale boost, I want to go over some of the biggest benefits of sobriety I’ve experienced in my journey. In other words, success is the blissful absence of all of the devastating consequences of a previous drug or alcohol habit. When we asked our alumna to describe what being sober feels like, she gave a detailed and inviting description that captured these key points.

Sobriety Setbacks

For instance, whereas an opiate user may find it almost impossible to sleep or eat, a cocaine user may find that they experience ravenous hunger and feel perpetually exhausted. A marijuana user may find themselves lacking in motivation to complete basic tasks, and struggle to focus on simple thing. What this list doesn’t explore are all the things you have to do to get these benefits. Sobriety takes work, and much of it is not easy or pleasant to go through.

Fear in Recovery Isn’t Insurmountable

When you’re addicted to drugs or alcohol, the notion of getting clean and then staying sober over the long haul can be frightening. One reason for this is the understandable and very common fear of what being sober feels like. Life in the absence of the self-medicating highs and euphoric escapes that drugs or alcohol once provided can suddenly appear very boring, uneventful, and empty. While this point https://rehabliving.net/associations-between-socioeconomic-factors-and/ of view is understandable, it’s also thankfully often misleading and entirely possible to overcome, as a member of FHE Health’s Alumni Program recently shared…. Acknowledging and celebrating the hard work of recovery is helpful for keeping you motivated and reminding you why you took this brave step toward sobriety in the first place. Just be sure that your rewards don’t involve drugs or alcohol.

Getting Through Detox

With that understood, you can begin to move forward with working towards recovery again. Take a closer look at these feelings you may be having and what you can do about them right now. By Michelle PugleMichelle Pugle, MA is a freelance writer and reporter focusing on mental health and chronic conditions. As seen in Verywell, Healthline, Psych Central, Everyday Health, and Health.com, among others. Relapse (using substances again after stopping) can and does happen, with 85% of people experiencing relapse at least once and half of them doing so within the first two weeks of sobriety.

How does it take for your appearance to improve after quitting alcohol?

Support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous, SMART Recovery, or other local sobriety support groups offer a community of people who are going through similar challenges. These groups provide a platform to share experiences, gain insights, and receive unconditional support. Many people like to drink occasionally as a way to relax or socialize, but for others, the habit is rooted in anxiety and fear. If this is the case for you, you may want to dig deeper. While Harris backers have tried to define Vance as weird, Vance tried Tuesday to define Harris as weak — particularly on immigration and border security.

Learning Center

People new to recovery can find themselves approaching their new diet, exercise program, job, and even participation in support groups with a compulsion that echoes addiction. Now that you are sober, you may have discovered that some of your past relationships were not only unhealthy but downright toxic. It’s not just your drinking buddies and drug dealers who can get you into trouble—sometimes those who are closest to you can contribute to a relapse. Some of the immediate changes you will need to make will be obvious—like not hanging around the people that you used with or obtained drugs from. After all, you can’t hang around your drug dealer or old drinking buddies and expect to remain sober for very long.

  1. 💙 Awaken your potential by exploring the world around you and developing interests outside of substances by Saying Yes to Life.
  2. White Americans who identify as Democrats, by comparison, are less likely to have such animosity.
  3. If this describes you, then you likely already know that you’re probably going to experience some strong emotions once you quit using.
  4. The mind clears, there is more peace, more clarity and a better ability to function.

That is much easier to handle than drunk shenanigans that got out of hand. My drinking was all about self-loathing, which I had done for almost twenty years at that point. When I got sober, it became very clear who I hung out alcohol and acute ischemic stroke onset with because I needed bar buddies and who I actually enjoyed being around. Somebody who was just a casual acquaintance can become one of your closest friends. Sobriety is going to show what real relationships can look like.

fear of being sober

Yet, recognizing that a fear of rejection is something to overcome and not run from can be empowering. Becoming sober can ultimately lead to freedom from guilt. It can lead to self-acceptance, to forgiveness, and to healthy relationships. Change can be scary, but it can also be gratifying. If you’re scared of becoming sober because you’re afraid of change, it’s important to remember that change is a necessary part of recovery. Without change, you won’t be able to achieve sobriety.

Many people worry that their achievements will create distance between them and their loved ones or colleagues, causing strained or even lost relationships. This fear of losing connections or facing abandonment can be especially strong if past experiences have shown that success can lead to resentment or envy in others. The truth is, if sobriety really was that bad, nobody would stick around long-term. A quick glance into your how long does marijuana stay in your system blood urine and hair local AA club can verify that there are many happy individuals with years of recovery out there who got through the first few months of staying sober. The good news about physical withdrawal symptoms is that they tend to peak in the first few days and then start getting better. Even in cases were acute withdrawal symptoms last a week or more, you can expect them to be significantly better after the first two to three days.

For decades, these vile lies were largely fringe and marginalized in the United States. Awake Therapy, a telehealth company that provides video and telephone psychotherapy, counseling, and coaching to individuals in over 40 countries worldwide. He is also the curator of the popular mental health and wellness website, Therapytips.org. Though the intensity and specificity of these effects can vary wildly from drug to drug, it’s important to understand that these effects are normal, and they’ll get better over time. Most people who sober up have some sort of difficulty with sleeping, eating, or concentrating. You need support, sometimes a program, and almost certainly a good counselor to help you navigate this new sober life.