You made the choice to take your life back. You decided you’d lost enough, and that recovery was the new life you wanted to live. You wanted to break the chains of addiction, and you are in the throes of recovery. You’re surprised, though, because you find yourself sometimes struggling in recovery.
You knew it would be hard, but that’s why you chose Ocean Hills Recovery. Their caring and competent staff has customized a program for you and you know it was the right choice to make.
So why do you find yourself discouraged?
Do you feel like if you’re struggling in recovery that you’re not ‘doing it right?’
Because we know recovery is not always an easy path, here are five things we want you to remember if you are struggling in recovery.
You may not have chosen addiction, but you ARE choosing recovery and that’s commendable!
No one wakes up and decides to be an addict and even fewer have the strength to take the steps to recovery and regaining their life. You have made that choice, and that in itself is something to be proud of and know was the right thing to do for your family, friends and mostly, yourself.
Each day is a new day.
So today may have been hard. It’s probably not going to be the last hard day you’ll have in recovery, but it doesn’t mean it’s always going to be this hard either. Each day is a new day, and full of new opportunities to take advantage of the resources you have in recovery. Don’t let individual events or circumstances define your recovery path. Day by day, your recovery will evolve, and each day will bring new successes.
Progress takes patience.
A new baby isn’t grown overnight, and recovery is a process that takes time. You’ve taken the first steps for your new life, and that’s the hardest part. Watched pots don’t boil and if you’re judging your recovery process without allowing some time for you to work within the process, you’re always going to feel like you’re failing. You’re not. It just takes some time.
You’re doing the best you can; no one is perfect.
All you can do each day is the best you can do. You can’t expect perfection because that’s simply not real life. Nor is it fair to you. If you’re struggling in recovery because you find yourself taking steps backward, know that it’s part of the process and what matters is how you move forward. Doing your best doesn’t mean it needs to be perfect; it means it needs to be giving it all you can and accepting that you have strengths and weaknesses that every other human has.
You can do this!
You can! Struggling in recovery means you’re trying; you can get through the hard parts and you can do this. You have the determination, the resources, and the support to get your life back and be addiction-free and you can do this! Remind yourself of this 100 times a day if you need to because it’s true; you can!
Struggling in Recovery Does Not Equal Failure
You’re not alone. The recovery process is one that is fraught with steps backward for many steps taken forward, and that’s why you’ve surrounded yourself with the right recovery program.
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