The current pandemic has caused major disruptions to everyone’s routines, and it has disconnected those who want to stay sober from face-to-face support groups, addiction therapy meetings, and their loved ones. Learning methods for staying sober during coronavirus is crucial, so you don’t feel isolated and lonely.
How to Stay Sober During Coronavirus
This pandemic has caused emotions to run high. Many of those who are on their path to addiction recovery are experiencing stress, panic, and confusion. For people who have high-risk relatives, they may also need to grapple with grief. Despite all these challenges, staying sober during coronavirus is doable. Here are some tips that can help.
Set Challenging Yet Realistic Goals
Whether you want to call them targets, goals, or check-lists, make them a part of your daily plan. Goals that are hard, yet achievable, will keep you busy. For people struggling with addiction, getting out of bed may be a huge challenge, and this can be enough of a success for a day. For others, the challenge may be to plan something or exercise for an hour. Making achievable goals is integral because if it’s too hard, you will feel demotivated if you don’t succeed. Ultimately, this lack of motivation can creep into other areas of your life.
Practice Mindfulness
If you had an unhealthy relationship with drugs or alcohol, practicing mindfulness learned in yoga therapy programs is one of the best ways to improve your current situation. Start treating yourself with respect and love and learn to just “be.” The more you practice this, the more your self-confidence will improve. And the happier you are, the less you would want to reach for alcohol or drugs to make you feel good.
Mindfulness does not mean doing yoga or meditation for three hours each day. It can be as simple as stilling your mind and being in the moment.
Be Thankful Even for Small Blessings
Have you noticed people who count their blessings are generally happier? Actively paying attention to the positive aspects of your life, no matter how simple they are, can do the trick. Try to find at least five things you are grateful for at the moment. If you feel sad and depressed, neutral things that did not leave you sad or upset will do. For instance, things to be grateful for can include:
- Having a great sleep
- The company of your pet
- Having a full breakfast
- Taking a walk
- Hearing your favorite song
Do Fun Activities
If you are not busy working, it can be easy to get bored since you don’t know what to do with your time. It’s easier to maintain your sobriety if you have activities to focus on. Many people are happy to do gardening or play video games together. If you are not interested in these, there is a wide array of free hobby tutorials and games you can try online.
Learn Something New
Whether you want to re-learn a skill or start something new, keeping busy will reduce your negative feelings. Learning is an awesome way to boost your self-confidence and develop a connection with others. It can even give you a sense of hope and purpose. There are many online opportunities for learning opening up because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Identify Your Triggers
Of all people, you know what your triggers are. It can be a show, a specific time of day, a person, or emotion that makes you want to reach for a drink. In order to break free from your substance abuse triggers, you need to develop a new pattern that will become as automatic as your old habits.
For instance, if you usually start drinking at sunset, mentally imagine the sun setting down and you pouring yourself a glass of orange juice without alcohol. Or get wrapped up in a phone conversation or video game where you lose track of time. In time, this will be your new norm.
Take Care of Yourself
The pandemic has brought devastation to millions of people and communities. But if you or a loved one has not been harmed by it, use this time for yourself and reframe how you think about the situation.
Washburn House believes that an essential part of staying sober during coronavirus is to indulge in healthy habits. In the long run, this will improve your wellbeing and make you feel stronger and more accomplished. So contact Washburn House at 855.298.3104 for more information on how we can help with telehealth services.