By learning to manage your stress, you can reduce your risk of relapse. At Atlantic Recovery Center in Florida, our substance abuse treatment programs teach you the connection between stress and relapse, as well as healthy ways to relieve the pressures of daily life. In therapy, we can give you the coping skills and tools you need to overcome your stress and anxiety so you can achieve recovery from addiction.
Stress and Relapse
Stress is a common cause of substance abuse relapse. It often plays a leading role in the initiation of substance use disorder. Therefore, it stands to reason that high levels of strain can impede your recovery. On the other hand, effective stress management can prevent a relapse and keep you on the path to lifelong recovery.
Ways to Relieve Stress
The following tension-busting tips help the clients at our addiction treatment program maintain their cool under pressure, avoiding stress and relapse.
Improve Your Health
When you respect your body, it can help you improve your mental health. Exercising releases endorphins, which your body uses to fight stress. This natural management technique can give you the stamina to resist cravings to drink or use drugs. Additionally, it improves your well-being.
Get Plenty of Rest
Getting enough rest at night dramatically improves the way you deal with stress during the day. If possible, set rules for sleep to develop a routine that works for you. For example, avoid computer screens and phones before you go to sleep. And don’t eat in the bedroom. These rules help ensure that your bedroom becomes a haven where you relax and rest.
Acknowledge Stress and Relapse Risks
It is not healthy to ignore stress. By acknowledging it, you can prepare your mind and try to relax. When you acknowledge it, you also make it easier to avoid situations that cause you to worry and become anxious. Taking control of your thoughts is the first step to reprogramming how you deal with stress. At Atlantic Recovery Center, we help you acknowledge your stress and overcome it.
Develop Your Tools
Stress and relapse can derail your sobriety and set back your recovery. If you have processes in place to cope with frustration and anxiety in healthy ways, you can deal with triggers without reverting to substance abuse.
Experiment with methods you learn in recovery until you find the best ones that work for you. Keep in mind that this is an ongoing process, and you don’t have to figure everything out at one time.
Ask for Help
At Atlantic Recovery Center, we have a family therapy program that involves those closest to you in your recovery. Asking for their help does not demonstrate weakness or failure. Instead, inviting those who love you to become part of your recovery can bring you closer together than ever. In fact, this is a pivotal point in your journey toward long term recovery. We also offer an alumni program to help provide you with the support you will need after recovery. This is a great way to stay in touch with people after treatment and talk through the difficulties of staying sober.
You may also need additional professional help. Talk to a therapist about the treatment options that can help you deal with stress and relapse risk.
Drug and Alcohol Recovery Center in Florida
Learn more about the dual diagnosis treatment programs at Atlantic Recovery Center in Florida. Call us at 1-866-824-5193 today to find out more about the link between stress and relapse and what tools you can gain in recovery to break the connection. Live your best life now. Don’t let drugs and alcohol steal one more day of your life.