Establishing a routine is one of the most important parts of any addiction treatment. When people first become sober, they can often feel overwhelmed by their new reality, and no longer have the option of turning to substance abuse as an escape. However, these feelings of stress can be alleviated by switching to a stable and easy-to-follow daily routine.
Establishing a daily routine during addiction treatment helps clients to learn self-care and encourages them to prioritise their wellness. While it might be challenging at first to maintain this routine, it can be an invaluable source of support on the road to recovery during a client’s addiction treatment. In this article, we will discuss how daily routines can help with successful addiction treatment.
Healthy Outlets And Stability
One of the main benefits of having a daily routine during addiction treatment is that it can help to build structure, stability, and healthy outlets for people recovering from addiction. The change in lifestyle for someone emerging from addiction can feel very destabilising, which might make them question their success.
With a daily routine in place, those recovering from addiction have a healthy outlet for their feelings and stressors, rather than needing to turn to an addictive substance. Stability is essential for addiction treatment. The routine that is established will be simple-to-follow and involve daily tasks that can be completed easily by the patient.
Lowering Stress
One of the major issues that recovering addicts face is stress. Once they have completed their addiction treatment, they have to live in reality again. This stress might lead them to relapse into their old behaviours, but a daily routine can help them to feel more in control of their lives and their surroundings.
Routine provides a strong foundation for those who might feel anxious at situations that might disrupt their lives. Having a routine in place will help people who are recovering from addiction to focus on healthier coping mechanisms, helping them to feel less stressed and more at ease.
Productivity Is Encouraged
For those who do not have any experience with addiction, a routine can often feel dull and mundane. However, for those who have experienced addiction treatment, a routine can help to encourage their productivity and help them to achieve the goals they have laid out for themselves. A positive routine can help people recovering from addiction to try new, healthy hobbies and pursue passions.
Inactivity and a lack of direction can often lead to recovering addicts to return to bad habits. Still, with a daily routine in place, they are more likely to look for positive and productive outlets. For example, a daily routine might include spending an hour writing in a journal or painting to express feelings. The person might also take up a new hobby to add to this routine, further encouraging productivity and positive coping mechanisms.
Make Tasks More Manageable
A daily routine breaks tasks up into more manageable patterns so that the person in addiction treatment does not become too overwhelmed with everything they need to achieve daily. Not having a plan in place could make them feel as though they are not in control, which could be a triggering behaviour for them.
Breaking up tasks into smaller segments can help someone who is in a delicate mindset to achieve more and will make the continued recovery process more manageable. There is also a much lower chance of procrastination and feelings of boredom, as they will be focusing on achieving their daily goals.
Build Better Health
Many people who have finished addiction treatment are not in optimal physical condition. Having a daily routine that includes exercise can be extremely beneficial. Having a healthy body often leads to having a healthy mind, which will lower the chances of the person relapsing into negative behaviours.
Routines that include regular physical fitness can help to encourage positive feelings and, because exercise releases endorphins, the person will feel happier. Improving physical health is essential in the addiction recovery process, as an unhealthy body can hold a person back from making positive progress.
Continue The Recovery Process
A vital benefit of having a daily routine while in addiction treatment is that it can help to continue the recovery process. Recovery is a continual process for many people in programmes. Routines help to instil positive behaviours, help to provide stability, lower stress, and make tasks more manageable, which all lead to a successful recovery process.
If you or someone you know is suffering from addiction, please find addiction treatment in the Western Cape here, or call/WhatsApp the 24/7 Helpline at 072 7900 506.
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