The holidays are here again and with them come a host of gatherings and parties. For those in recovery or those who’ve left rehab, staying sober over the holidays can be quite challenging. Here are 8 tips to get you through the holidays without relapsing.
Identify your relapse triggers.
This is the time to put what you learned during alcohol treatment to practice. Recognizing your triggers can help you anticipate them and come up with a plan to deal with them beforehand.
Surround yourself with the right circle.
Having the right people around you can make a huge difference. Surround yourself with family and friends who support your recovery journey and who are willing to help you remain sober. You can also ask a loved one to be your accountability partner to keep you in check.
Choose parties wisely.
While holiday parties are fun, you don’t have to attend all of them. Take time to carefully choose parties where the focus isn’t on drinking. Limit gatherings where you know you’ll be tempted to drink or get high and have a plan for when temptation gets too strong. Planning ahead can help you avoid awkward situations.
Keep yourself busy.
Keeping yourself busy over the holidays is a great way to take your mind off alcohol and other addictive substances. Many places would welcome volunteers and you could look into helping to feed the hungry or run soup kitchens. You could also spend time helping the neighbors with their decorations.
Keep up with your sobriety meetings.
The holidays don’t give you an excuse to take a vacation from your recovery. Make a point to keep up with your sobriety meetings or attend outpatient care to help you remain focused on staying clean.
Create new traditions.
Leaving rehab gave you a new lease on life and one way to celebrate is by creating new holiday traditions with your family that don’t involve drinking. You could choose to go skating or sledding as a family, have a family game or movie night, or whatever else you come up with to bond and create new memories.
Practice healthy habits.
You no doubt started on some healthy habits while going through alcohol or drug treatment and you should make them part of your life after rehab. Exercising, meditating, journaling, art or music, etc. can all help you deal with holiday stress, keeping cravings at bay.
Take it one day at a time
Finally, learn to relax and live in the moment during the holidays. Don’t ruin things by getting hung up on the past or worrying about what might go wrong. Have responsible fun and enjoy the time you have with your loved ones. Findlay Recovery Center in Ohio is here for you should you need more tips or extra support to stay sober during the holidays. Contact us and we’ll be glad to help you.