Sober living might also mean not just a change of scenery, but a change of friends as well. Unfortunately, there are many people out there that won’t be as supportive as you need in your quest for sobriety. It may come down to you cutting ties with many long-time friends that you thought were very close. While this may sting in the moment, and nobody will truly replace anyone fully, finding new friends and creating new spaces for those friends to live in your life will be a fulfilling adventure in itself. Thanks to COVID-19 vaccines, this year’s holiday season is likely to feel more “normal” than last year, with family gatherings, holiday parties, and many other traditional festivities making a cautious return. In 2018, I experienced one of the darkest days of my life when I lost my 15-year-old daughter to the tragedy of suicide.
Create Your Holiday Relapse Prevention Plan
In December 2020, 40 U.S. states saw increases in opioid-related mortality along with ongoing concerns for those with substance use disorders, according to the American Medical Association. Some individuals may begin taking new substances than their usual if they become difficult to access (I.E. Heroin instead of prescription opioids). It’s no surprise that alcohol consumption increases during the holiday season. According to the CDC, December, January, and March are some of the deadliest months for drug and alcohol-related accidents. In 2019, alcohol-impaired driving fatalities accounted for 10,142 deaths. Alcohol is a popular substance for social use, in addition to self-medicating.
How To Survive a Wedding Sober
Make plans with your friends in recovery from your sober living facility, your 12-Step or other support meetings, exercise groups, work, or other places you have sober friends. The benefit of surrounding yourself with friends in recovery is that you mutually support one another. You may not be the only one trying to navigate the holidays without family. By spending time together, you create an all-new family that is built on love and the principles of recovery.
Spending the Holidays Without Family
Exercise, listening to music, getting sufficient rest—all can have a role in taking the focus off cravings. Multiple reports have indicated that individuals who remain in the continuum of care beyond their initial treatment have an increased chance of maintaining sobriety. Aftercare programs and online substance abuse alcohol withdrawal can be deadly heres why treatment can be viable options. Working with a counselor after treatment can help develop your relationship with yourself. Recognize that these feelings are normal but you don’t have to be anchored to them. Although, with the help of a trustworthy support system and discipline, you can rise to the occasion.
The individual struggling with addiction should get to know their triggers to anticipate challenges before they arise. Being aware of stress levels and having relaxation practices, like breathing techniques, handy will be important. Talking about limitations with a trusted loved one may also prove helpful. According to recent data, approximately 21 million American adults are in recovery from alcohol and other drug addiction (SAMHSA, 2021).
- Don’t have friends or family to be spending the holidays with?
- Those with SUDs also have a far greater chance, statistically, of having first-degree relatives with addiction issues.
- Finally, we are living in a heated political atmosphere and family events may elicit unwanted conversations and conflict about these topics.
- As the years in recovery increase, you will be able to gain a sense of being able to enjoy the festivities without having to worry about the chances of a relapse.
Mindfulness training, a common component of cognitive behavioral therapy, can help people ride out their cravings without acting on them. There are some friends who are better left behind—those who are linked to the addictive experience. People in the throes of addiction are not capable of the best form of friendship. Further, those friends can serve as a cue that sets off drug craving and challenges the recovery process. Studies show that craving has a distinct timetable—there is a rise and fall of craving.
Plans could include having a ride or knowing public transportation schedules if you need to leave an event suddenly, practicing how you will turn down a drink, or deciding what to do if you begin to feel uncomfortable. You will want to find a healthy balance between things you do for self-care and things you do for others. There is no need to have money to give to be able to do things for other people during the holidays.
As such, it’s important to be extra careful, whether you’re staying at home or attending events. One of the primary objectives in recovery is to get to the point of being able to navigate challenging social situations. The sober life brings many rewards, but it isn’t realistic to believe that one can go through life never being around alcohol or other alcohol poisoning symptoms and treatment temptations. However, a young person in early sobriety is particularly vulnerable because they haven’t yet developed confidence in their sober lifestyle. Part of living the sober life is creating new traditions that directly support your daily choice to be sober. This, however, means the cutting out of old traditions that could cause you to stumble.
Shortly after substance use is stopped, people may experience withdrawal, the onset of unpleasant physical and psychological symptoms —from irritability to shakiness to nausea; delirium and seizures in severe cases. Whether it’s a team sport or painting in your room, hobbies eliminate the time for you to crave substances. Boredom and stress are powerful factors that could push you to use them. Meditation and journaling can help you keep track of your progress as you reflect. Ask if they’d like to invite someone or invite others who do not drink.
In the absence of triggers, or cues, cravings are on a pathway to extinction soon after quitting. But some triggers can’t be avoided, and, further, the human brain, with its magnificent powers of association and thinking, can generate its own. Studies show that craving for alcohol peaks at 60 days of abstinence.
Let family and friends know in advance that you won’t be drinking alcohol at the event. Part of maintaining an active and engaged sober lifestyle involves change. Assuming holidays or certain family traditions have to be the way they have always been, can derail success. It’s okay to do something different, to change locations, to change who you celebrate with or the amount of time you spend at a specific event. Consider celebrating a difficult holiday by marking something off your “bucket list,” doing some needed self-care or volunteering to help others. Every late-November through December we are encouraged—sometimes even pressured, directly and indirectly—to celebrate the holidays that mark each year’s conclusion.
In addition, we only use authoritative, trusted, and current sources. In this article, we’ll explore the nuances of addiction during the holiday season and guide you in finding hope and support. Our Treatment Advisors are available 24 hours a day to help you or a loved one access care. We’re ready to make sure you have the support you need to achieve lifelong recovery.
What is needed is any type of care or program that facilitates not merely a drug-free life but the pursuit of new goals and new relationships. There are many roads to recovery, and needs vary from individual to the next. Others do well on their own making use of available community resources. Peer or mutual support is not restricted to AA or NA; it is available through other programs that similarly offer regular group meetings in which members share their experiences and recovery skills. SMART Recovery is a secular, science-based program that offers mutual support in communities worldwide as well as on the internet and has specific programming for families.
Take back control of your life and start on the road to recovery now. But there are concrete skills you can use to hone your assertiveness a guide to taking ecstasy as safely as possible and advocate for yourself. Get the help you need from a therapist near you–a FREE service from Psychology Today.
Trying to figure out who you are while sober, who your friends are, and how to act in family events are all different challenges within themselves. Getting through the end-of-year holidays while maintaining recovery, especially for people newer to this life-changing process, is an important accomplishment—one worthy of celebration in its own right. It’s important to know that the holidays don’t have to feel like a celebration. You can give yourself permission to simply be where you are emotionally.