Alcohol addiction can take a significant toll on all aspects of your life. It impacts your health, career, and relationships. Perhaps worst of all, it can make you feel you’re not worthy of help. For the 29.5 million people in the United States who suffer from alcohol addiction, one of the hardest things is to let go of their past actions.[1] At our alcohol rehab in Scottsdale, we offer some strategies to help you.
Why Acceptance and Moving Forward Is Essential in Addiction Treatment During Alcohol Rehab in Scottsdale, AZ
Treatment programs for drug and alcohol addictions can teach you coping mechanisms and what to do if you face cravings. Still, if you’re not ready to accept the past and move forward, long-term successful recovery can continue to elude you.
As you work your way through the recovery process, feeling shame and guilt over past actions is normal. You may feel the need to run from these actions, but doing so will reinforce one of the habits that likely led you to addiction in the first place: avoiding discomfort.
By facing what you’ve done in the past and accepting responsibility for your behaviors while allowing yourself to move past them, you’re setting the stage for real change.
Strategies to Accept the Past
To help yourself overcome addiction, you can use the following strategies to come to terms with the past and move more successfully toward your future.
Let Go of Shame
Shame is a huge hurdle to overcome when dealing with substance abuse. Shame might have kept you from reaching out for help and could prevent you from really digging into the reasons behind the addiction.[2] It can also stop you from fully recovering; you may not want to fully face the consequences of the problem and the harm it caused you and those around you.
What you need to understand is that substance abuse is not anything to be ashamed of. It’s an illness, like so many others. By being compassionate with yourself, you can release the shame and accept the process of healing.
Have Those Difficult Conversations
It’s never easy to talk about how you may have harmed a loved one while you were battling a substance use disorder, but this is an essential conversation to have.
You’ll need to listen to the person. Allow them to express what they need to say without interrupting with excuses or blame. It’s essential to remember that you may not be forgiven. Your loved ones may not be ready for that yet. This doesn’t mean they will never forgive you, but they may still need time.
You can understand how to regain a loved one’s trust through these conversations. Suppose you see that what hurt them the most in your past behavior was your lying; for example, you can make a concerted effort to be honest with them from now on.
Although you can certainly speak about how addictive behaviors influence your actions, you don’t want to make excuses. That defeats the purpose of the conversation and makes it almost impossible to accept the past.
Know You’re Not Your Worst Actions
Your self-worth doesn’t depend on the actions you took while battling a substance use disorder. If you expect others to forgive you, you must be ready to forgive yourself first. Although you can’t change the past, you can learn from it, and that commitment to improving should make you proud. Focus on how the past can help improve your future.
Learn How to Celebrate Your Accomplishments During and After Alcohol Rehab in Scottsdale, AZ
After going through substance abuse and doing things you’re not proud of, you may think you don’t have a right to celebrate accomplishments. That point of view can harm your recovery process because it continues the narrative that you’re not worth saving.
No matter how small the accomplishment is, allow yourself to feel the joy of reaching a goal. At the same time, make sure you’re setting realistic expectations for yourself. Otherwise, you can end up self-sabotaging your recovery.
Turn to an Alcohol Rehab in Scottsdale, AZ
At Desert Cove Recovery, we provide alcohol addiction treatment programs to help those who are facing addiction or a dual diagnosis. Our treatment center offers outpatient services that help you get sober and address the reasons you may have turned to alcohol or drugs in the first place. We’re dedicated to providing the tools you need to start healing.
You don’t have to face another day of addiction on your own. Turn to Desert Cove Recovery to begin your journey to a sober you.
Sources:
[1] https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/alcohols-effects-health/alcohol-topics/alcohol-facts-and-statistics/alcohol-use-disorder-aud-united-states-age-groups-and-demographic-characteristics [2] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8932605/
