The whole key to living sober is to find a way to push yourself to keep growing in your recovery. This really is the secret to long term success in recovery because the number one enemy is complacency. After we have been sober for a while, avoiding the drink on a daily basis becomes automatic. This is what becomes dangerous because then we end up getting comfortable with our sobriety. We have to find a way to stay on our toes.
One way to do this is to focus on holistic growth. This means that we try to find new areas of our life in which we can grow. For example, you might push yourself to start exercising again, or to go back to college and finish a degree. Or you might try to quit smoking or lose weight. These are all examples of different ways that we can grow in our recovery. Are they critical for staying sober? No, none of them will have a direct impact on your sobriety. However, in the long run, they will all help you in terms of overcoming complacency, because you will constantly be challenging yourself to improve as a person. If you do not find a way to tap into this continuous growth then you run the risk of relapse.
Another way to tap into the secret of long term sobriety is to start working with other recovering alcoholics. This is one of the most powerful things you can do in your recovery because it is like having an automatic level of insurance against relapse. It is very difficult for someone to relapse if they are working with other alcoholics every day. The reason for this is that we help strengthen our own recovery by an immeasurable amount when we help others in recovery. Thus, this is one of the big secrets of living sober. Help others with sobriety and you will help yourself.
If you want to stay sober in the long run then you have to stay humble and remain teachable. There is always new stuff to learn in recovery about how to live a successful life in sobriety and if you are not open to learning new things then you will miss out on the type of information that could prevent you from relapsing some day. This is part of the natural ebb and flow process of living sober. You meet new challenges in sobriety but you also learn new things in order to help you overcome those challenges.
So what is the best route to find success in long term sobriety? Here are some suggestions for you to follow:
1) Help other alcoholics on a regular basis. Find a way to reach out that fits your life and your personality.
2) Push yourself to keep growing in recovery. What goals are you working on lately? If you don't have any then you should get some.
3) Remain teachable in recovery. Don't cut yourself off from gaining new knowledge about how to live sober. We are always learning more.
4) Find new paths to explore. Don't limit yourself to growth in one area (such as spiritual growth). Instead, seek to grow in many areas of your life. This will ensure that you do not stagnate in your recovery.
Follow these guidelines and you should stay active in your new life. Really this is the tip of the iceberg and there are many other facets to living sober in recovery.
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