It can be hard to imagine life after drugs or alcohol, especially early on in treatment and recovery. Living sober is often awkward and even painful at first, but there’s simply no substitute for truly living life.

Here are 9 of the countless ways being sober will make your life easier.

  1. You feel good about yourself – The greatest gift you can give yourself in sobriety f is to truly like who you are. Not who you are on drugs or alcohol, not who you are when you’re hanging out with the people you hung out with while you were high, but the real you.
  2. You have energy again – Your body doesn’t rest as well or feel as good as it should when you have a substance abuse problem. When your body isn’t busy repairing the damage drugs or alcohol cause, you find you actually have the energy to do things you want.
  3. You gain respect – Respect from yourself is important, but an equally important boost is gaining the respect of the people around you for following through and keeping your commitment to sober living. By setting an example of overcoming mistakes and obstacles, and following through with commitments, people begin to trust you again.
  4. You look better – Appearance isn’t everything, but it certainly helps our self esteem when we can look in the mirror and see a healthier face than we did before.
  5. Your memory improves – No more wandering in a fog, no more missing out on important events or forgetting what happened the night before. You become more aware of the details of your life.
  6. Your weight stabilizes – You’re able to maintain a healthy weight more easily, without drugs or alcohol affecting your calories and appetite.
  7. Relationships get better – You’ll become a better, more present friend, parent, spouse or child, and you’ll become more reliable and honest, which will help rebuild any damaged relationships.
  8. Your finances improve – When you’re not spending huge amounts of money trying to get high or buy alcohol, you’ll be in a better position to pay off debts and save for larger purchases and the future.
  9. You control your own time – You won’t find yourself on the couch six hours after you sat down to smoke or drink, having wasted the day away. The things you once enjoyed that you never seemed to have time for are easier to do.

 

 

 

 

 

Sobriety is one of the greatest gifts we can give ourselves and our family when we are struggling with addiction. If addiction has taken hold of your life, The Springboard Center can help you find balance again. Our 5-week treatment program serves the Permian Basin providing quality mental health care and recovery. Call us today for information: (432) 620-0255