Humans evolved to be social animals. From the dawn of humanity, we have lived and worked in communal groups. Belonging to a group where everyone is focused on the same goal offers a sense of shared purpose and makes you feel like you’re part of something larger than yourself. Finding a recovery community can help you in times when you feel like you have nowhere else to turn. The members of your sober support network can lift you up and remind you that you are never alone on your recovery journey. Plenty of people have been where you are and emerged on the other side.
Nobody Should Try to Go It Alone
Even if you are a very determined and strong-willed person, there will be times when you need help to keep moving forward with your recovery. Hearing from others who have had many of the same experiences you’ve had is essential. Feeling sorry for yourself and withdrawing from the world can bring you down and make you more vulnerable to a relapse. In early recovery, you will need to re-learn many lessons, not the least of which is how to form and maintain genuine connections with others. When addiction had control of your life, most of your relationships were probably superficial and unhealthy. Once you get sober, you will need to detach from toxic people in favor of people who understand your goals and the effort you are making to change your life. On days when you are struggling with cravings and feel as if you’re teetering on the verge of a relapse, sober friends can help pull you back from the edge and put you back on your feet.
Friends That Help You Pursue Your Well-Being
When you first get sober, you might struggle to reframe your concept of what it’s like to have a social life. You’ll likely have to cut ties to some people who remind you of the “bad old days” when you were actively drinking and using, since these triggers are not conducive to your health. If most of your former friendships revolved around substance use, you’ll need to forge new relationships with other people you meet in addiction treatment or group therapy. Managing the disease of addiction entails more than committing to a substance-free lifestyle. Living in sobriety requires you to reinvent yourself, establishing entirely new behaviors and habits. If all your closest and most trusted friends are sober, they can keep you accountable to the recovery journey, help you learn to make the best choices for your new way of life and become the foundation for your sobriety goals.
Finding Your Recovery Community
Fortunately, there are plenty of opportunities to meet like-minded people with similar aims. The people you meet in sober living environments can form the backbone of your new sober friend group. There are also opportunities to find fellowship with others pursuing their recovery at meetings of groups like Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous. Recovery residences such as those we provide at Segue Recovery Support provide you with a step down during the challenging transition between an addiction treatment program and the world outside the structured recovery environment. If you would like to learn more about the benefits of what we offer, contact us today.