How’s everyone do it… I was watching tv and thinking about what works for me and how I get through my thoughts about relapsing, about when temptation strikes and I have to dig deep and remember who I was as an addict and why sobriety has saved my life. I know on many different posts over different times people have written about there go to for self help during dark times. The mind is your worst enemy and takes recovery skills in each owns toolbox to overcome your own personal demons. So I was thinking a lot of people on here have time, have learned how to manage those temptations and thoughts in healthy positive ways. For the new recovering addict, I feel like having regulars and members share 3 ways they overcome thoughts of relapse when that thought of either taking a sip, or getting high enters our mind… for a lot of us our using has sent us to rock bottom or severely altered our lives that we have finally made the choice to ask for help, and finally say to ourselves we are sick and tired of being sick and tired! I know when I was on the fence with sobriety in the beginning and I needed help I was scared, I wanted to ask for help but was scared. Even then I let myself hit an even further rock bottom than I thought I could hit and that’s when I discovered prison and what losing my freedom physically felt after losing my freedom mentally with addiction for so long. I don’t know if my ways of overcoming thoughts of relapse will help the newcomer but not everyone’s ways work for someone else, but I do feel if enough people give their way or ways of overcoming those thoughts that will be helpful, and will reach to the newcomer. I hope this can become a thread that regulars and members respond to for the newcomers who are scared to ask like I was and see hope for their own sobriety learning ways to cope with life on life’s terms.
Here’s 3 ways I cope:
- Working out, I almost made it my HP bc of the different ways my thoughts come into play to have a way that releases anger, frustration, energy are crucial in my recovery sometimes. I needed a gym that was 24hrs bc urges strike all the time and if I need to I can go workout at 3 am bc that’s what works for me.
- Meetings/My Sponsor. I know not everyone goes to meetings or has a sponsor or believes in the AA/NA way and whatever way works for you that’s awesome and I’m really happy it works for you. I needed the steps as guidelines and a sponsor to reach out to that can tell me I’m just being bat shit crazy lol or just their to listen bc he himself or herself has been through my shoes and knowing I’m not alone with my thoughts really was a weight lifted off my shoulders.
- Watching sports or playing sports, I know this could be a trigger for some but if I just need to relax and watch sports on tv it can just make me very happy. I haven’t gotten back into it yet bc I still don’t feel deserving of it but for me nothing brought me more joy more peace then playing ice hockey. I grew up playing and I think I could be 80 years old and if I stepped back onto that ice with pads on and a puck at the end of my stick I would feel 10 years old again and be grinning ear to ear happily .
I really hope this thread takes off. I’m looking forward to reading the different ways people cope and how they manage dealing with the thoughts of relapse or the “fuck it’s” as I used to say all the time when I would think destroying my life sounded better than fighting for it.