To many who suffer from addiction, the notion of self-care is foreign. In active addiction our idea of taking care of ourselves is really more about feeding the addiction. This is always at the expense of our overall health. Addiction takes it’s toll physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. To get well and stay that way, we need to address all aspects of our lives.
On a physical level, we’re often in denial of how we really look and feel. We practice numbing out, rather than nurturing our bodies. The deeper into addiction that we get, the more it affects our bodies over time. It can be quite a shock when we get clean and finally take a look in the mirror with sober eyes. We’re likely to start feeling the aches and pains of various physical issues that were previously blocked out of awareness by our addiction.
Self-care on the physical level means to go to the Western doctors, but also explore holistic treatments such as acupuncture, reiki, massage. It’s critical that we follow a comprehensive treatment plan that addresses all aspects of physical wellness. We take a serious look at our nutrition; consider different vitamin combinations and herbal supplements. Most importantly, we must exercise. I have a free 21 Day plan to Get Abundant Energy that you can follow here if you need help getting started. It’s impossible to well in our hearts and minds if we don’t take care of our physical healing on a daily basis.
The more we drank and used, the further we sank into the hole of unstable mood and energy, as well as depression. The 12-Step literature talks about a psychic change as a necessary step in the direction of recovery. The psychic\mental healing is really the most caring thing we can do for ourselves. It’s intrinsically interwoven into our outlook on life. I recommend doing the 12 Steps of AA or NA. If you have trouble with the “God concept,” please read my first book, The 12-Step Buddhist. In Buddhism, we focus on lojong, mind training to cultivate happiness. It’s an interesting life path that I recommend trying out. Change your mind, change your brain and the way that you feel. It all works together.
On the mental level, mindfulness practice has been one of the best solutions for many in recovery. What does it take? Just sit down, sit still and remain undistracted for 15 minutes at a time. If that’s too hard, work up to it. Give yourself time. Join or form a meditation group. Follow audio meditations online. I have a podcast on iTunes called The 12-Step Buddhist with recorded meditations. Read some books. Go to retreats and teachings. It all helps, and it’s all good medicine for healing the mind in recovery.
Emotional healing is even more difficult than physical and healing. Getting clean exposes us to emotions that we’ve buried for years. Self-care means understanding that this is a process that will take a long time. The process has stages. It’s important to be where we are, in our bodies and our feelings, to let the healing happen in its own time. Relationships will bring out all of our triggers. Whether we’re in them when we clean up or start them in recovery we need help. Self-care on the emotional level means reducing stressful relations, postponing major life decisions and practicing patience. The 12 Steps of Al-Anon as well as counseling and group support can save us a lot of time and a lot of pain. But it won’t prevent the struggles that we have got to face to get better. I’m finding that Emotionally Focused Therapy is an amazing tool that deals with trauma and attachments. Check it out.
Spiritual self-care means addressing our deeper experience. It doesn’t mean that we have to get religious. But we can if we want to. I recommend that if you want to explore your spirituality, commit to trying new things over the next year. Look at different traditions and practices with an open mind. Try things that you never thought you would. This type of thinking and practice is believed to stimulate brain plasticity. That means we can learn new ways to think and feel. Old dogs can learn cool new tricks, like not being so biased or chained by negative experiences in childhood.
In summary, if you really want to get well in recovery and stay that way, commit in the early stages to an open mind and a well rounded program of action. But this way of thinking isn’t limited to those in early sobriety. I’m coming up on 19 years clean and sober and I still work it just like this. Feel free to contact me for support if you need it. Good luck on your journey!
Be Wellness,
-d