Committing to an addiction recovery program will replenish your soul and give you the skills to remain sober for life. Through taking part in the recovery journey, you will experience a renewed sense of joy that will transcend throughout your lifetime.
Although the recovery journey may seem long, difficult, and daunting, there will be many moments of joy and happiness every step of the way. Rebuilding yourself into the healthy person you are meant to be will help you to find joy in even the most difficult moments.
4 Tools/Techniques for Joyful Recovery
- Develop acceptance and forgiveness. The first thing you have to do to find joy in recovery is learning how to ask for help. A huge part of this process is learning to accept your mistakes and your past and then forgive yourself.
This is the first step in cultivating self-compassion and beginning a new life of honesty and humility. By accepting realistic expectations, moments of difficulty, and your past self, you are finally beginning on a journey that will enable you to let go of the past and move on.
During your recovery journey, you will experience many difficult moments associated with withdrawal symptoms, cravings for the drug, and trying to maintain sobriety. It is a difficult journey but you will begin to find joy in the process if you understand the moment and forgive yourself. You can practice mindful meditation, engage in talk therapy sessions, or call a supportive therapist or loved one for support. Forgive yourself and understand that everyone will go through difficult moments and that throughout the entire process, you will never be alone.
- Embody a growth mindset. In addiction recovery, you will be faced with difficult moments in the absence of the drug and may automatically crave the drug to release you from the pain. You may think that the only way to relieve difficult moments is through the use of drugs but maintaining that fixed mindset will only hinder your progress. To truly find joy in recovery, you must develop a growth mindset, which is the ability to think about the chance and opportunity for positive self-growth in all situations.
By establishing a growth mindset and telling yourself that this is an opportunity to become healthy again, you will find a renewed sense of joy in beginning a new journey for yourself. This is your opportunity to rebuild your self-concept by creating new personal and professional goals with your therapist. You have been given a second chance and can make the journey a positive and healthy one when you look at life with the perspective that there are so many possibilities and opportunities waiting for you. By establishing new goals and working towards them, you will realize that you are capable of achieving anything and will discover a renewed sense of self-worth and confidence throughout the journey.
- Discover new things. This is your opportunity to rebuild your new life by discovering new things that you love. Recovery is the perfect opportunity to figure out what type of new hobbies you might enjoy. Try painting, meditating, writing, a fun exercise class, pottery, or a cooking class. This is your chance to try new things and have more fun. Not only will these activities elicit the relaxation response, but they will help you realize that you are capable of much more than you had anticipated.
Along the way of discovering new things, you will meet people that enjoy similar activities that you do. This will automatically create a new, positive social group that you can continue in your life beyond the treatment program. Being with like-minded individuals and engaging in activities that are fun and productive will be the perfect way to bring joy back into your life.
- Connect to the spiritual community. By choosing a recovery program that emphasizes spiritual growth, you will be a part of a community that will support you throughout your entire life. By engaging in prayer, attending Church services, and being a part of a spiritual group, you will find joy and faith in your life beyond your past addiction.
By becoming a part of the spiritual community, it will empower you to be a happier and healthier person. You will become more active in your community and will be supported by positive friends. The joy you will find in helping other people and by spending time with like-minded individuals will help release the difficult moments that led you to turn to drugs. By establishing a strong spiritual foundation in your new life, you will become a part of a network of people that will bring you joy every day.
Finding Joy in Recovery
Recovery is the perfect time to find out who you are and to begin a new life filled with happiness. To do this, you must choose a treatment center that tailors to every person’s mental, physical, and spiritual well-being. Covenant Hills focuses on the whole-person approach, to restore your mind, body, and spirit with healthy thoughts and behaviors. The dedicated team of medical experts, therapists, spiritual counselors, and pastors is committed to helping you or someone you love overcome addiction and find joy in life again.
Choosing a 12-step Christian-based treatment program will help to lead you on the path towards lifetime recovery from your drug or alcohol addiction. Through individual, group, pastoral, and family therapy sessions, you will connect to people with similar experiences as well as to the greater community of God. By bringing you closer to the community of God, you will find joy again in your new life.
Covenant Hills Treatment is a faith-based addiction rehab treatment facility in Orange County, California and San Antonio, Texas. Clients have the option of a secular or faith-based track. For those who chose the faith-based track, Covenant Hills emphasizes a whole person approach to care and clients work with pastors, therapists, and counselors who are professionally trained in the Christian-based treatment program. Staff help individuals connect to a larger community of God and support the process of finding purpose again in one’s life beyond their addiction. 800-NO-ABUSE (800-662-2873)
