Alcohol Addiction

Contrary to popular belief, stress is necessary to have in life to continue growing and changing in ways that push you to be better. Yet, when stress becomes more than just “everyday” stress, it can cause anxiety and wreak havoc on your nervous system.

A functioning alcoholic is a person who does not match the classic image that usually comes to mind when thinking of alcoholism. Learning how to identify this person in your family can clarify when it is time to get help for alcohol abuse. Flexible treatment programs like partial hospitalization may be the most appropriate and effective way to get your loved one on their path to sobriety.

December brings plenty of opportunity for festivities, with the myriad of holidays leading up to the New Year all birthing traditions and gatherings with friends and family. Taking time to enjoy events throughout the season is a great opportunity to reconnect with others. Holidays can also be extraordinarily stressful if you are balancing your sobriety with expectations for the holidays. Preparing for the stressors ahead of time and creating a plan to navigate the holidays with a sober mindset is crucial for focusing on your sobriety while still celebrating the holiday season.

The holiday season can be tricky to navigate. This is especially true when feeling pressured to attend family gatherings, fulfill expectations your family may have, and be around individuals you may not align with in terms of values and beliefs. Setting firm, healthy boundaries may feel challenging, but doing so can lower feelings of stress and anxiety during the holiday season.

Self-compassion is intricately connected to our sense of individual well-being. It is essential in learning how to care for and understand ourselves — rather than remaining judgemental and highly critical. Self-compassion is the medicine that allows us to create a nourishing, loving relationship with ourselves that fuels our growth and prosperity. This way of relating to yourself may feel strange, especially if it is something you have never done before. However, there are simple steps you can take to begin cultivating a more self-compassionate relationship with yourself today.

Learning to create balance in your life can be overwhelming, and you may find yourself getting stuck during the process. It may feel like you are constantly trying to get a sense of balance and simplicity into your life, yet never fully achieving it.

You have probably had a blackout if you have ever had to ask yourself, "What happened last night?" after drinking or trying to put the night together with a hazy recall.

Handling stress in addiction recovery revolves around fighting old habits. You’re likely to have already established a few new habits toward your recovery. However, to prevent yourself from repeating previous stress reactions, you need to know how to use the right resources in recovery.

Cravings are an unfortunate inevitability throughout the recovery process. They can be extremely intense in the early phases of recovery, such as during detox and residential care, but can persist throughout any stage of recovery. Those who have worked hard to maintain their sobriety for years can still experience cravings from time to time. Each individual needs to remain prepared to combat these intense feelings to avoid regressing to more destructive practices regardless of the length of their sobriety. Cravings can manifest in many ways. While some may stem from identifiable sources or stressors, others may be unclear in their roots and need more focus and dedication to uncover their origins.

What sounds easier to you—committing to remaining sober for the next 24 hours or a lifetime? The principle of living one day at a time originates from Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). This principle is especially beneficial in the early days of recovery when someone’s daily goals are solely focused on maintaining their sobriety. Tackling your sobriety in 24-hour increments will help you to pay attention to how you feel in the present moment and to ask yourself what resources you may need to employ to stay sober. Dealing With Emotions as They Come Living one day at a time allows you to be fully present for what you are experiencing in the present moment. Dealing with only what problems you face in the present, as opposed to compounding them by worrying about future issues, will make you more likely to solve the challenges of today. In recovery, this looks like calling your sponsor, going to a meeting or therapy when you are having a hard day struggling with negative thoughts of relapsing. You look at how you can make yourself feel better and avoid using for today instead of spiraling deeper into worry about how you will stay sober day after day. Not Looking to the Past or Future By tuning in to the present day, you aren’t engaging with the past or future. Reflecting too much on either of these can be triggering and overwhelming for someone in recovery and ultimately does not serve them. Spending time mad at yourself about past mistakes or worrying about things that may never happen to you in the future makes for an unproductive use of your time and doesn't give you time to be actionable on today’s needs. Lessons Beyond Substance Abuse Although the idea of living one day at a time was popularized by AA, as seen in their popular Just For Today card, which many members carry around in their pocket to read and remind them of their daily promises to do everything mentally, emotionally, and spiritually, they need to remain sober. By learning the principle of living one day at a time, you can learn to better tackle life’s challenges outside of recovery as well. You can more effectively handle work, home, and relationship problems by taking them on one at a time. Learning to live one day at a time will help you better handle the challenges in recovery as they come. Recovery is a non-linear journey offering obstacles and moments of struggle along the way, but having a sound mindset will help you navigate the journey with clarity. If you or a loved one are struggling to get or remain sober, call Avalon Malibu. At Avalon, we look at the needs of the whole person and focus on providing effective treatment on every level of your needs. Between our dedicated staff of professionals and our continuum of integrative care, we find a treatment plan that is right for you so you can achieve lasting recovery. Call us today at (844) 857-5992.

For those suffering from an addiction to alcohol, engaging in a recovery program can be invaluable for learning more about oneself and one’s goals within a safe, supportive and sober environment. However, it is essential to remember that the recovery sphere is a tightly curated setting that is intentionally devoid of specific stressors that a person may otherwise encounter in their daily lives. When making the transition back into the “real world,” or even when a person meets with family members, it is possible that aspects of drinking culture can seep their way into one’s mind. Addressing drinking culture is a crucial point in recovery. Therefore it is essential to identify what the culture looks like, how one intends to interact with it, and safe ways to avoid harmful practices or establish a new culture focused on sobriety as a whole.

Living with alcoholism is already a battlefield. Coping with alcoholism during a global pandemic complicates sobriety. COVID-19 has forced millions into “locking down” in their homes due to job loss, providing home-schooling for children, or health issues. People are dealing with isolation from their friends and family. They find themselves with a lot of extra time on their hands. Due to the uncertainty of the pandemic, stress and anxiety rise, creating a perfect storm for leaning on unhealthy coping mechanisms to deal with their scary “new normal.” For those already struggling with alcoholism, these changes can be a recipe for disaster.