When you suffer from a substance abuse disorder, it can completely uproot your life and make it feel impossible to recover. Fortunately, it is possible to recover with the right tools to improve your mental health. Studies show that regular exercise can reduce drug use, but it's up to you to find the right routine. To ensure that you remain on the right path, Get Sober Program outlines four major mistakes to avoid.
Underestimating the Impact of Exercise
Aerobic exercise occurs when your body uses oxygen to produce energy. When you engage in high-intensity exercise, your body produces endorphin and other hormones and neurotransmitters that improve your mood, memory, and sense of well-being. For those who suffer from depression, 30 minutes of exercise a day can help alleviate the symptoms.
Crossfit exercises, swimming, hiking, and riding a bike are all great exercises that can boost your mood. Likewise, meditation and yoga can reduce anxiety and depression symptoms that often come with substance abuse. To benefit from exercise, you need to enjoy it. Think about activities you loved as a child. Bicycling and trampoline jumping, for instance, are also beneficial for adults.
Forgetting the Journey
There are plenty of rehab programs, such as Get Sober Program, that can help you get back on track, and most rehabilitation programs take anywhere from 30 to 90 days. The longer the program, the higher the success rate. Even once rehabilitation ends, recovery continues. According to the APA, addiction is a chronic disorder. The condition changes the prefrontal cortex and limbic system, altering the neurocircuitry of motivation, reward, impulse control, memory, and judgment.
When you begin your workout regimen, you essentially want to create new habits to distract from your unhealthy ones. Do not go in expecting immediate results. Developing new habits takes about 18 to 254 days, according to a study cited in the European Journal of Social Psychology.
Missing the Proper Conditions
Creating a low-stress, calm home environment is crucial for facilitating your addiction recovery and maintaining a consistent exercise regimen. Keeping your space tidy and adding houseplants can promote a serene atmosphere that supports your well-being. A peaceful and organized home can significantly enhance your recovery journey and overall health.
It's also important to manage your caffeine intake, as consuming excessive amounts can elevate stress levels, a common issue in early recovery. To stay aware, look up the caffeine content of your favorite drinks and monitor your consumption to ensure it remains within healthy limits.
Losing the Motivation
Fitness beginners and experts alike can lose motivation to continue an exercise program. If you feel your motivation dropping, analyze why it's happening. Think about the process so far and your previous attempts to become healthy. Do you struggle with soreness after too many workouts? Are you confused by how to make progress with your current routine? Do you feel overwhelmed? Write down the reasons you find exercise to be difficult.
Once you have reasons listed, create a new plan. For example, if you feel too busy, break up your workouts into smaller sessions or find ways to stay active during your workday (e.g., walking to work, taking stairs instead of the elevator). Then, revisit the goals you set to begin with. When you think about all the costs of addiction and how important recovery is for you, your family, and your future, you may find it easy to continue.
No one recovers from addiction overnight. Even if you complete a rehabilitation program, you still have to replace your previous habits with new, healthy ones. Physical activity can be a way to distract from the impulse to use again, and it also improves your mental as well as physical health. Keep these points in mind to establish a lifelong and regular exercise routine to continue your recovery.
At the Get Sober Program, the journey to recovery begins with the decision to change and seek a better life. Enter your contact info below for further information!
Special thank you to
Denise Lozada | Outreach Coordinator
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