Recovery from substance use is a long and hard journey. While sobriety can be achieved, it’s not as easy as just attending treatment. For recovery to stick you’ll need to have the right mindset and mission to take control of your future for good.

Client’s right to self-determination

A phrase that medical and mental health professionals often use is the client’s right to self-determination. Essentially, this means that regardless of expert and family opinions, an individual always has the option to pursue or decline treatment. A therapist would strongly advise against a behavior, or a family could suggest intervention hundreds of times, but at the end of the day, you will always have the free will to make your own decisions.

That’s why recovery needs to start with the right mindset. If you’re half-heartedly pursuing sobriety, it will be easy to let the lessons learned to slip out of your mind and fall into relapse. Recovery demands active participation to be effective, so strengthening your mind and learning to self-motivate will be key to your success.

You don’t have to be 100 percent on board to start treatment

A common myth about treatment for substance abuse is that you need to be enthusiastic about treatment and have zero hesitations when you begin. Generally, people start receiving services with some trepidation and build determination as they go.

While you do have to choose recovery for yourself and not because of pressure from someone else, starting treatment with some reservation is normal. Your treatment will include learning to overcome any anxieties and build on your existing motivation.

Learning to self-motivate

While your friends and family might be cheering you on and offering every type of support, there will be times when cravings strike and you don’t have a backup. Your therapist or counselor can teach you skills in sessions to cope in the face of distress, but when those triggers come up outside the office you’ll need to stay strong on your own. No one can take the journey for you.

While all the research shows that treatment can have a drastic impact on your recovery, ultimately you’ll still need to make decisions for yourself, and learning to self-motivate can tip the scales in your favor. When you have an internal drive that’s aiming for recovery, your mindset and your actions will be aligned.

Remember your mission

When you begin treatment or start to consider getting help, you’ll want to establish your mission. Whether you write your own mantra or make a list of bullet points that you’re fighting for, it’s important to know why you’re going on the journey and what there is to look forward to at the end.

Consider adopting one or more of the following to hold close to your heart as part of your mission.

I’m getting sober to:

  • Take back control
  • Be there for my family
  • Set an example for others who are struggling
  • Prove to myself that I can overcome this addiction
  • Finally feel good in my body
  • Find meaning in my life
  • Repair relationships
  • Make strides in my career
  • Live my life without being tied down

Having a mission in recovery will help you to self-motivate when times are tough. A substance use journal can help you to clarify your priorities and pinpoint your mission for the best shot at sobriety. Consider journaling about your mission throughout your journey for a frequent reminder of your commitment.

Keeping your eyes on the prize

There’s no reason to water it down, recovery from addiction is hard. It takes a lot of willpower, professional and social support, and the right mindset and mission to get to a healthy place. Regardless of your initial motivation for starting treatment, staying inspired on your journey is all on you. Only you can decide to make the changes in your life to get clean and stay clean in the long run.

Get the right people on your team

While most of the weight of recovery will be on your shoulders, that doesn’t mean you have to go it alone. At Real Recovery, you’ll have the encouragement of a team of professionals as you make the daily commitment to get sober and stay sober.

Real Recovery’s services are proven to boost your chances of recovery. Trauma-focused programming helps you to address the root of your substance use while long-term care helps you to maintain your gains. Call 855-363-7325 today.