Anxiety and Addiction: How to Manage Your Anxiety in Recovery
Anxiety affects about 40 million adults, making it the most common mental illness in America. It can also be one that is hard to deal with.
The anxiety you have as a recovering drug addict can challenge your sobriety every day. You may worry that you’ll use again or if your relationships are damaged for good. And when you became accustomed to using every time you felt anxious, these feelings can often be triggers.
However, it is possible to handle both anxiety and addiction. The key is to find new and healthy ways to handle your anxiety without turning to drugs.
Do you want to know more? Keep reading to learn how you can manage your anxiety while staying sober.
Talk to Someone.
It’s no secret that support groups are an important part of rehab. Discussing your addiction with a group of peers gives you the chance to connect with others going through similar situations and work through your problems without the fear of being judged.
The same thing is true with anxiety. If your anxiety is stemming from fear of using again, consider joining a drug or alcohol support group. You can talk to others who have managed to stay clean and feel relief knowing that, although it’s hard, it is possible.
If you feel anxious about things not related to drugs, like socializing or going somewhere new alone, you may benefit from seeing a therapist. They can help you learn more about anxiety and teach you ways to cope with your feelings.
Take Up Yoga.
Yoga is one of the best activities to manage anxiety while helping you stay in shape. Most classes combine stretching with mindful breathing.
Stretching can help you reduce any tension that’s been building up in your muscles. Once you feel better physically, you’ll be surprised how much better you feel mentally too.
But the real benefit here is mindful breathing. You’ll learn how you can shut off any stressors or anxieties from the outside world and just focus on your breathing. You can then use these techniques during your daily life to help you relax when you feel anxiety starting to creep up.
Occupy Yourself.
What can you do if yoga isn’t your idea of fun? Luckily, there are tons of other options.
If you’re feeling anxious, one of the best things you can do is to occupy your mind with something else.
Consider partaking in hobbies, such as exercising, painting, or playing video games. You could also bake your favorite dessert, see a play, or spend time with loved ones. Anything that keeps your mind off of your anxious thoughts can help.
Managing Anxiety and Addiction.
Staying clean is hard for any recovering addict. But it can be even harder for those struggling with anxiety. By following the above tips, you can learn how to handle anxiety and addiction, so you can reduce anxiety without using again.
Do you need help getting or staying sober? Contact us today to learn how our clean independent living environment can help.
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