There’s no hiding that recovery is one of the most difficult things most people will do in their entire lifetimes. With all of this daily effort, extreme stress, and emotional turmoil it can be hard for many to continue putting effort into their recovery daily. That is why it can be essential for people in recovery to have moments of fun, and relief from what they are experiencing. Something as simple as spending time talking and joking around with other recovering addicts can be more than enough to provide momentary relief. Although it is obvious that spending time joking around and having a good laugh does not solve any problems, it does provide the necessary momentary relief to continue investing more energy into their recovery.
Many people get into recovery thinking that they will no longer be having any fun because they can no longer abuse drugs and alcohol. Also, many recovering addicts have been using for so long that it is the only way they know how to have fun. Drugs and alcohol have previously been used by people in recovery to do just about anything. Our guests have often attested to having to use to even get out of bed in the morning. One of the most common reasons addicts and alcoholics use is to overcome social fears. Many guests have been using to overcome their anxiety, or even dread of social situations since they were in their early teens. When they enter recovery many years later, being able to enjoy social interactions feels close to impossible. However learning to overcome these fears is essential, because having positive social interactions is vital to recovery. Royal Life Centers understands how important this is, and that’s why we encourage this positive interaction as much as possible during treatment. The positive social interaction is both structured and unstructured, and they both are essential for different reasons.
When there is a group activity people that are extremely shy to the point of being noncommunicative, are given an opportunity to practice being social. While unstructured social activity is vital because it forces recovering addicts to listen to others so that they are heard as well. This unstructured social activity also helps many in recovery to learn more about forgotten social norms, and be social without being intoxicated. When our guests start to get some more experience with being social, the fun in recovery really begins. Luckily there are so many events for recovering addicts, even outside of treatment. There are plenty of 12 step sponsored events in nearly every part of the country, or world (basically wherever recovering people meet regularly). These events can be retreats to national parks, picnics, excursions to local arcades, and bowling alleys not to mention huge conventions! These events happen all the time, and on a daily basis while in treatment and going to meetings there are always fellow recovering people to join in on fun activities. Oftentimes people in recovery need to learn how to enjoy the simple things in life again, whether it’s a good conversation, a great meal, or even watching television with fellow recovering addicts.
The most important part other than learning how to have fun is avoiding problem people and places. Guests in Royal Life Centers are taught how to say no to, and avoid old using friends and places that are dangerous for their recovery. Many guests are suggested to remove all of the old contacts from their phones so they are not tempted to call people they used to use with. At Royal Life Centers we also teach our guests that they don’t need to go to bars, nightclubs, or any other places where drugs and alcohol are prevalent to have fun. Fortunately, after getting some time clean and being educated by our staff and clinicians most guests realize that there is nothing fulfilling, or truly fun about those places anyway. Click here to learn about more of the fun activities that are regularly scheduled at Royal Life Centers.
