New Year’s Eve is often a difficult holiday for people who are trying to stay sober. The pressure to drink can be intense, and the temptation to celebrate with a glass of champagne can be strong. However, sober holidays for people in recovery, it can remind them of all the negative things that happened in the past year.
Don’t Use the Holidays as a Time to Air Grievances
- Sober Holidays Tip #12 Don’t romance the drink or drug.
- Loved ones can create a safe and comforting environment to talk about your struggles.
- Though sobriety is on the rise among Gen Zers, the holidays can be a minefield of temptation, especially when it seems like everyone around you is drinking.
- Find support through friends, family, and advocates of your sobriety.
- It’s about finding joy in new ways and reaffirming our commitment to a life of sobriety.
- Use phone meetings if attending face-to-face isn’t a possibility.
For instance, you may have to attend a family dinner with relatives you don’t get along with or who enabled your addictions. If you recently lost a loved one, your grief may be intensified as you face your first holiday season without them. Or maybe you can’t get home for the holidays this year, and you’re not sure who you’ll spend Christmas with. Many people feel their emotions more profoundly during this season—both the good emotions and the not-so-good. At Stonegate Center, we want this to be a season of celebration for you. Here are some of our suggestions for how to stay sober so you innately experience the joy and peace of the Christmas season.
Have an exit plan
If you feel uncomfortable about a family dinner, that’s enough. Consider how these family dinners played out in the past. The holiday season can be stressful, and stress is a common trigger for relapse. Prioritize self-care by maintaining a regular sleep schedule, engaging in physical activity, and practicing mindfulness.
Support for Me and My Family
Fortunately, there are various ways to handle stressful situations and communicate openly with your loved ones. Although the holiday season is known as a particularly difficult time for people in recovery, other holidays can also be just as triggering. Getting through the holidays sober can be a challenge, particularly for people in early addiction recovery. Here are some tips and resources for preventing or responding to addiction relapse during the holiday season. Some families might consider the holidays an inappropriate time to help a loved one get into addiction treatment when, in fact, it could be an ideal opportunity.
- Early signs of a relapse or slip may be identified by family members, friends, or other loved ones, such as a spouse.
- Review the following tips to learn how to protect your sobriety during the holidays.
- This can be helpful in times of stress, where you may find yourself struggling to think clearly or rationally about how to cope with urges to drink alcohol or use drugs.
- This one is not necessarily vital to your recovery but it can be a fun and lasting way of enjoying the holidays sober.
Bring a Nonalcoholic Beverage to Share
Caring for yourself will give you the reserves to manage both holiday stress and drinking urges and help you to feel your best throughout the season. Join our supportive sober community where each day becomes a step towards personal growth and lasting positive change. Odds are that you are experiencing a lot of emotions this time of year, which can add even more to https://ecosoberhouse.com/ your plate. It’s okay to say no whenever you need to and put yourself first this holiday season. Self-compassion might be one of the best gifts you can ever give yourself.
