Long-term sobriety does not happen in a vacuum; when you leave a Bend, OR, drug rehab center, you will be faced with temptation. Avoiding situations that have historically led to self-destructive behavior will be the foundation of your sobriety. It’s easier to avoid temptations when you are clear-headed and not surrounded by people using drugs and alcohol to cope. Some people can use drugs without long-term consequences, and some people cannot.
There are many things you can do to promote lasting addiction recovery. One of which is celebrating National Recovery Month. Below you’ll find some options for sober activities in Oregon along with some addiction triggers to avoid.
Sober Activities in Bend, Oregon
One of the best ways to maintain sobriety is to be engaged in activities that don’t involve drinking or drugs. Even if you are addicted to a substance other than alcohol, you are more likely to find dangerous, addictive chemicals around people who drink alcohol. It’s best to avoid these situations altogether.
Thankfully, the sober curious movement has taken off in the Bend, OR, area, so skip the bar and try one of these sober activities to celebrate National Recovery Month:
- Attend Oregon AA & NA meetings
- Exercise and stretch every day
- Spend time outside
- Plant a garden
- Learn to play a musical instrument
- Adopt an animal from a shelter
- Learn a new language
- Get on the podcast train
- Take lessons from an expert in something random
Even if you avoid situations where drinking and drugs will be present, you may still occasionally get a craving. Instead of ignoring a temptation to use drugs and alcohol, you may find it helpful to acknowledge your desire to use while remembering the consequences and how your experiences with drugs and alcohol have affected your life in the past.
If drugs and alcohol have caused problems in your life, these problems will only get worse with age without outpatient treatment programs. Chemical dependency causes patterns of dangerous drug-induced behavior to develop.
Avoiding Addiction Triggers
Addiction literally changes brain chemistry, making it more difficult to get pleasure from the things that would usually make you happy. That’s scary, but it’s not permanent. For people in the process of getting sober, activities that don’t involve alcohol and drugs can seem boring, but this feeling won’t last. It may be tempting to start using again, but one drink can trigger a spree of destructive behavior.
Places and circumstances associated with a particular drug are called triggers. Some common triggers of substance abuse include:
- Money, places where you spend money
- Places where use used to use drugs
- Negative emotions, like stress, anger, and anxiety
- Internal and external conflicts
- People you used drugs around in the past
Triggers often lead to relapse when people lack the tools to handle them. Symptoms of a substance use disorder become progressively worse as your tolerance builds. An addicted person neglects the people and things they care about most; this is the nature of the disease. Addiction is complicated, but it is very treatable (in the right environment).
Celebrate Recovery with Sober Activities
At the beginning of your sober journey, it’s best to avoid events that will make you feel tempted to drink or use drugs. Your therapist and sponsor will have more insight into how to approach this, and what your timeline should look like. Being around people who are drinking and using drugs can make it very tempting to relapse. Unfortunately, many cultural, social, and interpersonal events (that keep us connected to our friends, family, and history) involve alcohol and drugs.
Ask yourself this question: Will I be able to put my sobriety first at this event? If you’re tempted to avoid preparing yourself for the event, it’s likely that you are not ready to go.
To learn more about addiction recovery, contact Sunstone Recovery today by calling 855.833.9199. The incredible sober community you will meet at our treatment center is one of the most significant benefits of attending treatment.
