If your friends don’t want to hang out with you unless you’re drinking, then you know where you stand with each other. Don’t let difficult decisions and conversations with loved ones be the excuse you use to fear of being sober keep drinking alcohol. If all of your friends abuse alcohol and/or your spouse abuses alcohol, it makes a lot of sense to fear what will happen next. It’s the whole, “You mean I can never drink ever again?!
- Face your fears of recovery, and talk about them with your loved ones.
- Besides, judging someone for not drinking alcohol is stupid, and you don’t need to be cool with that person anyway.
- Sobriety is an opportunity to improve your life in many different ways.
- Fear of what life will be like when all the mind-altering substances and parties stop is a common reason people don’t want to get clean.
- Staying sober means staying clean, and that alone can be a scary thought for many addicts and alcoholics.
- It shouldn’t be surprising then that fear is why many people don’t get sober or take a long time to do so.
- But what you need to remember is that you can choose who to share your journey with – and who to exclude.
Finally, it’s important to remember that you don’t have to do this alone. Many professionals can help you through the process of becoming sober. These professionals can help you understand your fears and provide the tools you need to overcome them. Second, it’s essential to reach out to a support system. If you have friends or family members who are sober, they can be a great source of support and information.
Scared of Being Sober: Why Is Sobriety So Hard?
Feeling pain is not ideal for those of us who are in active addiction and part of sobriety is feeling everything, even the pain. This can scare people to the core, but pain can be worked through. It is a part of life and if you numb your feelings all the time, you won’t feel the good or the bad. Fear of pain keeps people drinking for far too long.
I failed more times than I can count before I finally got it right, and I assure you there is nothing special about me that you can’t find within yourself. You don’t have to produce some hidden, superhuman strength to be successful at sobriety. But you do need patience, empathy for yourself, and a firm commitment to meeting your goal. Those who are overly pessimistic and say, “I’m going to be miserable forever,” will inevitably fail. You make it up to everyone you ever hurt by never being that person again.
Fear of a Life Without Drugs or Alcohol
It may seem that relapse is the last thing that could happen to you, but the truth is they are very common for people new to recovery. It’s important to remember that addiction can be treated but is rarely truly cured. For most addicts, this will be one of the most valid fears of getting sober, because the pain inside can be scary. However, with professional help, this too can be overcome much easier than most people realise.
Part of the treatment you will receive will be to help you discover what is good and loveable about yourself. That could be because they didn’t have normal sleep patterns to begin with. Daily drinking can cause disruptions in sleep as well, so quitting suddenly can be a shock to the system. Whether from drugs or alcohol, the benefits of becoming sober are often overshadowed by fear about what life will be like when all the mind-altering substances and parties have stopped.
Is it possible to be afraid of recovering from addiction?
Create a structured daily routine, but plan for days you may experience sickness or chronic illness flare-ups that could require adjusting your routine. Detox can occur in a hospital setting or as the initiation into the inpatient or outpatient rehabilitation process. This article will describe sobriety in more detail, the challenges a person faces while working to stay sober, the options for treatment, and tips for building a sober lifestyle.
Building a support network is one of the best things you can do to build a strong foundation for sober living. Since there are different reasons for using drugs and alcohol, there are also varying reasons why someone wants to get sober. Whatever your “why,” know that with treatment and support, getting sober is not only possible, but it’s also manageable long-term.
At this point, you can either conclude that you dont deserve it or have what it takes, or you can try again. Join me for two powerful, focused, dedicated one-to-one coaching sessions for the price of one! Truly transformational coaching that will lift your spirits and leave you feeling inspired and excited instead of scared and alone. Keep saying this over and over until you begin to feel better about the feeling. Eventually you will not be afraid of the feelings but see them as a positive step towards growth, something to embrace and yes, get excited about. If you experience a strong physical sensation of fear in your body then focus on where it is exactly.
Write a list of everything that scares you about quitting drinking. From the small to the big, the trivial to the ridiculous. In Denise Duffield Thomas’ book, ‘Get Rich’ she talked about how she was scared of buying her beachside mansion in case it got swept away by a tsunami.
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