Should I Go Back to Rehab?
Sober living is a lifelong process, and one that can’t be expected to have problems along the way. Exiting rehab can be one of the most liberating experiences, but at the same time it can be rather difficult as time goes on. There are many different signs that you might want to go back to rehab, but some signs are more obvious than others.
If you or someone you love is having any issues with addiction, reach out to a rehab center right away.
Understanding the Purpose of Rehab
Rehab is typically a place where one goes to get sober and overcome the struggles that come with withdrawal from substance abuse. While not every rehab center is the same, all share this critical characteristic. If you have fallen back under the influence of drugs or alcohol, revisiting a rehab center is nothing to be ashamed about, it is simply just another step in your story.
Returning to rehab generally would only happen after an extreme relapse, but other than rehab there still are different options for you if you would like. Sober houses, communal living and halfway houses are all over the place and are at people’s disposal if they should choose to look for them.
Once someone goes to rehab for the first time, they might think that they will never have to go back. This, unfortunately, is not always the case. While one should never hope or expect to go back to rehab, setting one’s expectations in the correct place will help one fully recover at the end of the day.
Take back control of your life and start on the road to recovery now.
Rehab vs a Sober House
If you feel like you’re struggling in the setting you’re in, remember that there are more options for you than just going back to rehab. Learning what works for you and learning how to properly assess your situation is a difficult task.
Halfway houses, sober houses, and many other things are available to you. Learn what works best, but learn what each is first.
Sober houses are much less of an actual institution or center and much more of a lifestyle. These differences are major, but it’s easy to understand why they could be confused. Let’s use an example to explain the relationship between these two places.
John has an addiction. He wants to get clean and turn his life around, but can’t deal with the effects of the withdrawal on his own, no matter how many times he’s tried. He decides to go to rehab to really kick his addiction for good.
At rehab, John finally kicks his addiction and feels free from the pain of being enslaved to his substance. John has lived a long life being addicted, however, and doesn’t know many people outside of those he knew when he was an addict. John knows that he might have a tendency to go back to his old habits if he tries to stay with any of them, so in an attempt to stay as far away from his old habits he finds a sober house.
John looks online for a good place to live, and finds a sober house. These sober houses are perfect for someone like John. Someone who really wants to turn their life around and wants to see what life is like without substance constantly being a part of their lives.
Over time, John begins to make new friends and see the world for what it could have been this entire time. He learns what it’s like to live a life free of substance abuse and really understands how to live a life that’s without substance abuse.
These are the main functions of both of these places. They aren’t a permanent residence, but they are a place where someone can go to really feel safe and learn what it means to live a life free from alcohol, drugs, etc.
In a rehab facility, John wouldn’t have any contact with the outside world. He would receive counseling, prayer, and other methods that could help with withdrawal.
In a sober house, John could find a job, make new friends, and explore the city (with some restrictions).
These are transitional facilities designed to help individuals who really want to help themselves get truly clean.
What to Expect in a Sober House
Sober houses don’t conduct counseling sessions, organized events, nor directly help with detoxing. Sober houses create an environment that the previously addicted individual can go to really understand what life is like outside of drugs and alcohol. One or two roommates that might share similar stories would live in the same house together, along with someone who oversees the house and makes the environment what it is.
This is what makes the experience so different. Perhaps these individuals never got the chance to see life for what it is like without substance abuse. These places give the ex-addicts a chance to really find themselves. Rehab might get them started, and really help with the detox process, but what’s really needed to keep individuals clean is the constant reminder that life can be better than what they’ve been living like before.
Life without addiction isn’t easy, and the boredom, dread, or pressure from outside life could pressure them back into their addiction. Giving these individuals a fair chance to see life without it for good, give them a chance to live half a year or a year truly without any substance is what this is all about.
While the physical effects of addiction might not be present any longer, the root causes of their addiction might still be very much there. Sober houses are places where people can go to figure all of that out – without the temptation of something that could ruin their life for a second time.
Learning Yourself: A Lesson in Humility
Part of the human experience is not being perfect. Nobody is, and that’s what makes being human such an interesting experience. Learning yourself and humbling yourself when you find your own shortcomings is a necessary part of truly getting better.
Be comfortable with your shortcomings. Learn what you can do well and what you might need help with. Learn where your limits are so that you can then set boundaries for yourself and keep your expectations in place.
Learning how to properly assess your situation and what to do once you get yourself in different scenarios is important. Doing this without becoming more anxious is an even bigger challenge. Getting and remaining sober cannot be done without humbling yourself. One must become more humble in their journey if they truly want to better themselves. Understanding yourself is such an important part of the process.
Tips for Humbling Yourself
- Don’t expect comfort. Understand that this is a process that needs to prioritize character building over anything else, including your own comfort. This means denying yourself and trying your best to do what you can to improve in any way that you can every single day.
- Lean away from target fixation. Don’t focus on being a person that’s just “not selfish” but focus on being a person that is wholly selfless. Focus on what you want to become, not what you don’t want to be.
- Be patient. Unfortunately all of these different character traits need to work together in order for someone to truly come to full health again. All of these character traits are good in the end though and are super critical for overall understanding.
This can be a difficult journey, but you don’t have to go it alone. Let us be your guide and provide you the environment needed to regain control of your life and begin the path to recovery.
5 Signs You Might Need to Go Back To Rehab
Now that we’ve gotten through all of that, we can finally look at what are some major signs that you might need to go back to actual rehab.
- You start regularly abusing drugs or alcohol
This should be an obvious sign. Once you’re here, it’s time to go back. There’s no shame in this, just go back and start again. There’s no shame in failing, only in not trying to get back up and try again. - You aren’t motivated to stay sober
Finding your motivation to get sober is a tricky task. Losing your motivation that you spent so much time trying to find can be really demotivating. Take this kind of moment as a sign you might want to look at going back to rehab soon. - You can’t function daily
This might be a sign that you haven’t fully detoxed yet. Heading back to rehab might be the only option for you – get there right away and finish the process so that you can have the highest odds of getting back to being fully healthy once again. - You feel like you need help to stay sober
This isn’t much of a problem as it could be if you don’t have the systems in place to fully overcome it. If you find yourself in this position without your support system, it might be time to look into a new rehab center once again. - You experience very strong urges
If you feel like you have the cravings of someone who can’t control themselves, seek help immediately. There’s no shame in admitting that you need help, but know that expecting these cravings to just go away is a recipe for disaster. Take these cravings seriously and take the steps you need to keep yourself from temptation and potential relapse.
If you or someone you know is suffering from addiction, reach out to us at EcoSoberHouse.com right away and get the help you need.
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