Treatment can be an integral time in your life. You are unlearning old habits while simultaneously creating healthy habits. You are opening yourself up to vulnerability, exposing the breadth of who you are to professionals and clinicians.
It takes bravery to commit to this. Our habits outside of treatment can make all the difference in long-term effectiveness.
Maintain Accountability
Consider how you feel when you’re not in a mental health setting or actively engaging in techniques surrounding treatment. Are you still practicing wellness when there’s no accountability? When someone is supervising your treatment, things are not as simple.
Outside of a practice setting, it is essential to exercise behaviors that will help sustain the progress made. It can be effortless to spiral into old habits. After all, they are often a place of comfort and familiarity for us. However, when trying to make progress in treatment, your everyday life should begin to mirror the steps taken during sessions.
It will not be an overnight process or something that may come easily or naturally to you. Instead, it is based on an intentional effort to see the most progress possible in the healthiest manner for you.
Reflect on Progress
After a session, it might be helpful to reflect on the progress you feel you have made. Maybe you can keep a record of the progress. A tangible recording, like journaling or vlogging, allows you to reflect on how far you have come. Additionally, confronting your negative emotions may motivate you to steer clear of the practices that led to those emotions.
Coming face to face with your progress and the positive outcomes of such can activate the brain’s reward regions, prompting you to continue to make choices that align with your overall wellness goals.
Engage With the Community
No fight or battle is meant to be fought alone; the struggle with mental health and wellness is no different. Those around you are more likely to share your desire to come out on the other side for wellness. Engaging with your community, family, friends, and loved ones is a great way to sustain healthy habits. Informing your community about what is taking place in treatment and what does not work for you is an effective way to build accountability.
Perhaps late-night parties involving drinks or substances are not appropriate for you. Or maybe you need to be home by a specific time to get a good night’s rest. Interacting with your environment and being open about where you stand during your treatment process is a great way to create a conducive atmosphere for you and your healing.
Try Something New
The treatment process can be complex, as you must undergo a great deal of self-reflection. However, this does not always have to be a negative thing. This can be a great thing. The unlearning you must do during treatment and practice leaves room for new learning or relearning healthy habits.
You may find that you enjoy baking or exercise. You are not reinventing yourself; instead, you are introducing new ideologies and allowing for expansion and growth. It might be helpful to treat this time as one of self-discovery. You are an ever-evolving person with likes, dislikes, desires, and goals—none of these need to be confined to the perimeters of poor mental health.
Understand That You Can Make Changes Every Single Day
Each day is an opportunity for you to seize. You can actively implement changes to see the results that you desire. There is no goal that you have that is outside of your capability.
Although you may have moments of feeling weak or inadequate, your realm of ability is not some random fantasy. It is an attainable reality that you simply have to work toward. Do not be hard on yourself, be patient and kind. However, you also should not be too complacent; you can be disciplined without pushing yourself to an uncomfortable limit.
Although treatment is helpful, no one understands your mind, body, and overall desires better than you. You can serve your treatment facility and community. They are, in fact, essential agents in recovery, but when they are not around, you are still present.
At Southern California Sunrise Recovery Center, we understand that while treatment, recovery, and overall mental health may be challenging to manage, it is far from impossible. Healthy habits are sometimes aspects of life that take ongoing practice.
Implementing healthy and wholesome habits into your routine may seem unnatural at first. You may be tempted to retreat to habits you have been advised against. While you should not be too hard on yourself, providing yourself with the appropriate amount of discipline is essential so that you may see actual progress, and we can help.
We will work with you to help you understand why you use unhealthy habits to cope and how to cultivate healthier habits moving forward. If you or a loved one needs help, get it now. To learn more about our facility, contact us today by calling (714) 942-4143.
