Overcoming addiction may be one of the most challenging experiences you’ve ever gone through, but that’s only the start of your journey to a new life. There are far greater challenges you’ll be dealing with, particularly when it comes to your relationships and career.
The consequences of addiction affect not only the user but also the people around them—their loved ones. Severe dependence on drugs and alcohol can cause a person to develop destructive behaviors that can damage their relationship with other people. These include:
- Persistent lying
- Resorting to violence
- Being an unfaithful spouse
- Consistent breaking of the law
These behaviors are the reason why it’s difficult for families and friends to trust the addict again. But who can blame them? They’re probably mentally exhausted from all the repercussions of addiction they have to deal with.
Aside from tainted relationships, you also need to deal with your broken career. There may be plenty of things to cover to fix your reputation, but make sure to do one process at a time.
If you don’t know where to start, read this article to learn more. Also, if you still need help overcoming your addiction, you may go here or check other similar resources to find out how it can be treated.
What Are The Relationships Damaged By Addiction?
Addiction can break your relationship with:
- Your Family
Your family is one of the few people who can be most affected by your addiction. They’re probably the first ones to witness the changes in your appearance and behavior as you plunge into complete darkness.
- Your Spouse
Besides your family, your significant other is another person who might have experienced the changes in your behavior. They’ve probably struggled with the emotional damage you caused them while under the influence of substances.
- Your Friends
Because of your addiction, you might have also damaged your relationship with your friends by saying hurtful or ignoring their presence. However, some of them may be why you’re in this mess. If that’s the case, it would be better not to meet them anymore.
What Are The Reasons Relationships Falls Apart Due To Addiction?
There are many reasons why relationship gets broken due to addiction, such as:
- Uncontrollable Sense Of Fear
Substance abuse can make you highly susceptible to feelings of fear. This can cause you to act and behave violently, even on simple matters, leaving your loved ones afraid of you. Although they know it’s less likely to happen again after the recovery, their past emotions may still linger.
- Feelings Of Guilt
Your loved ones may feel guilty about what you’ve become. They may blame themselves for triggering your emotions, which have forced you to abuse substances, although they know it isn’t true. They must learn how to forgive themselves as they forgive you.
- Unlawful Actions
Breaking the law can cause severe damage to your relationship with your loved ones. Whether they paid your bail or were disappointed by your arrest, they’ll most likely hold onto that life-shattering experience and how it made them feel.
- Trust Issues
Addiction can change your behavior negatively. You probably have done many things you didn’t do before, such as stealing other people’s valuables or borrowing money to support your addiction. Or, you might’ve left your loved ones alone, making them worried and abandoned.
How To Rebuild Your Relationship After Overcoming Addiction
Rebuilding relationships after addiction requires a considerable amount of commitment and pure effort. Also, it’s important to maintain healthy behavior when repairing broken relationships throughout the process.
After completing the treatment program and achieving sobriety, you may consider different methods to rebuild the connection you lost. These include:
- Accomplishing Step 9 Of 12-Step Support Groups
Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotics Anonymous (NA) are among the most popular support groups for people who are maintaining long-term sobriety. They gather people with the same condition and allow them to share their stories, insights, and inspiration with everyone involved.
AA and NA are based on 12-step rules, one of the most difficult sections in Step 9. In this step, you’re encouraged to apologize to people you have wronged and hurt while under the influence.
When you apologize for your wrongdoings, don’t try to reason and make yourself a victim of the circumstances. All you have to do is admit your mistakes and say sorry—nothing more, nothing less. For example, ‘I am sorry if I’ve made you worried due to my disappearance last year.’
- Attending Family Therapy
Family therapy is a healthy practice of encouraging families to live without the influence of drugs or alcohol. Also, it aims to prevent possible harm of substance abuse that can happen to you and your family.
Some issues that can be addressed by family therapy include abuse, unemployment, inefficient parenting, and internal conflicts within the family. This has been made possible by the following therapeutic interventions, such as:
- Distinguishing what’s good and bad for you.
- Discussing the role of your family in your recovery.
- Identifying the right strategies that pave the way for healthy communication.
- Identifying the right methods to interact.
Furthermore, if you’re not a part of 12-step programs, you may look for other ways to apologize for your mistakes and redeem yourself.
- Maintaining Sobriety And Focus On Regaining Your Life
Once you’ve completed the treatment program, the next thing to do is stay sober as much as possible and regain your life. Get back to your work (or find a new one), explore healthy hobbies, create new sober friends, spend more time with your loved ones, and prevent relapse.
Here are some tips that can help maintain your sobriety:
- Identify Triggers: Identify the external and internal triggers that can elicit cravings and avoid them. External triggers include people, the environment, and things. Internal triggers, on the other hand, include thoughts, feelings, stress, and emotions.
- Identify Relapse Signs: Relapse can be deadly and may take over your mind if you can’t recognize its signs. These include addictive, compulsive, irresponsible, and irrational thoughts and behaviors.
- Build Healthy Routines:Avoid all past habits that trigger your thoughts and cravings about drugs and alcohol. Instead, build healthy routines, such as exploring new locations and befriending sober people.
You may also consider finding a new job if your previous work exposes you to triggers that encourage you to drink or take drugs again.
- Learn How To Apologize
Muster your courage and talk to all the people you have wronged before. Tell them that you recognize all your past mistakes and apologize sincerely.
Here are some ways to ask for forgiveness:
- Explain what happened and take responsibility for your past actions.
- Show them that you truly regret doing the things you’ve done in the past.
- Tell them that you’ll correct all your past mistakes.
- Let their emotions flow through. If they want to get mad, let them do so. They also need to release all the feelings they’ve kept hidden all these years.
When you apologize, make sure there are no buts and ifs. Just say sorry from the bottom of your heart and assure them that you won’t become addicted to drugs or alcohol again.
- Have A Journal
Sometimes, asking for forgiveness may hurt the people you love even more. All the pain and suffering you caused while you were under the influence of drugs or alcohol may resurface and disturb their emotions once more.
Instead, find something that can be an outlet for your thoughts and feelings, like a journal or a diary. Writing in a journal will help you release all your emotions and the things you can’t say personally to your loved ones.
How To Rebuild Your Career After Addiction?
Rebuilding a career after addiction may help the former addict improve their recovery and maintain sobriety. Why? Because one of the most common reasons people turn to drugs and alcohol is the lack of work opportunities.
However, rebuilding your career may not be as easy as you think because of the rampant stigma among employers. It can be difficult for them to trust someone who has been addicted to drugs or alcohol before. Yet, it doesn’t mean it’s impossible.
Below are some helpful tips you can follow:
- Stay Or Change Your Career
Some people had careers that gave them access to drugs and alcohol, such as bartending, nursing, pharmacy, etc. Although recovery is possible, even if there are triggers around you, the process will be more difficult. This is why it’d be better to look for a new career.
However, keep in mind that changing your career requires a lot of thinking to make. If you prefer to stay at your present workplace, there’s a high chance of relapse. Yet, if you decide to leave, there might be another mountain to climb before getting hired.
If you want to stay but are afraid of relapse, your therapist can devise a plan to help you stay sober while working. For example, if you’re tempted to use drugs or drink again while on duty, you may use your phone to pull your attentionaway from such substances.
But be careful; sometimes, social media is the cause of addiction, not the use of substances. Make sure that everything is well-balanced.
You may also bring your favorite literary pieces at work, schedule a 12-step program within the day, or look for strategies to remind you to remain sober.
- Have Realistic Expectations
As previously discussed, recovered addicts may have a hard time returning to work because of the stigma prevalent in the industry. Even those promoted to a high position may not be able to return to the workforce due to their history of substance abuse.
Unfortunately, it’s often necessary to step down from your career and start a new one. For example, you may need to rebuild your career from an entry-level position until you prove your worth once again.
It may be a long run, but it’s worth all the effort rather than staying alone in your apartment and staring at a blank wall. If you’re able to return to your previous work without being judged and stigmatized, then that’s what you call a blessing.
- Know What To Look ForIn A Job
If the chances of relapse in your current workplace are too high for you to handle, it’d be better to leave than stay. When you do, make sure to consider the following factors to find the job that’s right for you.
- Regular Working Hours: This helps keep everything predictable and allows you to create a well-balanced schedule for your recovery.
- Routine Workload: Routine workload also helps keep your day predictable, which is good for your recovery than those rapidly changing responsibilities.
- Reasonable Conditions: Look for a job that offers reasonable commuting, a space that fits your lifestyle, and a workload you can handle. Stressful working conditions may increase your chances of relapse.
- Growth And Development: Look for a job that prioritizes growth and development. This gives you something to look forward to and strive for, keeping you busy and your attention away from triggers and cravings.
What Are The Jobs To Look For After Addiction?
Below are some of the best careers you might want to consider after your addiction treatment program.
- Addiction Counselor: This is a great career for recovered addicts who want to inspire and help those addicts in need. Psychologists and social workers can also be addiction counselors.
- Therapist: Being a therapist offers a wide range of opportunities that allow you to help the addiction recovery community. You can be an occupational, physical, dance, or art therapist.
- Temporary Jobs: These jobs don’t rely on your past experiences and history, such as receptionist and administrative office work. Other companies may consider you for a full-time role, depending on your work performance.
- School: If you can’t find the right career path after addiction, consider returning to school for further education. Completing another degree, such as a master’s or doctorate, is a great way to reenter the workforce.
Final Words
Rebuilding your career and relationships is one of the most challenging aspects of the recovery process. However, that doesn’t mean it’s impossible to achieve. All you need to do is follow the tips above and focus on reaching your goals toward a new, sober life.