Taking the first step towards sobriety is a daunting task. It takes courage, patience, and overwhelming drive to overcome substance abuse disorder. Addiction is a disorder that can affect both your body and your mind. By intaking illicit drugs and alcohol, you poison your body with chemicals that can alter your brain and affect your organ function.

Millions of Americans suffer from addiction. The battle to sobriety can be long and arduous but it’ll be worth it. Sobriety will give you a chance to live your life to the fullest. You won’t have to worry about finding your next fix or how your addiction will negatively affect those you care about more.

Places like Sunshine Behavioral Health in Broomfield can assist you in your journey to sobriety. The most effective treatment for treating your addiction is going to rehab and seeking help from medical professionals. For many people suffering from addiction, what stops them from entering a rehab facility is the fact that they don’t know what to expect. Movies and media don’t do a very good job sometimes depicting rehab in a positive light.

Here, we explore the reality of addiction treatment and what your days will look like when you enter one.

You’ll have a routine

You won’t be allowed to sleep into noontime like you used to be able to do, but that’s a good thing. Having a set schedule will allow you to reset your mind and get back on a healthy sleep schedule. This can be challenging for a lot of addicts who have struggled to make a routine in the past but it will get easier to follow the longer you’re there.

In an inpatient facility, you’ll be provided with the very best breakfast. You don’t have to worry about getting something gross like they show in the movies. You’ll be able to enjoy eggs, fruit, oatmeal, and other types of healthy and fulfilling breakfasts while you stay there.

Many facilities offer exercise classes in the morning or a meditation/yoga session to help you become energized and relaxed.

After breakfast and exercise, you’ll find that most patients have some form of therapy session. Some addicts prefer seeing a counselor one on one so they can really focus on their recovery while others enjoy the offered group sessions as a way to socialize and meet people struggling with the same things. If you want, you can even sign up for both.

You can expect to find a safe environment no matter with kind of treatment you choose. Therapists are trained to never judge their patients so you can feel free to openly address anything that’s been weighing on your mind with them. Your therapist will be able to guide you in your sobriety journey by helping you identify triggers and respond to them in healthier, more positive ways.

In a lot of facilities, the therapies that are offered aren’t just one on one sessions or group therapy with strangers. These therapies can be catered to your goals and needs. You can go to stress or anger management to help you cope with your emotions, you can go to grief counseling to help you cope with a loss that might have triggered your addiction as well.

There are also options for family therapy sessions. If your relationships have been affected by your disease, family therapy will be the thing you need to get back on track. If you’re looking for different kinds of therapies and how they can benefit your addiction, follow the link: https://www.healthline.com/health/benefits-of-therapy.

After your therapy sessions, you’ll have free time to do whatever it is you want. You aren’t in prison. You can read, write, play games, and enjoy the facilities as much as you want. Once evening comes, you’ll have one more therapy session before bed, and then it is lights out.

Lights out might seem early to you at first depending on what time you’re used to sleeping, and it might feel restrictive, but setting up a proper sleep schedule is crucial if you want to rewire your brain and get out of your addiction. If you want to hear more about the benefits of getting enough sleep and developing a schedule, click here.

Rehab will help you find yourself again and give you the life you always wanted.

Rehab doesn’t last forever but the positive outcome sure can. Rehab will give you a chance to learn more about yourself. It’ll give you a chance to forge the path that you always wanted to take in life.

At first, breaking yourself open in therapy is going to feel daunting and you might be resistant to open up and succumb to the process. Talking about your problems, no matter what they are is a very vulnerable thing to do. But without being willing to share vulnerability with the staff and the people who love you, you can never grow and evolve into the person you want to be.

Making changes to your life, no matter how big or small is a frightening prospect. Try to remember that the uncomfortable nature of rehab is because you’re doing something new. This uncomfortable period won’t last forever. Give yourself time to adjust to the changes you’re making and commit fully to the process.

Once this period of awkwardness is over, you’ll probably start enjoying your therapy sessions and the entire rehab experience. A lot of addicts actually come back to their old rehab centers to volunteer and work because the experience was such a monumentally good one.

I’m not saying you ever have to return to your rehab or feel obligated to work for or with them again. I’m just trying to show you how much recovering addicts have benefited from going to rehab and how much joy it’s brought to their lives. If they’re willing to come back and help others change their lives, then that’s a sure-fire sign that their treatment worked for them and that means it can work for you.

Don’t hesitate to reach out to your local treatment center or call your doctor to express interest in addiction treatment. No matter what’s happened in the past or how long it’s been, you can still gain control over your life and beat addiction. It’s never too late.