They may also find that they have more energy and motivation to pursue their goals and feel a greater sense of accomplishment as they achieve them. Substance abuse can also have a significant impact on career and financial prospects. Addiction can lead to poor work performance, absenteeism, benefits of living alcohol free and even job loss. It can also lead to financial problems, as individuals may prioritize substance use over other expenses such as rent, bills, and food. Individuals can rebuild their careers and finances by getting sober and improving their overall financial stability.
Improved Physical Health
This model embraces the 12-step approach to recovery, made famous by Alcoholics Anonymous, but also includes mental health, trauma treatment, physical recovery and family dynamics, too. If you find yourself struggling with substance abuse or destructive behaviors that are holding you back from being all you can be, it’s time to consider rehab. Friendships thrive with mutual respect, shared interests and reliable behavior. Once you get sober, however, you’ll relearn the responsible behaviors that are the basis of solid friendships. Long term friendships are often made in recovery meetings too, and such friendships run deep.
Substance Use Treatment
- When people stop consuming alcohol or drugs, they open themselves to a wide range of benefits that can transform their lives.
- Perhaps you require solitude, or maybe you’ll feel better if you contact your support system.
- This can cause more severe long-term memory loss and impact your ability to learn new things.
- Verbalizing feelings, even when it’s uncomfortable, can help conceptualize and take responsibility for the next steps necessary.
- They may also have more time and energy to pursue hobbies and interests and enjoy meaningful connections.
- As the name implies, it encourages participants to scale-back their alcohol consumption and/or begin to experiment with an alcohol-free lifestyle.
- So take some time to familiarize yourself with other types of support; the pandemic has led to the rise of virtual options that increase accessibility beyond what you can access in person.
These kinds of tests are not available in a standard doctor’s office, and I would be wary of any third-party company offering unvalidated testing. The research was funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. The study’s authors also included Sarah Peterson and Megan Patrick of U-M’s Institute for Social Research and Ty Schepis of Texas State University.
Substance-Free Living Tips
Initially, it can slow your breathing and lower your heart rate and blood pressure. This can leave you feeling drowsy and can cause you to fall asleep quickly. However, as your liver begins to metabolize the alcohol in your blood stream, your heart rate and blood pressure rise, which prevents you from achieving a deep sleep. Without this disruption to your central nervous system, your blood pressure and heart rate can remain stable as you rest. When you live a drug-free lifestyle, you’re forced to face all of your problems head-on.
Three: Financial Freedom
Being alcohol-free is a long journey and keeping the company of like-minded people will make it a success. It is totally understandable that sometimes it is just possible to avoid being around people who are drinking alcohol for various reasons. What you can do in such a situation is to find a substitute drink that you can access at that time or carry it with you just in case you have such an encounter.
Improved Career and Financial Prospects
Study procedures included recruiting residents for the research within their first week of entering the SLH. All participants signed informed consent documents and were informed that their responses were confidential. A federal certificate of confidentiality was obtained to further https://ecosoberhouse.com/article/why-is-alcohol-addictive/ protect study confidentiality. Interviews were conducted at entry into the houses and at 6-month follow-up. We expected residents entering SLH’s who had established sobriety would maintain that sobriety, while those with recent substance use would show significant improvement.
- And the longer you stay sober, the more people will applaud your hard work.
- Long term friendships are often made in recovery meetings too, and such friendships run deep.
- Contributing to society may be the furthest thing from your mind when you finally enter rehab, but it’s a lasting, positive result from being drug and alcohol free.
- Moreover, committing to sobriety entails altering numerous aspects of your life and perspective.
- While they can stop indulging in their addictive behavior and not suffer physical effects like elevated blood pressure, the emotional ramifications feel overwhelming.
