Handling Your New Free Time After Recovery

When you enter an addiction recovery center, you will learn many things about yourself and your addiction. Some of these things are basic issues that you may not have even thought about. One of the issues you will have to address for a successful recovery is time.

Addiction has a way of consuming all of your time. You spend a lot of time seeking out the drug that you used, a lot of time finding places to use this drug without interruption, and a lot of time under its influence. Part of your recovery process will be learning to know what to do with your new free time.

Free Time Should Be Filled With Things That Make You Happy

Your substance abuse counselor is going to work with you during your drug rehab to help you find things in your life that you like or have forgotten that you enjoy. Addiction can rob people of their favorite hobbies, interests, or pursuits. Now that you are in recovery, it will be time to enjoy these things or something new.

You will be surprised how much free time you have now that you no longer have an addiction. For some, this newfound time can be stressful because they don’t know what to do with the time. This can lead to a relapse. Finding things to fill your time can be one of your goals when you first leave our luxury rehab.

Hobbies Are More Than Making Crafts

Many people think that a hobby means you are sitting down to make a craft. While this is a fun thing to do and can be on your list of hobbies, don’t limit yourself to just craft making. You can find many things to add to your daily life that will be enriching and fun. Some of these things can include:

• Starting a website. You could start a blog, start an online side business, or even make videos to show off your talents.
• Start a garden. Even if you are in an apartment, you can have a window garden to care for and enjoy.
• Create an exercise routine. Go out for a walk or ride a bicycle. Visit a local park and enjoy the outdoors.
• Start travel plans. Investigate places that you would like to see and work on travel plans.
• Buy a national or state park pass and visit all the unique parks in your area. Many people do not even realize how many places they can enjoy or the fun things to do at these parks.
• Take a class. Everyone can benefit from learning something new. It could be a cooking class, an educational class, or even one to learn how to make a craft.
• Volunteer. Find a cause that you like and volunteer some time to help that cause grow. Work at an animal shelter or visit a home for the elderly. These charities desperately need help, and it will make you feel good.
• Enjoy some me-time. Soak in the tub with a good book. Get a massage and a manicure. Lay in the sun for a while. A little downtime is always good for you.

As you can see, there are many ways that you can enhance your life and fill the new time you have now that you are no longer consumed by addiction.

Always Find Time For Your Support Groups

No matter how you decide to fill your extra time, make sure that you always save time for your support meetings. Support groups and follow-up sessions after leaving the addiction recovery center are crucial to your success. These support groups are there to give you the structure and support you need to remain in recovery.

Support groups can help you get through the rough patches that can happen in recovery. It can also be a great place to share your successes. Share your hobbies with others at the meeting and be an inspiration to others. There are many reasons that these support groups help. But the most important reason to go is to help yourself stay in recovery.

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There are many things to experience again once you leave recovery. Knowing how to manage your time and fill your time with the right stuff is part of the experience. If you are having difficulties with filling your time, talk with your substance abuse counselor. They will be able to give you many suggestions that will help you find the right things to do and stay on your path of recovery.