The New Year can be a time for personal growth. Most people aim for self-improvement by making a list of resolutions that they hope to keep throughout the year. But for women who struggle with substance abuse, the New Year offers an opportunity for a fresh start, free from the prison of active addiction. For them, New Year’s resolutions take on a deeper meaning. In that spirit, here is a list of the top women’s addiction recovery goals for 2022.
Addiction Recovery Resolution #1: Resolve to Finally Get Help
Your sober journey starts here with this first all-important step. If you are like most people with substance problems, you probably think that this is a personal issue that you should be able to handle on your own. After all, it’s just a matter of having enough willpower, right? Unfortunately, substance use disorders don’t work that way. Addiction is a disease, and like any other health condition, you need specialized care if you are going to recover successfully.
Addiction Recovery Resolution #2: Resolve to Surrender
Addicts are stubborn. Even after admitting that you need professional help, you are probably still determined to do things YOUR way. You figure that YOU should be in control of your own recovery. But here is the reality–you already gave up any control you once had to your disease.
To move forward in recovery, you must make the conscious decision to turn your life and will over to something outside of and greater than yourself. In a surprising and wonderful way, by relinquishing control, you are actually regaining a measure of control over your life’s direction.
Addiction Recovery Resolution #3: Resolve to Trust and Have Faith
You must make a conscious decision to ACCEPT the help that is offered. Specifically, you must let guidance, strength, and inspiration come from without rather than within. And along the way, there are many people and concepts in which you will need to place your trust. That includes:
- Your initial decision to get help
- Your treatment team
- Your sponsor
- Your recovery peers
- Your personal support system
- The recovery process itself
- Some sort of higher power
Consider this—if your addiction is beyond YOUR control, then only some Power greater than your addiction can restore your sobriety and sanity.
Addiction Recovery Resolution #4: Resolve to Be Honest
Addiction feeds on denial, dishonesty, deceit, and deception. The longer you fool others and yourself, the more your disease can grow. With this in mind, you might say that honesty is the foundation of recovery. It certainly guides many of the Twelve Steps of Recovery. To successfully recover, you must be honest with:
- Yourself
- Your treatment team
- Your sponsor
- Your family and friends
- You must also be honest with your peers in recovery.
Addiction Recovery Resolution #5: Resolve to Take Responsibility
Active addicts leave chaos, pain, and havoc in their wake. Lives are damaged, and people are hurt. And because one of the defining characteristics of substance use disorder is extreme self-absorption, they minimize their behaviors and blame others for the harm that they have caused. But in recovery, you are taught the value of taking responsibility for your actions, past and present. This is your chance—perhaps for the first time—to truly see the consequences of your actions.
Addiction Recovery Resolution #6: Resolve to Make Amends
A large part of recovery involves learning from your past so you can move forward without constantly repeating your mistakes. And one of the best ways to grow in sobriety and demonstrate to yourself and others that you are no longer the same person is to make amends for the past harm you have caused. This is more than simply making an apology. Making amends involves sincerely and personally trying to right the wrongs you are responsible for.
Addiction Recovery Resolution #7: Resolve to Slow Down
When you enter a rehab program and start to see some progress, you will feel the urge to make up for lost time. In addition to your ongoing recovery activities, you will also have other demands on your time. Unfortunately, something always has to give when you try to do too much. And far too often, that “something” ends up being your recovery efforts, your sobriety, your physical and mental health, or all of the above. Remember to proceed slowly and steadily to ensure that this doesn’t happen.
Addiction Recovery Resolution #8: Resolve to Take Care of Yourself
Along those same lines, it is also too easy to neglect your physical health when concentrating on sobriety and still trying to handle everything else in your life. Remember to take care of yourself. That includes eating a healthy diet and getting plenty of sleep and exercise.
Addiction Recovery Resolution #9: Resolve to Be Grateful
12-Step groups often talk about having an “attitude of gratitude” for your “blessings received.” There are several practical reasons why this is a good idea. Gratitude makes you mentally stronger. It also improves your self-esteem and helps you sleep better.
Addiction Recovery Resolution #10: Resolve to Forgive and Seek Forgiveness
This is one of the hardest resolutions to keep, but it is essential. Grudges and unresolved resentments create a negative emotional atmosphere that does not support sobriety and continued recovery. Forgiveness is important because it allows you to start with a clean emotional slate. You will happily find out that letting go of all of your pent-up resentment, jealousy, and anger provides you with an incredible feeling of relief and liberation.
Addiction Recovery Resolution #11: Resolve to Find Joy
Many people new to recovery find it hard to stay motivated or interested in virtually anything, including things they used to enjoy. Because they aren’t as happy as they thought they would be, they wonder if it’s all worth it. Finding joy early in recovery can be a challenge. But by simply trying new positive activities, you promote increased production of your body’s natural “feel-good” chemicals. In other words, you will start having fun in spite of yourself.
Addiction Recovery Resolution #12: Resolve to Help Others
A growing body of evidence suggests that helping other people provides measurable psychological benefits that support sustained sobriety. It also provides similar physical benefits. Serving others improves your chances of avoiding relapse and successfully recovering.
Turn New Year’s Resolutions Into Addiction Recovery Goals at Women’s Recovery
At Women’s Recovery, we’re committed to helping you make your New Year’s resolutions a reality. Every day, we help women from all walks of life create achievable recovery goals. We also provide the expert help needed to reach those goals. To learn more, call us today at 833.754.0554 or fill out our online information form.
