So you’ve gone to rehab and conquered your addiction. You head home with your whole heart and head focused on one thing: you WILL NOT use drugs or alcohol. So you stay home, keep your world small and try to stay away from addiction.
This approach can sometimes work, but it is better to do more than just wish away your past. Many people would argue the opposite of addiction is not sobriety because what good is it to be sober if you’re miserable?
Rather, the opposite of addiction is connection. This is how author Johann Hari explained it in a Ted Talk:
Human beings have a natural and innate need to bond. And when we’re happy and healthy we’ll bond and connect with each other. But if you can’t do that—because you’re traumatized or isolated or beaten down by life—you will bond with something that will give you some sense of relief. Now that might be gambling, that might be pornography, that might be cocaine, that might be cannabis, but you will bond and connect with something because that’s our nature, that’s what we want as human beings.”
It’s critical to your recovery that you make connections, reach out, and participate in life.
Fun Sober Activities
We all know the importance of official recovery programs such as the AA and therapy. However, the goal is to bring some fun back into your life. For a long time, you’ve equated partying with fun. Now it’s time to relearn how pleasurable other activities can be.
There’s a whole world out there just waiting to be rediscovered. No one can tell you what will work for you because there is no one right answer. The only wrong answer is to hunker down and refuse to try.
The list of fun sober group activities is endless, but we’ll give you a few ideas just to get the ball rolling.
- Take up pickleball.
- Go to the zoo.
- Join a running club.
- Become a Paleo-eating Cross Fitter and annoy all your friends.
- Try out for a part in community theater.
- Volunteer at a place you love.
- Get a friend to go on an all-day hike or bike ride with you.
- Take a cake decorating class.
- Train to be a yoga instructor.
- Learn photography at your local community college.
- Get a part time job at your favorite coffee shop.
- Attend a local fashion show.
- Take your favorite aunt ziplining and watch her overcome her fear.
- Recruit your new friends to go apple picking and make apple fritters.
- Join a softball, golf or tennis league.
- Go to a new dog park.
- Start a book club.
- Start a band.
Sober Group Activities
In addition to all of the “unofficial” things you can arrange on your own, by plugging into a recovery community you can find a variety of organized group activities. Some activities are nights out to see a comedian or attending New Year’s Eve parties.
Hope and Healing at The Raleigh House
At The Raleigh House, we take a whole-person approach to recovery. That means we don’t just get the substance out of your system. The real work is helping you recover psychologically, mentally, spiritually and socially. We also evaluate and treat residents for any co-occurring conditions that may exist, such as depression or post-traumatic stress disorder. Fill out our form or contact us today to learn more about our drug and alcohol addiction treatment programs.
