Drug and alcohol abuse can take over your life, preventing you from enjoying any normal activity. Suddenly, your life becomes all about addiction. You can only think about when you are going to consume the substance again and how you’re going to obtain it, particularly if the addiction got to a critical point.
Unfortunately, substance abuse can affect your mind, and people worry that the damage cannot be repaired. Still, there are some ways to recover mentally after addiction, and we are going to present them below. Let’s get started!
Consider Detoxification
First things first, you need to go through detox. All drugs need to be flushed out of your body so that you can allow it to recover.
Now, because you’ve probably used drugs for a while before the detoxification process, your body and mind will be out of balance, as the change is too sudden. Withdrawal symptoms might appear, making it easy to fall back into the trap of alcohol or drugs.
Fortunately, keeping up with the detoxification process ensures that you bring back your mind’s balance, giving it a chance to learn to live without harmful substances.
Specialists from Prevail Recovery Center say that some of these harmful substances include fentanyl, Xanax, marijuana, cocaine, heroin, crystal meth, and prescription opioids. In fact, they are the most abused drugs in states like Florida and drug rehabs do their best to help people overcome their addictions.
Practice Mindfulness and Meditation
Lately, more and more people pick up mindfulness and meditation to cope with different problems. Substance addiction recovery is also something that meditation and mindfulness can solve.
With these practices, you make the connections in your brain stronger. A study has revealed that focusing and refocusing your mind all the time can boost the brain connections between areas that deal with self-referential processes and the auditory cortex. Therefore, you learn to believe positive things about yourself – for example, that you will stay sober and recover from addiction.
Opt for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Another thing you can do to recover mentally following substance abuse is cognitive behavioral therapy. This form of therapy allows you to see your bad thought patterns that can influence your behavior, then help you change this behavior.
Furthermore, CBT has the power to influence brain activity in the prefrontal cortex and the amygdala, which can change the way you think and reason and how you process threats and fears.
Start Exercising
Physical exercise can also influence your mind positively to recover after addiction. It can increase the hippocampus size, which is an area of the brain that is vulnerable to substance use. Besides, it can boost your physical and mental health.
Final Thoughts
Recovering mentally after addiction can be quite difficult, especially as drug use is increasing day by day. For instance, in Tennessee alone, there were about 2,000 overdose fatalities in 2019 and the numbers have gone up since then. Rehab centers in Tennessee can help you solve this issue and recover. Seek help as soon as possible, and if you have a loved one suffering from addiction, don’t hesitate to help them recover mentally from this bad time in their lives.