If you have gone through rehab or want to start recovery, you should think about finding support groups after your treatment. These are groups of other recovery alumni who can help you not feel alone in your daily struggles after addiction recovery. Living a sober lifestyle is difficult, but getting help from your peers can make a world of difference in your long-term success.
How Do Support Groups Help with Rehab Aftercare?
Following treatment, you may enter into an alumni program that includes group meetings with peers who have also gone through recovery. Their stories of struggles and how they overcame them can give you the motivation to get through any issues that you may experience with maintaining sobriety after treatment.
Group support sessions offer an open, safe environment to discuss your feelings and thoughts about living after treatment. For some people, going from residential care to outpatient or rehab aftercare can be a major hurdle. The change in environment and lack of structure can make staying sober difficult. However, with peer support, you can make it through this and other life changes without succumbing to substance use.
What Type of Support Do You Need for Sober Living?
When it comes to group help, there are many options for sober living. Consider the following factors when finding a support group that will meet your recovery needs:
- Type of substance used
- Religious affiliation or none
- Cost
- Location
- Requirements for attendance
- Support outside the group
These factors may help you to narrow down a listing of the many options that you have for rehab aftercare. Use these parameters to avoid feeling overwhelmed when choosing the best support system for your needs.
Does Rehab Aftercare Always Prevent Relapse?
Attending support groups is not a guarantee of avoiding relapse. However, many alumni program requirements include these groups because they can reduce the chances of falling back into substance use. By having people with experience in addiction and recovery, you have people who can help to talk you out of substance use when you feel tempted. Plus, knowing that you have others supporting your sober living can make choosing abstinence easier.
Another benefit of these aftercare groups is the extra help that you can get from your peers if you do relapse and need to return to a treatment center. Plus, the insights that you learned from your peers may make it easier to pass through treatment faster.
Recovery does not happen in a straight line for many people. You may experience lapses where you take a drink or use a substance once and immediately return to sobriety. Other times, you may have a full relapse into addictive behaviors. Having help from support groups can help you to minimize the effects these slips have on your overall movement toward living addiction-free.
Start Off Recovery Right with a Call to Serenity House Detox & Recovery Houston
While thinking ahead to what you will do after recovery always a good plan, for many types of drug or alcohol addiction, you cannot rely on support groups alone. You may require detoxing from the substance first before you can start rehab. Phone 866.516.8356 to reach us at Serenity House Detox & Recovery Houston. You can find out about our residential detox treatment and other programs.
Before rehab and aftercare, think about getting help first from an addiction detox program. Peer support does not help the physical and mental effects of drug or alcohol withdrawal. However, after undergoing assistance from our medically supervised detox programs, you can think about how you want to progress with recovery and support groups.
Thinking about recovery is a great first step. However, don’t neglect the importance of detox before you pursue treatment at a residential center or with peer support groups. Find out more about detox and how to kick off your recovery right by connecting with us online or calling 866.516.8356.
