Being Sober Physically and Emotionally
In an article by Glynis Sherwood, a Counselor, Therapist, Consultant and Coach residing in Vancouver, she talks about the importance of sobriety that goes beyond physical abstinence. She calls it “emotional sobriety” and says it’s a set of psychological self-management skills that are both the foundation of recovery and the means to stay sober in the long-term.
Emotional sobriety includes the ability to be aware of and at ease with your emotions, cope effectively with difficult emotions and stress, cultivate an optimistic outlook and develop enduring and satisfying relationship bonds to achieve overall balance between body, mind, and spirit. This is our goal at Transitions Recovery, where we stress a “Commitment to Self: Mind, Body and Spirit”.
People who engage in addictive behaviors are often out of touch with their emotions, and are therefore at a loss about how to care for their emotional needs. This may be due to some significant loss, neglect, abuse or trauma earlier in life. When emotions become associated with crisis or pain, people learn to avoid their feelings through addictive behavior. They may turn to alcohol, drugs, food, sex or gambling, but the solution becomes the problem as legitimate psychological needs continue to go unmet, and difficulties escalate into the crisis of addiction.
People in recovery need to identify their psychological ‘learning curves’ — areas in their emotional lives that require healing, development and support. This may involve resolving losses, hurts or traumas from the past. It might also mean overcoming anxiety or depression in the present. Addiction counseling can help recovering people conquer psychological obstacles as they gain emotional balance, a positive perspective and healthy coping skills.
Learning emotional sobriety isn’t a one-time thing, but at Transitions Recovery our Lifetime Aftercare allows you the support you need to apply these skills to your new life of sobriety and any new challenges you’ll face. You’ll learn to treat emotions as teachers and allies–ones that can tell you what your needs are, whether your needs are being met, and what circumstances may require change. You can develop the confidence, satisfaction and resilience that comes from dealing with your emotions directly and effectively, rather than self-medicating to avoid pain, and you can become the person you want to be– whose actions are congruent with their values and aspirations for life.
