Going to residential treatment for addiction will prove to be one of the most important decisions of your life. Everything you discover and move towards in your life of healing will stem from this period of time. It is the opportunity to renew yourself and find a hope for a future.

Indeed, just the fact that you are going to residential treatment is enough. You don’t have to do anything more than getting yourself there. However, with such an investment of time, emotion, and life, you may want to get yourself prepared in a way to get the most of your time.

Here are 10 ways to make sure your time is spent well in residential treatment

1. Set personal expectations and goals

As you prepare to begin your time in a residential treatment center, know what you want. Sure, you might have a vague understanding that you would like to achieve sobriety. But search your heart beyond that—work at understanding your deepest hopes. What do you want in your relationships? What are your hopes for your career and financial future? What about confronting the underlying personal issues that bring you back to your addiction time and again? As you enter treatment, be aware of yourself and know what you want out of your investment of time and emotion.

2. Remind yourself why you are there

Your expectations will help you understand the deeper reasons you are willing to make the effort to get clean. Do you have a family that needs you? Have you come close to death or jail because of your addiction? Have you lost your sense of self? All of these things are your motivators. You may even want to write them down or have a small token that is a constant reminder of the deeper “why” of your recovery. Spend time daily contemplating those things.

3. Do the program/obey the rules

Addiction recovery programs exist with, and for, a purpose. They have been tested and they work. So do the stuff! Participate in counseling. Engage in the outings. Listen to your caseworker. Be present in the group sessions. What a waste of time and effort to go to residential treatment and not actually use it.

4. Be open

Hand-in-hand with participation is an open attitude. Maybe you believe you will not be interested in yoga. That is fine, but try it. Then decide. Once you have tried giving yourself fully to the sessions, feel free to keep what works and discard the rest. And remember, this is a time to rediscover yourself. Or even understand yourself in a completely new light.

Participate in the new experiences and allow yourself to become a newly transformed person. You are still going to be you, but some of your old life-patterns led to some very harmful places. Use residential treatment to find out who you truly are. Part of that will be experimenting with activities you never thought you would be interested in.

5. Be honest and speak up

Another aspect of recovery that is new and uncomfortable for some is the possibility of actually sharing their story. A person with an addiction has been so guarded for so long and often so shrouded in lies they have not been truly honest in years. Share your story. Speak up. You will hopefully find that not only is it transformative for you, your story will affect others in ways you could never have understood.

6. Connect with others

In addiction treatment, you will finally be in a room with people on the same page as you. Not exactly—each story is unique—but their lives are also in the balance of finding recovery. And truth be told, it’s tough to get people outside of recovery to grasp the depth of need and vulnerability happening in treatment.

Your groups—learning how to trust, be held accountable, and reach out for help—are the foundation for community-building you will need as you transition back into society. Some of these people might even be part of your community once you make the move back to your normal life.

7. Accept the help

You are in rehab because you could not do this alone. And that is the best place of understanding you can be. Your addiction has gotten out of your control and you need help. Admitting that is one of the bravest things a person with an addiction can do. So now that you have admitted it, it’s time to accept it. Listen to your therapist. Accept the training of the skills coaches. Ask the questions that are pertinent to you and your individual situation in order to get the most out of the professionals that are uniquely available at a residential treatment center to help you.

8. Be present

Anxiety is a very common aspect of early recovery. Being present is one of the most important things you can do to combat your anxiety. Being present in each moment allows you to have the clarity to accept the help offered and engage in the program that has been set up to save your life.

9. Plan for the future

Rehab is temporary. Hopefully, you will commit to at least 30 days of residential treatment. But even that will come to an end. As much as you should live in the present moment, remember you are doing this for a chance at a future. Get excited about spending time with loved ones. Be prepared to look for that career you have hoped for. Consider going back to school or rediscovering a passion you once had. Be ready to give yourself away to others again because you have the peace and presence to finally do it.

10. Believe recovery is possible

Some days in rehab are going to be tough. This is just the reality. However, recovery is absolutely possible. Almost every person who has found lasting recovery, at one point or another, was also in despair. But they got through it. And found that recovery was possible—it is possible for you, too.

Are you ready to take the most important step of your life and believe in the possibility of recovery? Please call us today. We are ready to work with you and get you to the right program that will help you find full transformation. Please call: 844-489-0836.