Even when we know we’re making a change for the better, significant adjustments to how we live our lives can be sources of both stress and fear. This can be particularly true among people who have become dependent on alcohol or other drugs. As painful and destructive as active addiction can be, many people put off getting the help they need because they are scared to be sober.

• Fear of success tends to come from fearing change, losing yourself, or living up to increased expectations.
• What is the point of sobriety if you let yourself wallow in self-doubt and pity?
• Some people manage to get there faster than others, but it’s not a competition.
• That’s why it’s so important to understand the debilitating effects drugs can have on the body.

It’s a convenient cop-out we’re all guilty of using. Again, any fear you may have about sobriety rooted in self-loathing will become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Some people manage to get there faster than others, but it’s not a competition. You will have strong days when you feel like you can take on the world.

Overcoming the Fear of Always Being Sober

Recognizing that a fear is present is the first step in moving beyond it. The fear of being sober is often about dealing with your loss of a coping mechanism for “real” life. You’re afraid you don’t have the tools and resources to help you to maintain your sobriety. You are afraid that being sober will simply be too hard. Sexiness really has nothing to do with drinking or doing drugs. You only fear that you will lose your sex appeal because you think that you will become inhibited and closed-off if you do not drink or do drugs.

There are many possible reasons you might fear change. Many people prefer a bad but familiar situation to an unknown fear of being sober situation. The subconscious reasoning is, “My situation is bad, but at least I’m alive and I know what to expect.

How Do You Manage Anxiety in Addiction Recovery?

If you deeply fear rejection or judgment, you may avoid applying for jobs, housing, or engaging in new social groups because of the possibility of failure. In order to grow and move past sober living, it is essential to get out of your comfort zone and experience small levels of failure. Fear is a common emotion that individuals experience throughout their lives.

You’re not obligated to drink just to make others feel good about their drinking. This is the hard part, but it’s also the most rewarding. When you do start to deal with your problems in healthier ways https://ecosoberhouse.com/ (and you will), you are going to feel completely transformed and unstoppable. With proper counseling and/or a good recovery program, you’ll learn important tools for navigating these relationships.

Reasons for help seeking and fears about treatment

The flipside of the fear of failure is the fear of success. Most people dont consciously self-sabotage, but they have a deeply held belief that they dont deserve to succeed and, in so believing, never really put forth their best effort. Feeling doomed from the start, many allow self-doubt and fears of what others think to keep them from trying. If you are living in fear, you likely will refrain from practicing any new techniques in the outside world. What seems to frighten people the most about recovery is that you may have the opportunity to change your life.

By its very nature, substance use disorder is referred to as a relapsing condition. I would much rather fail and keep trying than stay stuck on a one-way path to destruction. And worrying about what others may think if you return to use is outside of your control.

” Let your brain marinate on words like forever, and you’ll set yourself right up for failure. Here are some common fears in sobriety and what you can do to manage them. You will continue to have new fears present themselves throughout your life.

Sometimes our fears are logical, but mostly they are not. These people know that the days are hard right now, but they endure because they also know that, eventually, they will come out on top. They don’t know when or how, but they trust that it will happen. In the meantime, they do what they must to survive the day. You’ll have some tough days, but they are temporary.

Reasons You Might Be Afraid to Succeed in Recovery

Major substance-related impairments were found in the domains of finances, health, and family life. The lesser affected domains were those of legal issues and occupation. After months or years of being fixated on drugs and alcohol, who are you if you arent an addict? These are some of the most difficult questions in recovery, and the answers may change over time.