When we talk about recovery, people tend to focus on the substances. But there’s more to it than detoxing and not using. It’s about untangling the emotional knots, repairing broken relationships, and figuring out who you actually are when you strip it all down to the nuts and bolts.
There’s an old AA saying that goes, “rock bottom is wherever you stop digging.” We’ve seen a lot of people justify and deflect their addiction by comparing it to other people. They’ll say, “It’s not that bad, I still have a job, I’m not homeless, and I’m not in any legal trouble so I don’t have a problem.”
The truth is you don’t have to destroy your life in order to need help. You can still go to work everyday and be miserable due to alcoholism or drug or addiction. It’s a quality of life issue. You just need to be honest with yourself.
Getting sober is the best start to rebuilding relationships but it’s not a magic button that automatically makes people trust you again. That process takes time and work.
“One thing that helped,” a former Country Road client told us, “was calling my parents every Sunday at 3pm. Not to ask for anything, just to be a son.”
That’s it. Consistency. Showing up. Over and over again. Recovery is a long game, and family healing doesn’t happen on your timeline—but it does happen.
I’m going to put “friends” in quotations here because in active addiction, most relationships are transactional. Maybe you have people in your life that you get along with and even like, but ask yourself if they’d be coming around if there weren’t substances involved.
“My friendships used to be about what I could get from someone,” a client told us. “Now, I’ve got people who just want the best for me—and I can give that back.”
That’s the wild part of recovery. You realize that the realest people are the ones you meet when you’re at your most vulnerable. The ones who don’t care how awkward you are—they just want you to stick around.
For a lot of folks, especially young people, drugs and alcohol and the lifestyle around it can become so much of their personality that when they get sober, they don’t know who they are.
“I had no idea who I was without using,” one young person said. “For so long, substances were my personality.”
The gift of recovery is getting to explore what you actually like. Getting to find out who you really are. Whatever it is, you get to choose—not just follow the crowd.
Recovery doesn’t require blind faith. It just requires action.
“I wasn’t fully convinced when I started, but I took suggestions. And over time, the results showed up.”
If you’re wondering whether it’s time, or if you’re “bad enough,” or if recovery is even possible for you—relax. You don’t have to have it all figured out right now. You just have to take the first step.
Reach out today. We’re here for you.