The moment an addict has already completed the program that are laid out for him inside rehabilitation centers, he must result to continuous rehabilitation. Depression is a kind of mental illness that harnesses low self-esteem and constant crying from patients. Some of the depression occurrences are because of the person’s connection with precipitating substances like alcohol.
Once you have come out of the rehabilitation center and recovered from your depression, you can avoid relapses. Avoiding depression relapses is an effective tool in order to attain living in sobriety.
However, depression relapses are common especially when the underlying cause is not resolved. Here are some advices on how relapses can be avoided. You’ll just need a steady heart, good friends, determination, resources of knowledge, and faith.
1. Be educated.
Know your disorder or most efficiently, know yourself and what caused the illness. You can do this by doing a bit of research. Depression is not something to be scared of. Depression is caused by chemical imbalances in your brain wherein time may come when your mind will be playing tricks on your whole personality. Once you see depression as a kind of disease that needs to be treated and avoided, you’ll finally realize that controlling it is overall possible.
2. Despise relapses
You should not let relapses cross your path. You have already experienced a difficult stage in your life which you wouldn’t want to be reminded of. Always control your mood. Pay attention to the reasons why you are experiencing relapses or why you have experienced the illness in the first place. You must not let your sad and depressive emotions overcome you because this will cause your downfall. Count the events that tend to trigger your feeling depressed. If you are experiencing some relapses, you have to do something about it and fast.
3. Never go alone
Don’t isolate yourself. Remember the time when your therapist told you that being isolated causes the person to become more and more depressed? Therefore, you should never rely in being alone in one corner trying to ponder and making thoughts crowd your mind. Use communication with friends and family or relatives; if you are worried about relapses, you have to be careful in showing signs of it. Try to let your friends be with you for a while and air out what you feel. This will make you feel better.
4. Stop any negative thinking
Whatever happens negative thinking should never collide with your thoughts. It will only cause the downfall of your personality and may cause a relapse. Always think positive. If things don’t go your way, then accept it as a challenge. Never tell yourself that you’re no one. Don’t produce patterns of negative ideas and thoughts run inside your mind. This will trigger relapses.
5. Learn to cope
If you have anti-depressant drugs, use it when you are feeling down. Don’t stop the medication just because you feel that everything’s alright. If ever you have felt that the drug no longer works or has irritating effects on you, talk to your doctor about it.
For you to attain sober living, you have to follow these advices to be able to avoid depression relapses. You must always surround yourself with things that are positive and make your support system strong.
