For those who didn't make it through Christmas without drinking or using. please don't be discouraged or put off trying again.
This was one battle not the war.
You can recuperate regroup, and redraw your action plan.
Recovery 2.0 can be even better drawing from your experience of what works and what doesn't for you.
I think a recovery action plan is vital.
Sooner or later, you're going to be blindsided by an event, a person, a feeling, a situation or a stressor...and the urge to drink or use will be there.
If you haven't given much thought to what you might do in response, there's always the danger you'll revert to the default - which, for people like us, is drink/use.
Basically a recovery plan is a plan to help you stop drinking/drugging and stay stopped.
Things like exercise and hobbies should be a part of just about every recovery plan - but I really believe we also need to specifically address the drinking/drugging too.
Think about
changes you need to make to your life.
Not only changes what you do for fun, the places you hang out and who you hang with, but also deeper internal change as well.
No matter what you drink or used for - stress or boredom, anger, joy, physical or emotional pain - you need new coping mechanisms to deal with all those things.
you also need to anticipate those times when you will want to drink or use, or when drink/drugs will be offered to you.
Have a strategy in place for dealing with those situations.
Ask for help here if you're not sure what to do or how to do it. Try and ask before you make a bad decision - not after.
All this can be difficult - which is why support is so important.
Help might be a Dr or a counsellor, or a meeting based approach like AA SMART LifeRing or some other alternative like Rational Recovery...
it might be outpatient or inpatient rehab - it might just be SR and other forums/chat rooms...
Find a level of support than works for you, and that you are willing to reach out when you're in trouble.
cover these bases, and you'll have the beginnings of a great plan.
This is an easy to read but detailed link which fills out the ideas a little more:
https://store.samhsa.gov/shin/conten...0/SMA-3720.pdf
And some more ideas here:
https://store.samhsa.gov/shin/conten...SMA12-4474.pdf
lets all make 2018 great!
D