Many people in recovery work tirelessly to avoid relapse and transform their lifestyles by constantly honing new coping mechanisms and social skills that can help them avoid destructive behavior.
Finding Hobbies to Help Avoid Relapse
To contrast the hard work of recovery, treatment professionals often encourage people in recovery to find hobbies to not only fill the time once spent on substance abuse, but also to provide a mental and physical release. In addition, many studies show that beating boredom with productivity can help prevent relapse all together.
The following are three common hobbies that people in recovery turn to in order to combat stress and redefine their interests.
Running
Encouraging recovery addicts to get active is a hallmark of many of the best recovery plans to avoid relapse. Studies show that the endorphin rush people get while exercising can help strengthen the effects of addiction treatment.
While many state-of-the-art, yet still affordable treatment centers often allow people access to modern gyms and fitness equipment, many addicts in recovery still turn to oldest and cheapest form of exercise available: running. Many runners find that enduring the physical struggle of completing their goals in 10K races or marathons helps them better relate to the emotional journey of recovery.
Plus, running may be one the healthiest activities people in recovery can do. According to a recent study just one hour of running can add up to seven hours to a person’s life, and runners tend to live three years longer than non-runners. Even five minutes of running can help prolong lives, according to the study.
Learning to Play a Musical Instrument
According to many studies, listening to music is a powerful force that has incredible health benefits from helping to reduce pain, relieve anxiety, and calm stress. Playing music can compound the benefits; according to one study, it can increase memory capacity by almost 34%, sharpen concentration, and teaches perseverance, which is a critical virtue among people who struggle with drug and alcohol addictions.
While learning an instrument can seem like daunting task, the reality is that thousands of songs can be played with knowing how to play just a few chords on a guitar, piano, or ukulele and can even be learned by watching free online videos.
While cost of a new instrument can be a concern, there are less expensive instruments that can serve as great introductory options for those new to playing music. The ukulele, for example, has been gaining tremendous popularity in recent years. The “uke” is relatively easy-to-learn and can cost under $30 for a new instrument, allowing people to learn how to play their favorite songs at a fraction of the cost of most instruments.
Learning a Foreign Language
Learning a language is one of the best ways to gain an outside perspective about other cultures, build confidence, improve intelligence, and avoid relapse.
According to one report, acquiring a new language helps people improve their memories and increases their attention spans, since the process of understanding another tongue challenges people to problem solve, usually on the spot and in a matter of seconds in social interactions.
Adding fluency or even working knowledge of a new language can help boost a person’s job skills too, as well as offer important health benefits. According to one study, learning a language can help people stave off Alzheimer’s and dementia by up almost five years.
Are You Seeking Treatment for an Addiction?
Morningside Recovery offers a wide range of innovative and traditional addiction treatment services designed to help people transform addictive behavior into a lifestyle of sobriety. Whether you need alcoholism rehab or heroin addiction treatment, Morningside Recovery is ready to help you.
Our care is customized to each individual’s needs, preferences, and strengths. For more information about how we can teach you healthy coping mechanisms to deal with quitting drugs or alcohol, call us at 855-631-2135. Our helpline is open 24/7 and our specialists will work with you to help find the treatment option that works for you.
Sources:
https://medium.com/@alphahealing1/3-ways-a-hobby-helps-in-addiction-recovery-8a9825f447ef
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/teen-boredom-breeds-drug-use/
http://www.approachableguitar.com/teach-yourself-guitar-easy.php
http://approachableguitar.com/how-to-teach-yourself-ukulele-pdf.php
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-science-of-boredom/
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/02/100218-bilingual-brains-alzheimers-dementia-science-aging/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/02/02/music-and-health-rock-on_n_6573132.html
https://www.nytimes.com/2017/04/12/well/move/an-hour-of-running-may-add-seven-hours-to-your-life.html
