Hello and Welcome All Recovery Friends,
Well, summer is not yet over, so I wanted to share a Guest Recovery Author to gives all some helpful summertime vacation tips while you pack up the car to go traveling. This is an important part to of having a well balanced recovery life. I do myself remember back in the days when I traveled.
It seemed we couldn’t go to any destination that didn’t have a Casino near by. So happy those days are over! It is such a waste when a vacation is a bust when you have any kind of addiction. Heck, I didn’t travel for a long time because my addiction made us broke! But not anymore.
So lets read what Andy has put together for all of us to help make your travels go much smoother in Recovery!
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Tips for Traveling While In Recovery
Author: Andy Andersen
Addiction recovery is a delicate and critical time for everyone involved. For an addict in the early stages of sobriety, traveling long distance has its pros and cons. To help you figure out if you are ready to travel, read this first. If you do plan to travel while recovering from addiction, here are a few guidelines to help ensure your sobriety and make your travels an inspired part of your post-addiction journey:
Pick Your Destination Wisely
Some travel destinations are more conducive to sobriety than others. For recovering alcoholics in particular, selecting a popular vacation spot that doesn’t revolve around alcohol can be difficult. Examine your travel plans carefully and think long and hard about where you’ll be travelling. Some locations will inevitably be safer for you than others. For example, going camping or visiting a national park may be far more suitable for an alcoholic than a city-based vacation spot where nightlife is part of the equation. Though there’s no guarantee of complete safety from your addictions, being selective about your travel location can go a long way in giving you a strong buffer.
Golf ball on course with beautiful blurry landscape on background
Ground Your Travels in Routine
One of the most challenging things about travelling as a recovering addict is losing a sense of routine. For some, this can easily cause anxiety that leads to relapse. That’s why it’s best to take control of your travel schedule early on and make sure that you have some sort of routine to rely on every day. Even if your vacation has you constantly on the go, you can commit yourself to small daily tasks that ground your travels in routine. Have a friend or sponsor that you can call once a day at a set time to check in. Schedule your meal times strictly. Have a planning session every evening where you go over your itinerary for the next day. There’s really no end to what type of routine you can come up with, even while you’re travelling.
Seek Out Relaxing Activities
Not all vacations are relaxing ones. In fact, even the most fun-filled vacations can cause more stress than they’re worth. Be sure to seek out activities and travel spots that are relaxing to you. Over scheduling or oversaturating your travels with a lot of excitement can be too much stress too soon. Give yourself ample time each day to relax, depressurize, and find peace.
Explore New Interests That Will Help Your Recovery
One way to make travelling worth your while is to seek out new interests and hobbies that you can continue after your vacation. One of the great benefits of traveling is discovering new cultures, new ways of life, and new activities. If you discover an interesting craft, trade, or hobby during your travels, continue researching it after your vacation and utilize it as a source of comfort, power, and stress relief as you continue your recovery.
Avoid “Special Occasion” Thinking
The real danger of traveling or vacationing while in recovery is stepping out on the reality of your life back home. Temporarily forgetting the worries of your normal life while on vacation isn’t dangerous for most people, but for recovering addicts, it can lead to relapse. It can be far too easy to justify a relapse moment as a “special occasion” while travelling. Avoid this type of thinking like the plague. Execute your travels as part of your recovery instead of taking a break from it.
Rafting on the Bhote Koshi in Nepal. The river has class 4-5 rapids.
Travel With People You Trust
The best way to avoid relapse while traveling is by maintaining a strong support system. Travel with loved-ones or close friends who understand where you are in your recovery and who are willing to stop at nothing to support you. Better still, bring a sponsor or a designate one of your travel companions as the watchful eye who will make sure you’re still actively engaged in your recovery.
Find Sober Communities Wherever You Are
There are support groups, 12-step meetings, and other forms of recovery communities almost everywhere. As you travel, research and find these communities and attend whatever gatherings are available to you. Not only will you meet new people who know exactly what you’re going through, but you will be turning your travel time into a bona fide addiction recovery program of your own making.
*I’d like to thank Andy for this helpful article. So recovery friends, as summer winds down, remember to have FUN and Live In The Moment!*
*Catherine*
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