Feeling Like Being Sober Sucks? 12 Tips for Feeling Better

I would have classified myself as someone who loved to be around people and go out with them at night. Thinking back to before I was sober, I usually had to drink to be around people. When I stopped drinking, not only did my recovery dictate that I needed lots of time to myself, lots of self-care, and lots of nights in, I discovered that I was, in fact, someone who relishes in alone time. I recharge when I’m by myself, and I deplete when I’m with others—especially big groups.

Prioritization — Using Your Time & Energy Effectively

Every minute that you avoid relapse, you are proving to yourself that you have the power and capability to make your life what you want it to be. Get coffee with a friend to take your mind off relationship problems. Ask for extra hours at work if you’re having a hard time with roommates. Head out of town with some sober friends for a few hours to get a change of scenery.

Your diet improves.

Think about it – being intoxicated might feel good for a while, but are you really enjoying yourself? Being sober lets you push your boundaries and have fun in ways that aren’t possible when you’re drunk or high. You can travel to different places, try new things, and just be present in your life – and that’s always more fulfilling than checking out with a drink.

What Being Sober Feels Like

Life is all about perspective, and perhaps right now you are choosing to obsess about the negative, the lack, the suck. Thomas’ polysubstance abuse started with marijuana at age 15, which helped ease the anxieties of social awkwardness https://ecosoberhouse.com/ and academic challenges. Here are a couple of real-life stories from people in the recovery process who have discovered new lives for themselves once they finally admitted there was a problem and made a commitment to change it.

Take Mental Health Days

Grab a notepad, write out the problem, and then write down possible solutions. If you’re having trouble, ask your closest friends what they think. Ask them for some emotional support to carry out your plan if necessary. Instead of focusing so much on why life sucks, spend time focusing on all the good you have in your life. Every day, write something good that happened and do more things that spread goodness. There are times when it has nothing to do with you, how hard you are trying in life, or how good of a person you are.

• Even after being in recovery for a while, you may not be delighted with the changes you have made.4 In fact you may realize you don’t like being sober.
• Some will certainly remain, but even those aren’t necessarily long-game friendships.
• Successful people will tell you that they wouldn’t trade their pain and their struggle, for without it they wouldn’t be who they are.

These days, unless I’m feeling generous, I simply say, “I don’t drink,” and leave it at that. It’s been over six years since I first started seriously questioning my relationship with alcohol and considered a life without it. That’s six hard, beautiful, glorious years during which I not only stopped drinking, but also finally moved on from all recreational drugs as well as a history of bulimia. The basic disease model of addiction says that plenty of people use drugs or alcohol to medicate their problems away. If this sounds like you, you might be surprised to find out how much more effectively you can deal with things sober.

You have more fun.

It may be necessary to give up the compulsion to listen to the news, make time to face your feelings, express gratitude, and focus on the good in your life instead of what’s lacking. These are my quick steps to help you start to feel better and move forward when you start asking “Why does life suck? ” You need to take care of yourself, and that may mean being sober sucks more than just buying yourself gifts, giving yourself half-hearted compliments, and or taking a bath. Nothing promotes a negative, the-world-sucks mindset quite as much as the news and media outlets on social media. The world is struggling, but it shouldn’t all land on your shoulders. When something hits you hard, don’t ignore it and hope it goes away.

• That being said, you might not be at a place where you want people to know you’re not drinking, and that’s OK.
• Thinking back to before I was sober, I usually had to drink to be around people.
• Other definitions, however, often focus on the process of recovery and developing coping mechanisms and habits that support health and wellness over the long term.
• Well, there’s a concept in psychology known as “confirmation bias,” and it means that we often look for evidence to support something that we already believe to be true.
• Studies have shown that knowing your ‘why’ for getting sober can help people achieve their long-term recovery goals.

Feels Like Success

• We are here to help you improve your mental health and help you achieve your dreams.
• Contact us now for more information on this free service to our users.
• Hosted by therapist Amy Morin, LCSW, this episode of The Verywell Mind Podcast shares how to avoid repeating mistakes and build better habits.
• In other words, success is the blissful absence of all of the devastating consequences of a previous drug or alcohol habit.
• Yes, asking for help was already listed, but it is so important that it is worth repeating.