When you recognize the negative impact addiction has on your life, you may still be too afraid to seek treatment. However, overcoming this fear is vital so that you can get the help you need to stop substance abuse from causing even more harm in your life. Fortunately, there are ways you can overcome this fear.
How to Overcome a Fear
One of the most basic ways to overcome a fear is to expose yourself to the object of the fear and alter your natural response to it. For example, if you are terrified of spiders, the last thing you would want to do is to voluntarily pick up a spider. However, slowly implementing consistent exposure to the fear can help you unlearn your anticipation of negative consequences from it and create room for acceptance.
For example, getting used to being around spiders from a distance, then working your way toward a closer proximately, can slowly create an acceptance of the spider’s existence. Further development of this acceptance can potentially lead you to feel okay allowing the spider to crawl on you and even voluntarily picking it up. It may be intimidating at first, but you may soon come to realize that the spider is harmless and will not hurt you.
This example of overcoming the fear of spiders can give you ideas for how to overcome the fear of treatment for addiction. You may have many ideas of things that could go wrong if you seek out treatment. However, starting the recovery process involves a simple choice, and you don’t have to plan for all contingencies to take it. Let your recovery team know that you are struggling with the concept of receiving help for your addiction. Your recovery team can work with you to establish a slow onset of the process and alleviate the fears you have regarding treatment.
Have an Open Mind
Having an open mind when starting the recovery process can help you avoid assuming nothing will help you. Many individuals fear the idea of therapy and treatment because they strongly believe nobody will be able to help them. The simple truth is that nobody can help you if you are not willing to help yourself, and deciding to receive help will allow mental health professionals to provide useful suggestions and support as you work through this process. Opening your mind to the suggestions your recovery team gives you and allowing the strategies they provide to have an opportunity to work may be surprisingly beneficial.
Let Go of Social Sigma
Many individuals fear the negative effects of the social stigma that may come from engagement in addiction recovery. Having the label of an “addict” or even a “recovered addict” can be a strong deterrent to individuals who are otherwise open to receiving help.
These stigmas are difficult to overcome. Recovery is not something that is done for other people though. It is a process intended to better your own life and well-being. Accepting your addiction and getting help when needed are very respectable actions to take. Through recovery, you will learn many skills to help you stick up for yourself and find a healthy support system filled with individuals who will help you celebrate your successes.
If your current social networks are unsupportive of your decision to recover and hold their judgments against you, they are most likely not a healthy network to continue engaging with. Overcoming this fear and developing healthy relationships can help you establish long-term, positive peer support that supports your sobriety.
Counteract Fear of the Unknown
Many individuals fear treatment and addiction recovery because they do not understand the process. Refraining from the use of a problematic substance and willingly giving that up is an intimidating choice. You may be aware of potential withdrawal effects and fear how these will affect your overall quality of life during recovery.
While recovery is full of obstacles to overcome, the end goal is to better yourself. There typically will be a timeframe that may seem worse than continuing with the addiction. Recovery is not easy, but the results are worth the fight. Allowing yourself to focus on the end goals and picture your life free of substance abuse can help you work through the initial challenges of recovery.
Reaching out to your treatment team with possible concerns and finding the right treatment program for you can alleviate the stress of unknown factors. Understanding what the process may look like and discussing the form of recovery with individuals who have recovered in a similar form can provide you with further understanding of the process.
Take Action
Your initial choice to engage in recovery is the hardest step. After choosing to work through this process and work toward bettering yourself, you will find many of your initial fears have already been overcome. If additional fears arise during the treatment process, communicate with your recovery team and support system. They can provide you with suggestions for working through each obstacle, leading you to a successful recovery.
It is common to realize you need addiction recovery but fear a variety of aspects related to treatment. Many individuals worry about the negative social stigma that may come with being in recovery, and some fear the unknown aspects of the recovery process. Fortunately, there are many strategies you can use to initiate your recovery and overcome this fear of treatment. Opening your mind to potential success and training your mind to focus on the positive effects of recovery can help you alleviate this stress. Communication with your treatment team is vital to maintain an understanding of what to expect and how to cope with your fears. One of the simplest ways to overcome these fears is by consistently exposing yourself to them. To learn more about how to overcome your fears of recovery, reach out to Dream Recovery at (949) 732-1960.
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