Life after recovery from addiction can feel as if you’ve stepped into someone else’s world. Drug use is a habit that requires the individual to formulate his or her entire lifestyle based on acquiring, using, and recovering from drugs. Once you’ve broken free from the grip of addiction, you need to reinvent your lifestyle around healthy hobbies that will help you stay on the sober track. The best hobbies to help addicts remain sober provide an outlet for stress and ways to cope with challenging emotions. Addiction aftercare programs help those in recovery discover the hobbies that can best help them.
Three Hobbies for People in Recovery
Team Sports and Exercise
You may have heard of those in recovery becoming engrossed in athletic hobbies like running or team sports. However, you likely haven’t heard the reasons why exercise is such an effective hobby for maintaining your sobriety. Drugs activate specific neurotransmitters, chemicals, and receptors in the brain that cause feelings of pleasure, relaxation, or elation.
It’s often a craving for these feelings that lures those in recovery back to using drugs or alcohol. However, exercise creates the same feelings of pleasure at certain intensities.
Aerobic exercise is particularly effective at producing euphoric feelings through the release of endorphins. These activities can include:
- Running
- Jogging
- Cycling
- Swimming
- Rowing
During these activities, your heart rate is elevated and your body uses oxygen at a higher rate, have proven to be the most effective in helping recovering addicts maintain their sobriety.
As an added bonus, doing aerobic exercise with a group, such as in a recurring fitness class or on a sports team, gives those in recovery an extra level of protection against relapse. Being part of a group or team sport holds you accountable and gives you a more powerful incentive to succeed.
Cooking
Few things in life make people feel the way food does. The first bite into your favorite food can be more powerful than any drug. However, prolonged drug use can alter your taste buds and make delicious foods seem bland or overwhelmed by one specific taste profile.
As you go through recovery, your body and brain will gradually return to a healthy equilibrium and you may find that food tastes differently to you while sober. Rediscover all the pleasures of food by taking up cooking.
Not only will you have more control over what you are putting in your body, but also you will begin to appreciate the complexities of flavor on a deeper level. Furthermore, many cooking enthusiasts take great pleasure in creating a meal that their friends and family enjoy.
Music
Preliminary research has shown that engaging in music therapy, which involves playing, listening to, or studying music, can improve your ability to remain abstinent from drugs and reduces the risk of relapse.
Little is known about why music is so effective at creating self-efficacy for sustained sobriety, but music therapy is being used increasingly to treat substance use disorders and help individuals maintain their recovery long-term. Your life after recovery from addiction can be anything you want it to be.
Try these hobbies and find an activity that resonates within you. This is your opportunity to care for yourself on a deeper level by learning more about yourself and satisfying your needs with a fun, engaging hobby.
Find Substance Abuse Treatment at The Right Step
If you need help taking the first step to getting sober, we can help. At The Right Step, we offer a variety of addiction treatment programs, including:
- Heroin addiction treatment
- Alcohol addiction treatment
- Cocaine addiction treatment
- Meth addiction treatment
- Benzo addiction treatment
To learn more about the best hobbies to help addicts stay sober, or to enroll in our programs, call 17135283709 today.
