Returning to work and home life is exciting, but individuals in recovery need to reassess their situation and make the adjustments necessary to ensure their mental and physical health. As you reintegrate into society, understand that your situation before recovery was unhealthy and you need to make big changes to your routine to avoid slipping into old, bad habits. Setting boundaries is scary, but with the help of your therapist, you will be able to create a healthy balance in your professional and personal spheres.
What Is and Isn’t OK to Share at Work
If you return to the position that you held before you stopped abusing drugs, alcohol, or other substances, your coworkers may be curious about your current circumstances. Beyond conferring with a supervisor to reset goals and establish expectations, you do not need to inform anybody in the workplace about your substance use disorder (SUD) and recovery.
Honesty is key, but withholding information because you are uncomfortable sharing does not make you dishonest. Even if you are happy to tell your coworkers about your recovery, you may need to converse with them outside of the office. Take some time to reflect on your needs as well as what is appropriate for your work environment. Your supervisor can help you enforce boundaries that you choose to set.
How to Explain Your New Outlook on Life to Your Family and Friends
Your loved ones witnessed your erratic or unusual behavior, low accountability, poor self-care, and other negative habits caused by your SUD or AUD. They may feel that you owe them a detailed explanation of your experiences or demand reparations for early transgressions.
You certainly need to address previous behaviors and work hard to prevent yourself from falling back into bad situations, but your journey through addiction and recovery is uniquely yours. The momentum is always pushing you forward, never backward; thus, you can never return to the past to change the ways you hurt people but you can promise growth in the future.
You deserve to keep any part of your life private, even from the people you love. If they request answers to sensitive questions, you are entitled to ask for space and respect. Practice patience and confidence when setting boundaries in your personal life.
Your loved ones may feel angry, hurt, confused, or betrayed, and their feelings are valid. Your feelings are equally important, and you should work together to find the line between what is appropriate to share and what is not.
Alta Loma Transformational Services will walk with you as you move forward on your journey toward recovery. Our dedicated team of mental health professionals will equip you with tools to conquer life’s challenges and continue on the path to wellness. Alta Loma prioritizes a holistic approach to treatment and we will work with you to understand and manage your personal experiences with substance use disorder. To start your journey toward good mental health, call us today at (866) 457-3843 for a consultation.
