This is where most people in recovery naturally begin, first fighting the lingering effects of withdrawal and then working hard to maintain abstinence, all the while fighting cravings for alcohol, both conscious and unconscious. Experienced Chief Executive Addiction Recovery and Mental Health Professional

Business professional in the Addiction Recovery and Mental Health industry for the past 26 years. Caring, compassionate and strongly motivated to make a difference in the organizations I am affiliated with and welfare of the population we serve.

Our Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP) in Massachusetts provides our highest level of care for clients who need more structured outpatient addiction treatment. Clients experience individual and group therapy alongside proactive case management and peer recovery support. The key is to support individuals in finding a path that resonates with their personal goals and values, fostering long-term recovery and a fulfilling sober house life beyond addiction. In my practice, I encourage clients to explore their motivations, values, and goals when considering their path to recovery. For some, the structure and support of an abstinence-based program like AA or NA may provide the necessary framework to maintain sobriety. The camaraderie and shared experiences within these groups can be a powerful source of encouragement and accountability.

The Difference Between Sobriety & Abstinence

In the present follow-up, the recovery process for clients previously treated for SUD was investigated, focusing on abstinence and CD. All the interviewees had attended treatment programmes following the 12-step philosophy and described abstinence as crucial for their recovery process in the initial interview, five years ago. In previous research, several indicators of whether CD is possible are mentioned (Klingemann and Rosenberg, 2009; Klingemann, 2016; Davis et al., 2017; Luquiens et al., 2011; Berglund et al., 2019).

The present study indicates that the strict views in AA also might prevent clients in AA to seek help and support elsewhere, since they percieve that this conflicts with the AA philosophy (Klingemann and Klingemann, 2017). AA is a self-help movement that does not claim to stand on solid scientific ground. Initially, AA was not intended to offer a professional programme model for treatment (Alcoholics Anonymous, 2011).

Methods to Help You Achieve and Maintain Your Sobriety

A sober lifestyle is something to be proud of, and the team at Monument is here to provide answers and encouragement throughout your journey. What we know is that after one has developed a severe addiction, the simplest, easiest, safest and surest way to keep from repeating past behaviors is total abstinence. This is not to say one may not go thorough a period of “day at a time,” or “week at a time,” or even try a “harm reduction” approach. Still, if you want the easiest way to minimize the problems in your life, go for abstinence eventually. It actually is much easier to just give it up entirely than punish yourself trying to moderate or control your addictive behavior. Studies have shown that regardless of the method employed to become sober, the number one factor for sobriety success is a permanent commitment to discontinue use permanently; a commitment to abstinence.

• Filling the void of addiction through recovery measures means using therapy, the 12-Steps, being of service and connecting to a Higher Power to create an environment of positivity and strength.
• The context of treatment in a professional setting, and in many cases, the only treatment offered, gives the 12-step philosophy a sense of legitimacy.
• Abstinence can cause withdrawal of symptoms, which is the body’s way of re-adjusting to functioning without something.
• Even when stigma isn’t stated as the primary reason for failing to get help, feelings of shame and guilt are still often tied up with other given reasons.
• Attempts at moderation may not be worth the effort or the risk when considering the consequences.

This may include developing new hobbies, nurturing supportive relationships, practicing self-care, and fostering spiritual growth. The path to ending drug and alcohol addiction means that a person will either go towards their recovery or towards their addiction. A person who wants to stay sober in the long run one day at a time will go towards their recovery because a sober lifestyle makes for more happiness overall. Sobriety is a lifelong process involving psychological, social, and spiritual freedom from stress. It is essential to address each aspect of the individual, including their cultural background and beliefs, so the recovery process can be effective.

What is Abstinence?

The CDs had the strength to leave the community, indicating agency and autonomy. Some of the abstainers still attended meetings because of a fear of what might happen if they stopped, although they questioned parts of the philosophy. For these clients, the recovery process, aiming to reach sustained recovery in the broader sense covering parts of their lives other than the SUD, was in part at odds with the ongoing participation in AA. These results indicate that strict views on abstinence and the nature of alcohol problems in 12-step-based treatment, and AA philosophy may create problems for the recovery process. Previous studies suggests that these strict views might prevent people from seeking treatment (Keyes et al., 2010; Wallhed Finn et al., 2014).

And the elimination of the possibility of moderation eliminates policy discussions not only about legalizing drugs, but about how we can encourage sensible drug use now that marijuana is being legalized. And these definitions of sobriety carry great value when we speak about addiction. So you could drink and be sober—you know, like when you pass a field sobriety test because you had just a couple of drinks over an evening while eating. Abstinence may not be a realistic solution with some addictions, such as eating and in some cases sexual addictions. For these addictions moderation is the prescribed course of action.