Successful recovery and positive mental health begins with building a relationship with yourself. When you start the process of recovery and positive mental health, you may not really know yourself. For too long, you may have neglected your real needs.  

Building a relationship with self begins with self-care. What do you enjoy doing? What types of activities ground you and make you feel refreshed? Whatever the answer is, you need to be doing it. For some people, self-care can be taking a bubble bath, eating healthy, exercising or taking yourself for a night on the town. It is a challenging prospect to try to love and be present for others if you do not love and take care of self. In other words, you cannot give what you do not have.

Be kind to yourself!

It is often easier to say what you dislike about yourself, than to think of positive things to say. Negative self-talk is destructive and needs to be replaced with positive self-affirmations. This is an activity that you can do every morning. Look in the mirror and say “I am kind.” Or “I am going to be great at recovery today.” This may seem weird and unfamiliar, but remember that loving self begins with positive self-talk. Do self-affirmations daily if you can. It does get easier with time.

Enjoy alone time and make the best of it!

For many people in varying stages of recovery, spending alone time can be difficult because it is unfamiliar territory. Be challenged to make the most of your alone time. Rent a movie, order or cook a favorite meal, read a book, go on an adventure in a new city. Alone time can help you understand who you are and what you like or dislike. Having quality time alone is an important aspect of building a relationship with self.

Learn something new!

Have you ever wanted to learn a new language, learn to cook, learn to paint or even go back to school? Part of building a relationship with self is taking risks and learning things that you may have always wanted to do. There is no time like the present to begin doing the things that you have always wanted.

Give yourself a break!

There may be times when all of this feels new and overwhelming. Be easy with yourself. You are on a new path, learning new things and discovering who you are. There may be some days that life just is not going so well. This is okay and to be expected. The last thing that you want to do is beat yourself up for being human. It is perfectly acceptable to give yourself a break and start over tomorrow.

The Kimberly Center is a place for healing. We welcome you to our treatment programs for substance dependence and abuse where the number one goal is restoring your or your loved one to live a healthier, happier, and more productive life. A life free from substance dependence and destructive behaviors waits. Call us now for information on our programs of treatment and start your journey today: 855-452-3683