A loved one coming home from treatment can be a blessing or a burden. Lessen the stress with these suggestions.
- Set clear expectations about relapse in the household. In the beginning, it will be helpful to have a substance free household. If there are any drugs or alcohol, make sure they are well out of view before your loved one gets home. Relapse doesn’t have to happen in recovery. It can and often does. You and your family have been through a lot dealing with your loved one’s addiction and their time in treatment. Coming home is not a return to old behaviors but a continuation of a new lifestyle.
- In the beginning, having a steady curfew is helpful. Staying out until late hours of the night with friends in recovery is a well earned freedom. One of the secrets about recovery is being able to have fun again without the presence of drugs and alcohol. Nighttime is often a trigger for people in recovery as the business of daytime ceases, leaving one to their thoughts and vices. A temporary curfew can help you and your loved one maintain a peace of mind.
- If necessary, ask for a meeting attendance slip. You might be working with a parole or probation officer. In other cases, the treatment center your loved one went to might utilize an after care service which calls once or twice a week to check on meetings, recovery, and how your loved one is staying accountable. Hired Power also offers sober monitoring services which can include a daily check in. As with most things in the modern world, there’s an app for that as well. Meetings are helpful in staying on track with recovery and spending time with like-minded people. Set a minimum requirement of meetings you want your loved one to attend each week.
- Assign household responsibilities and chores. Depending on the type of treatment program your loved one went to, they’ve probably become accustomed to having to do chores and maintain responsibilities for their living environment. Continuing this commitment at home is helpful for their recovery. You don’t want to run a ship that is too tight, however, coming home and completely falling behind on different components of recovery can be a slippery slope to old behaviors, which can eventually lead to relapse.
- Create family time to spend together. Recovery can take off, making life full. It’s one of the many gifts recovery provides. To ensure that the family continues to heal, schedule family time which embraces activities both recovery and non-recovery. Go on hikes, take long walks, plan adventures, cook meals, or have a game night. However you and your family bond, make time for that space, and make it non-negotiable.
Hired Power works to help your family bring recovery home. From intervention to aftercare, we are here to support you every step of the way. While you focus on healing, we take care of the details. For more information, call us today at 1-800-910-9299.
