Here is a comprehensive plan for recovering drug addicts, based on what has worked for me in recovery.

Note that these are overall strategies to guide you in recovery. The individual tactics that you use (such as going to an AA meeting or calling your sponsor) might vary from person to person. But these are the guiding principles that you will need to succeed. These 3 principles are:

1) Building a recovery network

2) Focusing on personal growth

3) Caring for yourself

Let’s take them one at a time in more detail.

Build a recovery network

This is especially important in early recovery. You need people in early recovery who can help you to maintain sobriety. If you could get clean and sober by yourself, then you wouldn’t really have a problem, would you? But we need help to recover. That’s where building a recovery network comes in.

The easiest way to do this, by far, is to simply start attending 12 step meetings. This is the ultimate shortcut in building up a network of like-minded people in recovery. One of the suggestions that you hear often at meetings is to go to 90 meetings in 90 days. To the newcomer, this might seem like overkill, but it’s actually a very reasonable exercise. Going to daily meetings has a number of benefits, not the least of which is the constant interaction with others in recovery.

One reason that we need a recovery network is for strength. We draw strength from our peers to help us stay clean and sober. And in times of trouble, we can enlist their help directly with either a phone call or a face-to-face meeting.

Another reason that we need this network is for learning. As we stay clean and sober and draw on the experience of our peers, we are constantly learning from them. Sometimes other recovering drug addicts have been through what we are going through and can help us with specific advice. Other times we will be able to do the same for them, and in helping them we actually strengthen our own recovery. Both situations are clearly win-win when it comes to beating addiction.

Action items – How you can build a recovery network:

As mentioned above, the shortcut is to get involved with a 12 step program. Regardless of whether or not you agree with the 12 step philosophy, there is still an undeniable level of support to be found in AA and NA. The reason for this is simply because those programs have become the default choice of the masses. That’s where the help is at.

There are other ways to connect with recovering addicts and alcoholics though. Long term treatment is a great place to build these types of relationships, for example.

Focus on personal growth

This is a huge topic and your efforts of personal growth should push you to work on yourself for the rest of your life. You should adopt a very broad idea of what makes up “personal growth” and be willing to explore new ways to learn and to grow. For example, you might consider the following areas for potential growth:

1) Physical – exercise, fitness, nutrition, and so on. This area would also include your overall physical health and well being, so things such as “quitting smoking” or “lowering your cholesterol” could even go in here.

2) Emotional - finding emotional balance in recovery. Making an effort to stay grounded emotionally; to not fly off the handle, etc.

3) Spiritual - Connecting with a higher power, relying on him for guidance. Meditation. A genuine interest in helping others.

4) Mental – Clearing the mental fog of addiction, sharpening our minds so that we can learn and grow in recovery. Recovery is a learning process.

5) Social – Attracting compatible people into our lives. Disassociating from bad influences.

These concepts and ideas just skim the surface of personal growth, which is set to take place over an entire lifetime of recovery.

Action items – How you can focus on personal growth:

1) Become goal oriented – set a single goal and then pursue it relentlessly. Quit smoking. Start an exercise routine. Commit to chair an AA meeting. Let your successes build on themselves and inspire you to set new goals.

2) Explore the holistic approach to growth - don’t get stuck in just looking to grow in one area (such as “spiritually”). Recovery is so much broader than that….look for growth opportunities in all areas of your life. It’s all relevant to recovery.

3) Make a commitment to growth – decide that you are going to make progress in different areas of your life. Time is going to pass by anyway, so where would you like to be in 5 years? You may as well be making progress with yourself, so commit to it right now.

Care for yourself

This is a huge strategy that can propel you to a successful recovery all by itself: simply care for yourself.

Of course, it’s much more complicated than that, isn’t it? Because we’ve abused our bodies for so long with drugs and alcohol, most of us have lost some level of self-esteem as well.

It might take some time before we start truly caring again. That’s why this strategy cannot stand on it’s own; we also need to grow as a person and to reach out to others. But as we do those other things, something changes. Our self esteem takes a turn for the better, and we start to care again. We start enjoying life and connecting with other people and life becomes important again.

That’s when this strategy starts coming into play. Simply caring for yourself.

Example: You have 2 years in sobriety and your child asks you: “When are you going to quit smoking?”

With each action you take, each decision you make, ask yourself: “Is this what’s truly best for me? Is this going to help me or hurt me in the long run?” Obviously, this goes beyond mere abstinence from drugs and alcohol, and takes a more holistic view of your overall health and well being.

This is about more than just maintaining sobriety….it’s about having a genuinely good life in recovery.

Action items – How you can better care for yourself:

1) Again, focus on a holistic approach – be aware of different areas that you could improve on: weight loss, fitness, quitting smoking, nutrition, relationships, emotional balance, taking time to relax, and so on.

2) Increase your awareness – instead of mindlessly engaging in unhealthy activities, make a commitment to be mindful about your health on a day-to-day basis. This is an elevation in consciousness; a way to watch yourself and to take a more active role in making decisions about your life. Always be asking yourself: “is this really healthy for me?”

The only tactic that I recommend: consider long term treatment

When all else fails, consider long term treatment. While it is no magic bullet, long term treatment still offers you the best chance at long term sobriety with continuous, long-term support. In other words, if you really want to get clean and sober, then a long term treatment center is a great option, because it offers the most supportive environment.

In my opinion, long term treatment is the ultimate tactic, or “shortcut” to a successful recovery because it typically embodies all of the 3 major strategies outlined above. So really, it’s not a shortcut at all, it’s a lot of hard work….but living in a long term treatment center will help you to focus your efforts on the 3 strategies that will help you in the long run: building your support network, focusing on personal growth, and caring for yourself on a number of different levels.