August is Self-Awareness Month
August is Self-Awareness Month for Recovery
All during August, National Wellness Month focuses on self-care, promoting healthy routines, and managing stress. This month is about creating healthy habits all month long and figuring out whether you feel better after the month is over with. Growing research reveals that self-care can help a person manage stress levels and can promote happiness. Keeping these in mind, recovering from addiction is a remarkable undertaking. As individuals, we need to be firm with our loved ones, ourselves, and lovingly detach from ones that still suffer – whether in silence or not.
One of the key factors in determining healthy independence and knowing when and how to lovingly detach requires self-care. Also, how much someone else is willing to commit to their own recovery and self-care is important. In recovery, people learn how to care for themselves, find healthier ways to deal with anxiety or depression, and discover hobbies that include sobriety.
What is Self-Awareness?
Self-awareness is about learning how and why you think, feel, and behave in specific ways. For instance, if one is dealing with addiction, the part of self-awareness for the person suffering from addiction could be knowing how to recognize negative patterns and understanding where these patterns are coming from. If someone is an alcoholic/addict and find themselves craving substances, this may be a response to a stressful situation that one is unable to manage. Another form of self-awareness is compassionately addressing your behavioral patterns and proactively addressing any underlying issues that can assist in fighting against addiction.
Self-care need not be confused with luxury either. One does not need to go to a spa to obtain self-awareness or self-care. Many people believe that getting a luxury treatment is one of the ways that they can obtain self- care, and they then struggle to enact self-care. One of the ways to begin thinking and incorporating self-care from a recovery perspective- is to begin looking at self-care in terms of your health. Changing this language can help you move towards a spiritual awakening, psychological, and physical well-being.
What are the Benefits of Self-Care and Self-Awareness?
Self-awareness and self-care go together, and both are not selfish! Incorporating compassion, commitment, and persistence to one’s own health is one of the many steps in caring for yourself and others around you.
Self-Care Tips
One of the most important steps in recovery is moving out of cycles that have caused both you and your loved one’s harm. In fact, it is imperative that one being understanding the root cause of their self-afflicting behaviors and focus on their healing. Here are some tips that may not be comprehensive and can help you in obtaining self-awareness and self-care:
1. Stay Mindful – mindfulness practice can help in identifying what is happening whilst exploring it without judgement. Mindfulness allows one the chance to identify and address the distress/discomfort in healthy ways.
2. Finding Balance – In helping to overcome addictive behaviors, finding balance in one’s life, work, social engagements, loved ones, can create sustained recovery.
3. Seek Support and Find Time for yourself – Incorporating balance with the time you spend with others and the time you spend with yourself can lead to less isolation. When one needs help in active addiction, the goal is for them to reach out for support. Learning how to be alone and not lonely can decrease a person’s propensity to live in solitude, shame, and guilt.
4. Remember that self-care is not selfish – Learning, creating, and applying self-care can benefit those who are in recovery.
September is the time for us to slow down and turn inward. The time that is needed to show up for yourself is not selfish. By practicing self-care and self-awareness, you can begin the journey and freedom into recovery. So, start your day with gratitude, mindfulness, or even a meeting. The future is in your hands.
Written by: Lital Diament, LMFT, MT #56973