Getting sober takes a lot of internal strength. And because it takes a certain will to get sober and stay that way, finding sources of inspiration can be incredibly helpful. One source of inspiration is to look at what you’ve accomplished in the past and letting that fuel your confidence to achieve again.
Exploring Your Sense of Confidence
To begin, you might want explore inwardly your sense of confidence – how much do you believe in your ability to get sober? Essentially, you want to assess the confidence you have in yourself. Confidence is feeling secure in your abilities and having respect for who you are inside and out. Sadly, there are so many factors that can contribute to having a low self confidence, especially during a struggle with addiction. For instance, addiction might lead to the loss of employment, end of a relationship, loss of your children, or even severe physical concerns. All of these can eat away at one’s self-confidence.
Yet, there are also many factors that can boost your confidence even when you’re feeling low. For instance, looking at the many men and women who have achieved sobriety despite their dire circumstances can be inspirational. There are millions of people who have risen out of their challenging lives in order to achieve great things.
Reflecting on Life Experiences
Another way to boost your confidence is to explore your own life achievements. What have you accomplished in the past? What internal strengths did you possess at the time in order to achieve those accomplishments? By exploring your history, you might see that you in fact do have the motivation, inspiration, and power to achieve what you want to achieve now. Although it might feel like the momentum and the energy of your current lifestyle might keep you stuck where you are, diving into yourself you might find resources you didn’t know you had.
You can give your attention to these inner resources by making a list of them. What are the strengths you have?
- resourcefulness
- intelligence
- quick thinking
- commitment
- ability to stay positive
- hopeful
- dedicated
- independent
Having these and other resources can help you call upon them now. Making a list of the internal strengths you’ve had in the past can be a reminder that you still possess them, even though it might not appear that way right now. Also, having this list can help boost your confidence in yourself. When we see the accomplishments of others, such as how others got sober, it’s sometimes easy to say, “Well that that person had the strength to do it. I don’t.” Yet, by exploring your own past and searching for your own internal resources, there’s no denying that you also have the power to achieve sobriety too.
It’s also important to keep in mind that although you might be able to find those internal resources, recovery will require the help of others. In fact, it might seem that being able to do things on your own is a strength. However, a greater strength is possessing the ability to ask for help. So, while you’re assessing your inner resources and abilities to get sober, don’t forget that having people around you is necessary for recovery too.
Exploring your past and the traits you’ve possessed in the past can be a great source of inspiration and motivation to get sober and stay that way.