101 Helpful Tips on How to Stay Clean and Sober
Here are some tips for staying sober.
Photo by cerberusofcologne
1. Don’t underestimate your disease. Every single person does at first.
2. Take care of yourself spiritually. Be mindful of your connection to your higher power today.
3. Ignore the dismal relapse rates. You are creating your own success.
4. Make a zero tolerance policy with yourself concerning relapse. Don’t even allow your mind to go there.
5. Avoid fundamentalism, even in recovery. Rigid thinking and dogma can undermine your sobriety.
6. You are creating a life of recovery and you are responsible for ALL OF IT. Yes, others can help you. Their “help” is mere advice. It is up to you to recover.
7. Don’t confuse enthusiasm for action. Figure out what you need to do to stay sober and then do it.
8. Listen to what the relapsing addicts keep preaching. Then do the opposite.
9. Take care of your social network. Reach out to others in a meaningful way.
10. Figure out a way to help other addicts or alcoholics.
11. If you attend 12 step meetings, find one to start chairing. Consider H&I meetings (taking meetings into jails and treatment centers).
12. Use mindfulness and a heightened awareness to overcome ego. Use meditation to overcome self.
13. Practice forgiveness. Forgive all your past transgressors. Forgive yourself. You must do this to get long term relief from resentment.
14. Be aware of diminishing returns, and spread out your recovery efforts (i.e., don’t focus on just “spiritual” growth).
15. Rearrange all the furniture in your house. Anything to get through the night sometimes.
16. Clean your house from top to bottom. Same as above.
17. Go for a long walk.
18. Adopt a pet and care for it.
19. Eat a gourmet meal.
20. Cook a gourmet meal.
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21. Practice the arts. Paint, draw, sculpt, sing, dance. Etc.
22. See a therapist.
23. Work on a puzzle.
24. Connect with someone else who is hurting.
25. Start a project that is bigger than yourself.
26. Revisit an old hobby.
27. Teach someone something. (Anything!)
28. Learn something new each day. (Anything!)
29. Write in a daily journal.
30. Stretch yourself spiritually by suspending disbelief for a day.
31. Write a letter to your addiction where you say farewell to it.
32. Join a recovery forum online.
33. Start a free blog over at blogger.com and tell the world about your progress in recovery. Figure out your own tips on staying sober.
34. Reconnect with your family and spend time with them.
35. Go back to school.
36. Learn a new skill or trade.
37. Sponsor a newcomer.
38. Make a commitment to chair a meeting each week.
39. Celebrate the recovery of a friend.
40. Spend time with your family.
Photo by rene_ehrhardt
41. Email the spiritual river guy and tell him your problems.
42. Celebrate your clean time with a cake.
43. Write out a gratitude list.
44. Read through your old journal entries and see how much you’ve changed.
45. Try a new form of meditation (or make up your own…there is no “wrong” here). Some of the best tips to stay sober come from within.
46. Write out a to-do list and cross each thing off as you accomplish it.
47. Always have a big goal in the back of your mind that is challenging for you, but would make your day if you met it.
48. Practice balance. Challenge your daily habits.
49. Practice humility. Always be in “learning mode.”
50. Forgive yourself and move on with your life.
51. Sit down and write 2 goals out for yourself: one big one and one little one. Keep the paper in your pocket.
52. Inspire someone else to grow. Challenge them to be a better person in some way. Encourage them through your own success.
53. Learn to relax. Find your quiet place of rejuvenation and return to it often.
54. Elevate your consciousness. Watch your own mind and see how it responds to events. Repeat often. Learn.
55. Find the beauty in life. Appreciate all of it. Be grateful for beauty itself.
56. Ask yourself with each decision: “Is this the healthiest choice for me right now?”
57. Quit smoking cigarettes already.
58. Be grateful for existence.
59. If you go to the same AA meetings all the time, switch it up and go to a completely new meeting.
60. Write a poem about how you are overcoming addiction.
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61. Turn off your television and read a book. Better: read recovery literature. Best: write your own recovery literature.
62. Use overwhelming force to conquer a goal.
63. Learn how to stay sober through creation of a new reality. Don’t settle. Create the life you really want in recovery.
64. Write your bucket list. Then, act.
65. Figure out your life purpose.
66. Write out a fourth step and share it with your sponsor.
67. Take care of yourself physically. Exercise. Take a walk. No excuses.
68. Keep your priorities straight. Physical abstinence is number one. Simple and effective.
69. Keep a high price on your serenity. Don’t sacrifice it for just anyone and their whims.
70. Use a sponsor for stage 2 recovery. Let them guide you through holistic living.
71. Take care of yourself mentally. Go back to school. Get that degree.
72. Find your own path. It is your responsibility to do so.
73. Practice humility and stay teachable. Always be learning.
74. Go to long term treatment and be done with it. Best decision I ever made.
75. Don’t pin your hopes on a short stay in rehab. It takes more than that.
76. Call your sponsor.
77. Get a sponsor.
78. Use a zero tolerance policy when it comes to self-pity. Never allow it for yourself ever again. Ever. It is poison.
79. Read recovery literature.
80. Join a recovery forum.
Photo by rene_ehrhardt
81. Use outpatient treatment if that works for you. Take it as seriously as possible and connect with the others in your group.
82. Meditate.
83. Pray.
84. Go out for coffee with a friend in recovery.
85. Find your passion.
86. Work out.
87. Join a church.
88. Volunteer.
89. Take care of yourself emotionally. Don’t get knocked too far off your square.
90. Stay vigilant against potential relapse. The disease can find many routes (gambling, prescription drugs, sex, etc.).
91. Go to a meeting.
92. Don’t pin your hopes on long term treatment. It takes a lifetime of learning for alcoholics and recovering drug addicts to recover.
93. Use long term strategic thinking. Care for yourself, network with others, and pursue conscious growth.
94. Don’t ask “why me?” Instead, ask “how can I create the life I really want now?”
95. Call a friend in recovery.
96. Sit down and write out a gratitude list.
97. Don’t live in fear of relapse. I wasted 5 years on this. Embrace the creative life and know you are strong in recovery.
98. Get extreme. Figure out what you need to do to stay sober…then double it and add ten. That’s how hard you have to push yourself.
99. Raise the bar. Stop settling. Use your talents as a gift to the world and make a difference in some way.
100. Live consciously. Set deliberate goals and go after them with overwhelming force.
101. Embrace the creative life in recovery and live holistically.
So those are my staying sober tips….anyone got any more?
If you found this helpful, please share it with others.
Patrick Says:
Hi there Liddia.
Glad you’re here!
Karla Says:
It works if you work it!
Patrick Says:
Yes it does work if you work but I would go further than that and point out that virtually any program will work if you work it.
Take a hypothetical program that keeps you sober by making you stand on your head all day long. Technically this will work if you really work it. So will the 12 step program. So will the creative theory.
So just pointing out that a program will work if a person genuinely tries to apply it is not saying much…any program can be designed with abstinence as the goal and then this cliche will apply to it quite nicely. This doesn’t prove anything though and we need to look deeper at what results we are really achieving across the board with a recovery program. What is the real success rate? If a program fails for the vast majority of participants is it really a success?
Sometimes I just think we can do better and that’s why I push people to create something in their lives that goes beyond traditional 12 step dogma….
Vivian Eisenecher Says:
Hey Patrick,
Your recovery tips are great! I think everybody in recovery ought to have their own personalized list. While I would use the majority of your tips, not all of them are appropriate for me
(i.e. quitting smoking). I can’t wait to have my own list. When I do, I will certainly share it with the world! Thanks again for a great idea.
Dando Says:
Here’s a program of my own creation that has proved effective.
Yes, any sort of new ritual proves very useful in breaking old rituals. At the risk of sounding like an old hippy…its very important to keep your blood/energy/chi circulation healthy. You know that feeling when you can feel your own pulse in your fingertips? Thats what your going for… use tai chi, other martial arts or exercise sports for this and do it within an hour of waking up. No excuses.
Get up at 7:00, drink your coffee, and go shoot baskets at the neighborhood park. Kick a soccerball against a wall for a while, ride your bike HAVE FUN ! Dance in the damn shower afterwards, its fun and loosens up your stiff muscles from laying still for 8 hours.
I was in active narcotic addiction for 10 years, and a program involving physical improvement to yourself will make you understand your own body and respect it more. When you look in the mirror and see a body that you sculpted through your program of diet and exercise…well I’ll let you be the judge of how that feels. Respect yourself and your incredible human body. It doesn’t need anything but refreshing sunshine, food, drink, exercise and some sort of sexual outlet. Keep telling yourself this to rid yourself of your old, tragically incorrect belief system. Its working for me. I love all of you, brothers and sisters. Take care of yourselves, then the good things come.
Patrick Says:
Hi there Dando
I like your ideas about living and I think they work well for long term recovery. In the beginning people might need to focus a bit more heavily on staying sober for a day at a time and also on networking with others in recovery for added support.
But as we progress in recovery I think we should all start moving towards the image of long term sobriety that you just painted there.
In fact, at the treatment center that I work at, a Tai Chi instructor comes in twice each week and does a one hour class with the clients….they do some basic forms and also a lot of the breathing and movements. Very powerful stuff for some people, others who are not ready yet just shrug it off as being irrelevant to their recovery….
Vivian Eisenecher Says:
Okay Patrick. I’ve made my own list. I will share it with you before I blog about it. Thanks!
Mary Ann Says:
Patrick and all,
This site ought to be a discussion forum, it is great. I too have wasted a lot of time in fear of relapse. I have also wasted a lot of time feeling inferior because I needed to get sober at 28; I am almost 45 and still feel shame at being “in recovery”. Sad. I need to work on this.
I so agree about the diet and exercise angle. A good diet and regular exercise along with meditation has done wonders for me. It is huge and was among the first creative things I added to my life. That and stopping smoking. I saw people in recovery dropping like flies from cancer and sensed that changes in my life were needed if I was going to enjoy a quality of life that was meaningful. People in recovery sometimes forget that there is a cause and effect; that a diet of caffeine, cigs and cheese burgers might have someting to do with feeling depressed and miserable all the time.
Patrick Says:
Hi there Mary Ann
Good job on seeking out a holistic approach to your recovery. It is not a conventional path but for me it has been most rewarding…
jen Says:
For Micheal,
Love Jen
shelly Says:
Just put my 29 year old tonight to a recovery home. Will send him this list.. Good list, but I can also mention one more.. a prayer to who ever you beleive is your higher power or a visit to a church. I hope he can add 100 more reasons and way to live with his addiction…
budiman Says:
i want rocovery my note book toshiba nb100 haw i do it one key recovery
Patrick Says:
Hi there Budiman
I think you might misunderstand this website a bit….if you want to recovery your Toshiba notebook, I would call Toshiba tech support, I’m sure they can walk you through it….
If you are interested in addiction recovery, please come back and let us know!
Tracy Says:
Thank you for this list and site!
David Says:
This is a wonderful list not only to start with, but to help one see how far they have come in recovery. I’ve been in recovery for two years and by placing some of these positives in my life, I don’t resemble the old life. I will keep trying to follow these because recovery for me is about change and seeing life alive again. It is a gift just to be here.
Thanks,
Patrick Says:
God bless David, glad you got something out of it. Yes, it is a gift to be here. I need to remember that too….so thank you.
urbanminister Says:
Great tips and advice. It’s good for people to have a list that they can refer to again and again. These tips can help people with all kinds of problems and procrastinations.
Thanks,
urbanminister
http://twitter.com/urbanminister
Jason Says:
Thank you.
Patrick Says:
Hi Jason
You are welcome!
Addiction Recovery Says:
Why is it that so many people underestimate their addictions and diseases? Is it because they are prideful or what?
charles Says:
Thanks,Your article was great.I know it will help me in recovery.
lifelonglearner Says:
I have decided today that I will give up drinking. It has created so much pain physically and mentally that I have had enough. I don’t want to rely on it anymore!! I want more out of life!!
I am grateful that I came across this website, I know that the tips will assist in my road to recovery.
Thanks
Sheila Says:
I am reading your words of wisdom and I believe that I have become complance in my 16 years of recovery. So today I challenge my self to grow in every possible area of my life.
Thank you
Sheila
john Says:
Hey lifelonger, I hope you are doing ok and staying sober.
Thank you patrick for the list. I need all the help I can get
LL Says:
I’d much rather see #18 say: “Adopt” a pet…not “Buy” a pet.
dee Says:
I have been trying to give up my addiction, started doing NA meetings, lasted a week, I came across this list and I think it will really help in my recovery. Thanks for the list I will refer to it often.
Patrick Says:
Good luck dee. Whatever you do, do something. Take action!
Monet Says:
I think this is the best information that I have ever come across for someone that is truly seeking the step by step of what we should be doing, thinking, and trying to act on while in recovery. I’ve been addicted to marijuana for some years now and have stopped twice, but not for myself. It was for others so needless to say we know that didn’t work because we must do it for ourself only and no one else. I’ve been clean for 2 days now, but I know I have a lifetime to deal. Well I do believe I have what’s needed now to move forward…thank you for this and I will be sure to provide an update as well as share this with anyone in need of this help! :-)
bk Says:
really good stuff very helpful its always good when you can talk to some one or see updates on how people made it and beat the beast
Anonymous Says:
I thank you very much for writing this. I’m in a time of need and this is the first thing I saw when I googled. I’m on a path back to righteousness and I need inspiration, this isn’t the last time you will hear from me. thank you for your blessing and I will pray for myself and all others who suffer, because we are all one anyway, right?
God Bless, Meditation, & Prayer, literally
rob Says:
I have been tryn to get clean for a long time and always find myself right back at square one. im gna apply these tips to my life and give it another shot. thanks for sharing and fighting the good fight.
bk Says:
its good to hear everybody is still fighting hard to over come something thats just a pain but at the end of the day we control are life and every move we make so what that said we won if you really think about it thats the truth.
jamie johnson Says:
Thank you so much for the knowledge and skills that you so freely share to and for us addicts. I’m a Recovery Support Specialist for a behavioral health agency. Your information I share with my groups, “Creative Recovery”. I have two years sobriety and really strive to help others who suffer with addiction.. I would love to receive any news letters you may have to share.
thanks again,
Jamie
Henry Says:
One day at a time…I am going to start again. I will do it this time.
I can’t look at not drinking for the rest of my life…but I can do one day at a time.
Jessica Says:
Henry-yes, take it one day at a time. I too never thought I could not stop drinking or using for a few days/weeks, and now I have 8 months, but everyone needs to also hit a different “bottom”, and sometimes it takes worse and worse consequences until we finally realize that we’re not taking the alcohol or the drugs anymore, but they’re taking us. Hopefully you get it without having to endure too much, but takes what it takes.
Good luck to you. The Higher Power part is very important-it’s beyond will power…And get a Sponsor, and get yourself to daily meetings.
One Day at a time.
bk Says:
jessica sounds like she has her ducks in a row thats some good tools she giving to henry and i am still sober its about four months now i feel great but i am always looking for new ways to keep my power up and stay strong to slay the beast.