A significant barrier to your recovery in drug or alcohol rehab is dealing with feelings of shame and guilt in recovery. These feelings often stem from the negative stigma associated with mental illness and addiction. That means you not only have to overcome the mental and physical effects of your addiction, but you may also face the inner turmoil of guilt and shame.
But there’s nothing to feel guilty or shameful about when you seek help to overcome addiction.
Those who have never struggled with addiction may view you in a negative light due to the stigma. Being on the receiving end of someone treating you like you are “less than” because you have chosen to seek help for addiction is bound to fill you with feelings of humiliation and self-doubt.
Unfortunately, shame and addiction go hand in hand. But getting the help you need from reputable alcohol rehab in San Diego, like BOLD Health, can help you overcome stigma, shame, and guilt in recovery so you can move forward to live the more fulfilling life you deserve.
Understanding the Difference Between Guilt and Shame
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Guilt and shame, while similar, are different emotions, and understanding the differences can help you effectively overcome them in drug or alcohol rehab.
When you experience guilt, you feel bad about an action you did or didn’t do. In reference to alcohol addiction, you may feel guilty for saying something unkind to someone else while intoxicated. Or perhaps you feel guilty because you promised to do something while under the influence and didn’t follow through.
Guilt is an acknowledgment of an action or inaction, while shame is an internalization of that guilt. Shame makes you feel bad about yourself because of what you did or didn’t do. In other words, shame can lead to harmful negative self-talk and destructive thinking.
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Feeling guilty about things you’ve done or not done while intoxicated may lead to your apologizing to others. But that doesn’t necessarily erase the internal feelings of shame you face.
Seeking others’ forgiveness is often easier than forgiving yourself. Shame cuts deep and is a challenging emotion to overcome. When you don’t address feelings of guilt and shame, you’re more at risk of entering into a downward spiral of negative feelings toward yourself, which can prevent you from achieving your recovery goals.
How to Overcome Shame and Guilt in Addiction Recovery
No part of drug and alcohol recovery is exactly “easy.” But it’s 100% worth it. Not only does drug and alcohol misuse disorder wreak havoc on your mental and physical health, relationships, and overall well-being, it leads to unrelenting guilt and shame.
The good news is that recovery from addiction and the guilt and shame that goes with it is possible. And your journey to recovery will be more effective in a supportive, understanding, welcoming environment like our alcohol rehab in San Diego.
We’ll walk with you through your journey, no matter how long it takes, compassionately guiding you through the challenges of shame and addiction. We have the medical expertise to help you detox, fight the mental and physical difficulties of recovery, and work with you on overcoming the shame and guilt caused by addiction.
During your alcohol treatment in San Diego at BOLD Health, you experience a compassionate and proactive approach to your recovery.
Some of the things we’ll help you do to overcome shame and addiction include helping you to:
- Acknowledge and accept your feelings: Guilt and shame are typical emotions to experience during addiction recovery. It’s important to recognize this, accept these emotions, and understand that it’s okay to feel them.
If you feel guilty about feeling guilty, you’ll never get anywhere! Once you acknowledge your emotions, you can move forward with the understanding that ongoing guilt and shame will do nothing for you in recovery.
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- Understand the source of your feelings: Alcohol addiction treatment involves a lot of internal reflection, discovery, and change. It’s crucial to understand the root of your addiction. But it’s also essential to understand the root of your guilty and shameful feelings.
Once you identify the source of these issues, you can address them and work toward moving forward. Once you acknowledge your emotions, you can move forward with the understanding that ongoing guilt and shame will do nothing for you in recovery.
- Forgive yourself: This is one of the most challenging things for anyone, especially when dealing with shame and addiction. But forgiving yourself is a crucial step in your recovery.
During your addiction treatment, we’ll help you learn to practice self-compassion and forgiveness toward yourself and not dwell on past hurts and mistakes. Moving forward is what counts.
- Make amends with others where needed: Another crucial element of recovery is making amends. You may have few people to do this with, or you may have a long list. Either way, we’ll help you determine the “who” and “how.” This will leave room for more self-forgiveness and alleviate some of your guilt and shame.
- Focus on making positive changes: Recovery takes time. You may hope to make leaps and bounds in recovering from shame and addiction. But focusing on the little positive changes you make throughout your journey is essential.
During your addiction treatment, you must celebrate every single success, no matter how small it may seem. Making healthier lifestyle changes can help you overcome guilt and shame.
- Connect with others: Part of your alcohol treatment in San Diego at BOLD Health includes group therapy. Connecting with others, sharing your feelings of shame and guilt, and realizing you’re not alone is exceptionally healing.
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Choose BOLD Health for Quality Alcohol Rehab in San Diego
Having a quality support network is one of the more important parts of recovering from drug or alcohol addiction. You need a support team outside of rehab and compassionate, caring, and qualified medical professionals who will walk with you through your journey.
At BOLD Health, we treat more than your symptoms. We take the time to genuinely know and understand who you are as an individual so we can curate the best treatment plan possible. We offer several options for alcohol treatment in San Diego, including the following:
- alcohol detox
- individual therapy
- group therapy
- family therapy
- medication management
- intensive outpatient program (IOP in San Diego)
Your treatment plan is tailored specifically to your individual needs, so you have a greater chance at lasting recovery. At BOLD Health, we’re here to help you through shame and addiction, no matter the timeline.
Contact us for more information about our alcohol rehab in San Diego and how we can help you achieve a fulfilling life past addiction.