Acknowledging that we are powerless against substance use and addiction is often painful. But to get the help we need, we may have to swallow our pride. Addiction treatment itself can be a humbling experience, especially if we are not used to being vulnerable. However, even if we felt humbled during or after treatment doesn’t mean we should continue with low self-esteem. We have already made tremendous progress when we decided to enter treatment, and we can only go up from there.
Self-Esteem After Treatment
After treatment, we may feel not as confident as we once were. It’s okay to feel like we don’t know where to start again once we are living in sobriety. There are things we can do to build our self-esteem again.
One of the first things we can do is ponder what we are good at. Maybe we are great at cooking, playing sports, dancing, singing, or supporting others in our lives. Whatever talents we have, we can immerse ourselves into them again and see how it feels. Our hobbies and talents should bring us joy and confidence.
Build Positive Relationships
Regardless of what happened between us and the people who loved us before and during treatment, we should feel empowered to start fresh with our loved ones.
Patience may be necessary as we show the people we care about that we are in a new chapter of our lives. We can own up to how we may have wronged our friends and family and move past it. We want people in our lives who support our growth and our goals in life after treatment. It is important to keep people in our lives who love us and want to see us succeed.
Set Boundaries
Something that may have contributed to our struggle with substance use is our inability to say no to people. We all want to make our loved ones happy. But if we spread ourselves too thin, we can become anxious, stressed, and even resentful to those who ask too much of us.
When we can learn to set boundaries with people, we gain the confidence of knowing that even if we tell someone no, it doesn’t mean we love or care about them any less. When people see that we are independent enough to express how we feel and what we need, they can acknowledge those needs and move forward to continue a great relationship.
Practice Self-Love
It can be easy to beat ourselves up over the mistakes we have made in the past and the choices we made while struggling with substance use. We should be able to forgive ourselves for what we have done and understand that we are only human.
If we can learn to be patient with ourselves, listen to our body and what it needs, and celebrate every victory no matter how small, we can make great strides in building self-esteem after treatment. We can always remember that completing treatment and doing what is best for us is a huge accomplishment. We should be proud of the progress we have already made and can continue to make.
Set Goals
Now that we are living our lives in sobriety, it can be exciting to think about the future. What do we want to accomplish? How do we want to present ourselves to the world? What type of people do we want to associate with?
We can figure out the answer to these questions by sitting down and creating goals for ourselves. Everyone is unique in what we want for our lives, but at the end of the day, it is safe to say that we all want to be happy. Setting goals can foster motivation for us to confidently move forward in our lives.
Be Honest With Yourself
At the end of the day, it is important to honor our personal limits. We should be honest with ourselves about what we like and what we want out of life. Pursuing goals that we aren’t passionate about won’t help us in the long run and may not help us build our self-esteem because we are still letting outside influences set our priorities.
We should feel confident enough to make our own decisions about what direction we want our life to go in. The people who love and care about us may not understand what we want to do, but they should still support us. Unlocking the most authentic versions of ourselves will bring us joy, confidence, passion, and motivation. Take time today to think about what is best for your life and what you need to do to achieve what success looks like to you.
Before, during, and after substance use treatment, we may find ourselves struggling with self-esteem issues. This is normal, and we should not worry if we feel this way. There are many ways we can build our confidence again. We can set boundaries with people so that we don’t spread ourselves too thin. We can learn to say no if we don’t have time to do something or simply don’t want to. We can lean into the hobbies we enjoy and find joy and confidence in that way. We can make sure all the relationships in our lives are healthy and don’t make us feel bad about ourselves. We can be honest with ourselves and what we want for our life. At the end of the day, we are the ones who are living our lives, and we can pursue what matters to us. Call 449 Recovery at (949) 435-7449.
Dr. Warren Taff MD, graduated from the University of Birmingham, England School of Medicine, with a BA from Rutgers University. He then went on to UCLA School of Public Health in Los Angeles Health and Human Services and received an MPH. He also attended an internship in internal medicine, with the Veterans Administration. Dr. Taff’s residency includes General Psychiatry at USC, with elective residencies at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital in Sydney, Australia, and Royal College of Psychiatry. Board certifications include American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. Dr. Taff has extensive experience in both psychiatry and addiction medicine, extending from 1979 to present. He has held professional titles that include Chief of Staff and Medical Directorship in both hospitals and private sectors.