Bad Habits to Avoid in Early Recovery
After an active addiction is treated and you head back into the swing of everyday life, it’s important to realize that the behavioral factors behind addiction may still be a problem.
Many addicts realize that their addictive personality is always there and keeping addictions at bay requires vigilance. Certain behaviors or habits are bad habits that can become new bad addictions. Our drug and alcohol treatment center outlines common habits patients should avoid in early recovery to make it easier to stick to sobriety.
Habit vs Addiction
Humans aren’t the only creatures of habit. Many animals, including humans, have a propensity to develop habits. A habit forms when neurons in networks throughout the brain create a pattern of behavior. A habit is created through associations within the brain that are fortified by learning and reinforcement. [1] Many view addiction as a learning disorder and a disease, and this learning disorder perspective shows that the habits behind addiction are still a problem after the patient gets sober. [2] Both habits and addictions are repetitive behaviors enforced by neural connections within the brain, but both can be treated.
Addictive Habits Former Addicts Should Avoid
Just because you’ve overcome your chemical dependency with the help of a drug treatment program does not mean your addictive tendencies are gone. Even with the best possible therapy, the dangers of addiction may be present if you don’t work at staying sober. Many addicts realize that the substances they were abusing weren’t the only culprit, their own addictive personality traits were also problematic. They chose drugs or alcohol for their addiction rather than other vices.
For treatment in combating addiction, our team at Banyan Detox Boca Raton can help. Call 888-280-4763 for guidance in getting sober.
Because the addictive personality is still there, there are bad habits for former addicts which should be avoided. This bad habit and bad addictions list includes:
- Eating foods that are too sugary, sugar can become another addiction
- Exercising to the point of danger, becoming addicted to exercise
- Placing themselves in risky situations
- Replacing drugs with a shopping addiction
Addictive personality traits mean that the risk of addiction relapse may be present, even well after completing a treatment program.
At Banyan Detox Boca Raton, we’re here to help prevent relapse and treat the numerous factors behind addiction. Call 888-280-4763 to learn more about our programs and therapies.
Sources:
- NCBI – Habit Formation
- Psychology Today – Addiction as a Learning Disorder
