Those of you still new to working a program for addiction recovery must have a plan for Sunday—New Year’s Eve. It’s paramount you stay close to your support network, whether it be at meetings or at recovery gatherings for bringing in the new year. There’s a good chance you are dreading NYE, most people in recovery would let loose during this time in years past. This year, your goal is to stay clean and sober; which means you won’t want to be in the company of heavy alcohol use. The good news is that people in recovery are not sticks in the mud, we thoroughly insist on enjoying life.
It’s possible to ring in the new year with a bang without the use of mind-altering substances. Your peers in the program have experience partying sober as the minutes tick down to midnight. It’s customary for several members to host gatherings at their homes; providing a safe environment for people in recovery to congregate. If you have yet to create a plan for Sunday, please make haste; when you attend a meeting today or tomorrow, ask your peers what they are up to for NYE. They will probably invite you, and if they didn’t, please don’t take it personally; just request an invitation, surely, they would love to have you in their company.
Sticking to Your Routine in Recovery
Getting to a meeting or two on particular days of the year is crucial. Even if you are going to be around program peers on Sunday, make sure you find time to attend a meeting, preferably your “homegroup.” You have spent ample time fostering relationships with people in your homegroup, both oldtimers, and some newcomers; when you go to your homegroup on significant days of the year, it is a way of being accountable.
Your support group delights in seeing others succeed, and they are rooting for you whether you know it, or not. Those who get to meetings on pinnacle days of the year are less likely to encounter pitfalls that could jeopardize their program. If recovery is the essential thing in your life today, then you will want to be present at your homegroup over the course of the weekend.
It’s is also vital that you reach out to a newcomer and ask them what they have planned for NYE. There is a good chance they will tell you that they’re day-planner is empty on the 31st. Invite them to join you on Sunday, making them feel included will mean the world to them and might be what keeps them sober. Extending an invitation to newcomers will also help you stay on track this weekend.
A Recovery-Focused 2018
Hope by The Sea would like to wish everyone who is working a program a safe and sober New Years. We also hope that 2018 is a year marked by progress. Be proud of your efforts this last year, and commit to staying the course of lasting recovery, evermore.
