Florida Drug Rehab and the Gifts of Recovery

Rob P. is in recovery and uses his personal experience to provide guidance to anyone seeking a Florida drug rehab.

What are the gifts of recovery and where can you find them? Physical and mental healing, restored hope, healthy relationships, economic security and improved self-esteem are just a few of the life-changing gifts offered by recovery from drug addiction. The gifts are real. They’re amazing. And they’re worth it…and so are you.

If you, or a member of your family, are caught in the destructive cycle of drug and alcohol addiction, the Florida drug rehab experts at Port St. Lucie Hospital are ready to help. Our dual diagnosis drug treatment program is designed to treat both substance abuse and mental health disorders than often accompany addiction. For those with primary psychiatric diagnoses, we are honored to help them work on both their mental health and their addiction recovery.

Gifts vs. Consequences

Statistics indicate that between 40-60% of addicts in recovery will relapse at some point in their lives. For most of these people, they understand the consequences of a relapse. Yet, the fear of those consequences is not enough to ensure continued sobriety. That’s why many rehab counselors believe that focusing on the positive things that people gain and retain through sobriety is a just as important as understanding the negative consequences of relapse. We call these positive developments the “gifts of recovery”—the blessings earned by living a sober life—and they’re a powerful force in helping recovering people maintain sobriety.

The Gifts: How Recovery Changed this Addict’s Life

Whether you find drug rehab in Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, or elsewhere in the United States, the gifts of sobriety can be yours if you’re willing to work for them. To learn more about these gifts, we asked Rob P., a recovering addict, to share his “gifts” and how they’ve changed his life for the better and help keep him sober.

In 2015, Rob completed a 28-day inpatient rehab program and then attended 12 weeks of aftercare. Since then, Rob has remained sober and has realized many of the ninth step promises as detailed in the Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous. His life has improved in dramatic ways, and he’s always eager to share with other addicts how recovery has changed his life for the better.

These are Rob’s “gifts of recovery,” as told by him.

My name is Rob P. and I’m an addict in recovery. Sobriety has changed my life for the better in many ways, and I’m very grateful for the gifts that recovery has given me. In a lot of ways, I’ve gone from hopeless to hopeful. From broke to financially stable. From getting eviction notices at my apartment to owning my own home. If I can do it, so can you!

Here are 10 great examples of the gifts of recovery that have made a huge difference in my life.

1. Money in the Bank. Anyone suffering from addiction knows the stress and desperation of being broke. For me, it was a constant problem. Drugs came first; before rent, before food, before everything. I made sure I always had money for drugs, which meant I rarely had money for anything else. I didn’t have a savings account, I had racked up thousands in credit card debt, and my credit rating was terrible. Today, I have money in the bank. I have a 401k. I own a home, something I was sure I would never have. My bills are paid. And I have money to do things and enjoy life. What a difference!

2. Career Success. It didn’t take rocket science to understand why I couldn’t get ahead at work while using. In recovery, I’ve worked hard, showed up every day, and earned a promotion to a management position in 2016. Now sober, it’s easy for me to see why I wasn’t moving ahead. And now, my experience has helped me mentor younger members of my team.

3. Improved Self-Esteem. How do you improve your self-esteem? With estimable actions. For me, that meant eliminating behavior that went against my values. When I stopped using drugs, being selfish, lying, and manipulating, I felt more like a normal person and less like a jerk. Plus, being sober has allowed me to be more productive, take better care of my physical and mental health, and manage my day-to-day life better. All of this has helped me feel better about myself and feel more comfortable in my own skin.

4. Personal Discovery. Counseling and the recovery process have helped me re-discover who I am and what’s important to me. Recovery has also helped me recognize and deal with my emotions in a healthy way. In particular, I’m getting better at dealing with uncomfortable emotions like fear, anger, sadness, and shame. Sober life isn’t all roses—life still happens, and the negative emotions still come. But recovery has taught me how to live life on life’s terms instead of escaping by using drugs.

5. Healthy Relationships. By  improving my ability to recognize and manage emotions, I’ve been able to cultivate healthier relationships with my family members, friends, and significant other. People trust me now, and they can depend on me. That feels good.

6. Showing Up. When I was using, I was failing at being an uncle, a son, a brother, and a partner. I would skip family gatherings and sporting events, avoid my parents, not communicate with my sisters, and was emotionally distant from my girlfriend. In sobriety, I’m able to show up in the lives of people I care about in meaningful, sincere ways.

7. New Friends. Like many addicts, I was afraid that when I quit using and stopped hanging around my “friends” that were using, I’d be lonely and unhappy. The opposite has happened! I’ve made scores of new friends, real friends who genuinely care about me and are there when I need them.

8. Realizing Dreams. I had always dreamed of owning a Harley-Davidson, but I’d never even driven a motorcycle. Because of recovery, I gained the confidence to take a Basic Rider Course, learn how to ride, and get my motorcycle license. After two years of saving money, I realized my dream of owning a Harley. Now, I’m allowing myself to dream some more. Dreams breed hope, and hope feels good!

9. Newfound Freedom. My addiction was a prison that kept me isolated and afraid. It controlled my life, my finances, and my relationships. Getting sober gave me the freedom to enjoy the life I’d been missing: Walking in the park or sitting beside a lake on a summer day. Or traveling to the Rocky Mountains for the first time and driving to the top of Pike’s Peak. I especially appreciate the little things, like watching my nephew play football. I missed so much of life when I was cooped up in my apartment using drugs. Now, I don’t want to miss a thing, and I don’t have to.

10. Hope. Without hope, life loses meaning. Without meaning, life doesn’t seem worth living. That’s how I felt before I got sober. Little by little, recovery has brought hope back into my life. I know I can’t change the past, but I can be an active participant in determining my future. When I was using, I thought life was over. Now, I realize it’s just beginning. I now have a second chance at life, and you can, too.

You Can Find a Quality Florida Drug Rehab

If you or a family member are suffering from addiction, help and hope are waiting at our drug rehab center. Our treatment facility is among the premiere rehab facilities in Florida, offering top-notch services for substance abuse and mental health disorders in a serene, picturesque setting. You can call our admissions specialists at (772) 335-0400, or you can reach out via our confidential contact form for more information. Addiction is a terrible disease—you can’t beat it alone, and you don’t have to.