Planning for the Future in Recovery
By Mark Gladden — Published: 2024-02-02
Categories: Recovery
In recovery, you will spend a lot of time thinking and talking about the past. After all, that’s what brought you into recovery in the first place. Poor choices and addictive behavior are things you can dissect and learn from, so you can change your life patterns. However, there always comes a time in recovery when you want to start looking forward to the future. Planning for your future can be an essential way to begin to change your life. Even when you’re forced to cope with challenging times — and recovery gives you both the motivation and the tools to do it.
Creating Goals for the Future
When you were a kid, you probably had a dozen answers to what you wanted to do when you grew up. Addiction probably wasn’t something you could foresee. Recovery gives you a chance to reconnect with those aspirations — or build entirely new ones.
If you’re new to recovery, your goals are often simple. You probably want to repair relationships, stay sober, and establish a new job or career. For many people, this means therapy (which is available on the phone or online.) A therapist can also help you create other goals for the future as time moves on, and you get more time in sobriety.
Visualizing Your Future
Choosing a new path can be tricky, so it may help to visualize it. What does the perfect future feel like? Close your eyes. Who are you spending time with? Where do you live? What are you doing for work?
If you’re not sure what goals you have for the distant future, talking to a sponsor or your peers can help you. Often you’ll find that somebody who has several years sober is living your dream life. So it also helps to pay attention at 12-step meetings. Ask around if you are looking for some inspiration for a specific goal you have in mind. Others will be happy to explain how they went about it.
Working Toward Goals
One day at a time, you can start to work toward your goals. For example, if you realize that you have always wanted to be a chef, you now have time to figure out how to make that happen. Research is the first thing you’ll want to do to learn more about the steps to make your goals happen. If you’re looking for a job, you’ll need to be able to use the internet to learn more about the requirements and credentials for a job. For a person who hopes to be a chef, this may mean getting a basic food handling certificate. (For example, the city of San Diego allows you to earn this certificate online for a small fee.) Or maybe you want to buy a new car. Searching for a safe, part-time job may require scouring help wanted ads. You can even learn to meditate or program computers online, usually for free or a small fee.
If you are looking for opportunities to change your life, they haven’t gone anywhere. You just have to be willing to accept the circumstances you’re living under today. Things will change, and so will you! So why not take the time to help yourself gain knowledge or skills as you work toward new goals.
Ask for help, advice, and guidance from your peers and people who have been in recovery for a while. You'll be surprised at the things you can accomplish!
Building Your Foundation in Sober Living
Are you looking for a way to build independence in recovery without going it alone? A structured sober living home gives you the daily routine, peer accountability, and community you need to start working toward real goals. Review our admissions and cost page to understand what to expect.
Check Availability or call 760-216-2077 to learn more about sober living in San Marcos, North County San Diego.
Tags: career, education, future, goals, jobs, planning, recovery
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