When you are in the process of rehabilitating from drug or alcohol addiction, your sleep patterns may change, making it difficult to adapt to your new lifestyle. Sleep is crucial for your physical health and wellbeing and even having one night of restlessness can impair your judgement, making it hard to focus and participate in the world around you. Both drugs and alcohol have properties that can make you drowsy, and it’s easy to use substances to ensure a great night’s sleep. But what about when you’re in recovery? How can you re-train your mind and body to sleep without any artificial help?
Here we take a closer look and make some helpful suggestions.
Create the right environment for a good night’s sleep.
If you have light curtains that allow light through, get darker ones as research has shown that you sleep more deeply when you’re in the dark.
Avoid any activities or drinks that are likely to get you pumped when it’s time to sleep.
When it’s time to sleep, steer clear of drinks that contain caffeine, such as coffee and tea. If you do want tea, consider herbal teas that lack caffeine and that can help you relax. Even getting engrossed on social media can become a significant enough distraction to talk you out of feeling tired and ready for bed.
Take a relaxing bath to prepare your body and mind for sleep.
Take a bath with aromatic salts, surrounded by candles about half an hour before you go to bed and you’ll be in more of a relaxed state and ready to sleep. It’s a great way to destress and calm your mind as you wind down the day.
If you can’t sleep, don’t just lie awake waiting for sleep to come.
It often helps to get out of bed and spend a few minutes focusing on something else to get you back in the mood to sleep. When you’re focusing on your lack of sleep, you won’t be in the right frame of mind to become drowsy again. Not getting enough sleep also adds to your stress levels, which can easily lead to a relapse.
The most important thing is for you not to revert to old behaviors to get the sleep you need. The quality of alcohol or drug-induced sleep is not sufficient to leave you refreshed the next day. Even though you might face a few sleepless nights at the beginning, with these tips you can find ways to sleep that will aid your recovery.
Casa Recovery is a Southern California addiction recovery center with the experience and specialist skills to help you through your drug addiction treatment in Orange County, CA. We know how important it is for you to enjoy plenty of sleep while you’re receiving addiction treatment in San Juan Capistrano, CA. We can provide you with the support and guidance you need to overcome your drug or alcohol addiction, so contact us today for a confidential consultation.