Abdullah Al Noman – Athena Passages

How Routines Can Make You More Productive

Abdullah Al Noman — Fri, 14 May 2021 07:02:55 +0000

Establishing healthy daily routines is not only part of addiction treatment, but it is a hallmark of highly productive people as well. The structure and routine found in sober living programs and facilities encourage daily progress, positive thinking, and commitment to the goals of remaining sober and establishing a new healthier way of living. By creating your own established routines as you leave treatment, you take this new skill to a new level, using what you have learned to teach yourself to improve all areas of your life.

Benefits of Following a Daily Routine?

Boosting motivation and providing a feeling of purpose
Providing stability and helping to avoid triggers
Addressing life changes as they occur
Establishing healthy lifestyle habits
Creating regular times to spend with friends and family
Managing daily stress and improving mental health
Preventing boredom and reducing the risk of relapse
Encouraging regular attendance at support groups
Improving sleep and reducing insomnia

One way to focus and enhance your productivity is to ensure that you are using all the tools at your disposal to achieve your life goals. At Athena Passages, we provide comprehensive addiction treatment in a sober living facility that supports healthy routines.

Creating Your Own Productive Daily Routine

Establish reasonable hours for sleeping and decide when you will wake up each day.
Schedule time for cooking and eating healthy meals on a regular schedule.
Add regular time for house cleaning, yard work, or other chores to maintain clean and sober housing.
Make regular time available for socializing, recovery services, support group meetings, and practicing creative hobbies.
Schedule exercise into your day, with two times per day being a big productivity and energy booster.
Establishing a regular schedule for self-care, including personal hygiene, meditation, or relaxation.

Common Distortions in Thinking That Can Affect Recovery

Abdullah Al Noman — Fri, 14 May 2021 06:17:58 +0000

At some point in our lives, we’ve all had negative thoughts, but when these negative thoughts are persistent enough that they affect every aspect of one’s life, they are classified as cognitive distortions. For those addicted to alcohol or drugs, this kind of distorted thinking can be a trap that prevents individuals from breaking the cycle of addiction.

Cognitive distortions are inaccurate and untrue thoughts or beliefs which distort one’s reality. Typically, cognitive distortions help us to deal with fear, defending us from the dangers we believe are present currently or from those dangers we may have experienced at an earlier point in time.

Despite the protective nature of cognitive distortions, they have a more sinister side. Because you don’t realize the inaccuracy of your distorted thoughts, they can grow in their persistence until they seem real. Left unchecked, these distortions can become damaging and limit your ability to do what you want or need to do, such as stopping substance abuse.

A dual diagnosis of both substance addiction and cognitive distortion is very common. Also called “co-morbidity,” these issues can cause you to constantly bounce between positive thoughts about recovery and those thoughts which encourage further substance abuse.

Where it comes to treating addiction and the cognitive distortions which so often accompany it, there are several options to consider.

If a psychiatric evaluation has been recommended, medication may be prescribed for the purpose of symptom management. Holistic treatments and approaches consider your spiritual health, as well as your emotional, mental, and physical health.

Lasting Recovery – A Strong Support System Is Essential

Abdullah Al Noman — Fri, 14 May 2021 06:03:55 +0000

Every stage of recovery has its challenges. By having a positive support system, you can reap many benefits. Not only will having support help you avoid relapse by helping you cope with stress and triggers, but it can also promote a greater sense of well-being and empower you to continue on the path of recovery.

With a positive support system, those around you can help you look forward to a healthier lifestyle, and keep you focused on recovery as you learn how to avoid triggers. Your system is also about peer influence—the positive kind, where your supporters encourage healthy behaviors and making healthy decisions.

Recovery can include experiencing a variety of emotions, many of which can trigger a relapse. A strong support network can give you a healthy place to turn to. Instead of using drugs, your network can help you find healthy and constructive ways to deal with what you are feeling.

If substance abuse has isolated you from family and former friends, finding people who will support you in your recovery can seem difficult or impossible. However, the reality is that there are many people who will be willing to. The first thing to do will be to figure out who you need in your support system.

Your next step will be to find someone you want to include in your system and be specific about what you want from them when you ask. If you’ve identified what you need, this will be a bit easier to do.

Ways to Support a Recovering Addict

Abdullah Al Noman — Fri, 14 May 2021 05:42:06 +0000

Addiction is understood to be a chronic disease and requires ongoing treatment, support, and lifestyle changes. As a friend or family member of a recovering addict, you know first-hand that addiction affects not only the people with the disease but those around them. Recovery is a journey not only for the addict but for their loved ones as well.

Depending on your relationship with the addicted individual, you may have a habit of taking on more than your share of responsibility for household chores, childcare, and financial management. Your natural desire to ease the transition of your loved ones from sober living rehab back into the home can cause you to focus so much energy on supporting their needs that you neglect your own.

It is more productive to find the support you need to engage in changing old habits and creating a new, stronger relationship which avoids any enabling behaviors of the past. Also, seeing your commitment to personal improvement and therapy will help your loved ones to keep up with their own treatment schedules.

The best home environment for recovery is free of any intoxicating substances. While you may have kept alcohol on hand for social events and special occasions in the past, your support in removing it now is essential. Replacing a drug addiction with alcohol abuse (or vice versa) is all too common.

In addition to drugs of abuse and alcohol, you may want to proactively clear the house of cold medicine, possible inhalants like strong glue, alcohol-based extracts, and prescription medications. Providing the ideal environment helps prevent relapse and offers the best chance of recovery.

Eating Healthy – Tips for Success

Abdullah Al Noman — Fri, 14 May 2021 05:19:23 +0000

In addiction treatment, it is important to focus on health—which starts with eating the right foods to nourish your recovery. Our body need the right nourishment in order to facilitate the ongoing healing processes of recovery. Our foundation begins with food, and when we pay attention to the foods we are eating, we are able to pinpoint those which serve us healthfully and those which do not.

As the body recovers from addiction, it experiences a whole range of physical effects. Food is one of the most powerful resources we have to fuel our bodies appropriately. Swapping habitual comfort foods for smarter snacks creates long-term habits that are synonymous with your recovery and the progress that you are making in your health and well-being.

Whether you enjoy cooking or are a less-adventurous eater, establishing a routine is key. When you have firm times set up for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, you create the path to better sleep, better digestion, and overall better moods. Establish a routine that corresponds with your schedule, and make it a point to stick to it.

How long alcohol stays in your body ?

Abdullah Al Noman — Wed, 12 May 2021 12:54:16 +0000

It depends almost entirely on the quantity of alcohol had to drink. Every hour, the body burns through about one drink worth of alcohol (approximately 0.016 percent of BAC). Certain chemicals can even stay in your hair for up to 90 days. A typical urine test can pick up traces of alcohol for as long as 12 or even 48 hours after drinking. Some of the latest, most advanced tests can even measure alcohol levels for up to 80 hours after someone has had a drink.

Alcohol passes through your stomach and small intestines, where it gets absorbed through the bloodstream. The stomach absorbs about 20 percent of the alcohol, which goes straight to the blood vessels and, from there, to the brain. The small intestine absorbs the other 80 percent. Once it enters your bloodstream, your body metabolizes it at a rate of 20 milligrams per deciliter (mg/dL) per hour.

A healthy liver will filter about one drink per hour. Finally, the kidneys continue to break down the alcohol before expelling the waste through the urine. You also release toxic byproducts through your breath and sweat.