People suffering from addiction to any substance behave differently, act ferociously, and think negatively a lot of the time. This can cause serious turbulence in the relationships for the person struggling, including the ones with their spouse, family, children, parents, friends, and professional colleagues. To say the least, your substance use has caused a roller coaster of events in your family and social life.
Addiction Might Erode Trust
Most importantly, what gets eroded while a person is struggling with substance use is trust. Familial ties, social networks, community relations, and spousal bonds all go through hardships when someone is drinking and/or using. That distrust is built over time based on the person’s actions and reactions in all sorts of situations. The significant behavioral changes when drinking and/or using can cause spousal breakups, family disconnections, and social avoidance.
After you make the decision to begin down the recovery path and go through detoxification, working on rebuilding and restoring that long-lost trust should be one of the first priorities. Your family has suffered a lot, and they deserve your time and attention now. Your time and attention can show them that they should trust in you as you embark on your recovery journey.
Why Does Addiction Affect Trust in Relationships?
If you are having second thoughts when thinking about why your family and loved ones deserve concerted efforts towards restoring trust while you’re in recovery, consider the impact your actions had on them while you were struggling with substance use. They could be feeling many different feelings based on your prior actions, including:
- Mental, emotional, and maybe even physical hurt that they sustained while you were struggling with addiction
- Betrayal from the actions you took in different incidents during addiction, whether intentional or otherwise
- A loss of identity they experienced while trying to safeguard you over the years
- Lowered self-respect they sustained during your struggles
- Negativity about the potential erosion of their family unit
These are just some of the many potential areas of suffering they may have faced. What’s most important, though, is the fact that the time to act is now. Now that you are in recovery from your addiction and moving on to the next step in your life, spending some time to restore trust can be crucial for your long-term recovery goals and the health of your family unit.
6 Ways to Restore Trust
- Time to Do What You Once Said. While you were going through addiction, you might have made many promises. Once you are through treatment, it is time to make sure you make good on those promises. Show your changed behavior through good actions, re-establishing social ties, working hard on your community networks, and more.
- Ensure Better Communications With Everyone Around. While you were struggling, you lost trust with your friends, family, relatives, and peers. Work towards rebuilding your relations with your loved ones. Communicate openly, socialize more often, talk happily, and express your views better. Make full use of the therapies and methods you learned at the rehab center.
- Work on Your Body to Stay Positive. The healthier your body is, the more rejuvenated your mind will feel. Exercise, eat right, and stay fit. That’s the least you can do to stay positive about life, your relations, and your health. Also, make sure you know what to do and where to seek external help. Contact a trustworthy treatment center or recovery specialist to help you plan out a healthy diet and detox plan. Your family will definitely appreciate your responsible actions.
- Work on Your Mental Health to Avoid Relapse. Relapse is always a danger. It can happen to even the strongest of us. However, taking precautions can help you to avoid that danger. Meditate, avoid overthinking, indulge in yoga or physical activities, and make time for your hobbies to stay strong mentally and emotionally. Seek the support of your family in activities that change your mood and relax your mind.
- Stay Consistent and Tied to Your Recovery Goals. People will trust you only when you have trust in yourself. Stay consistent, set attainable goals, and record your personal growth over the short and long terms. Discuss these goals with your family and healthcare provider, as well.
- Set a Daily Family Routine. Your family routine has probably gone awry over the years of your substance use. Episodes of trauma, mental stress, and fighting have taken over those happy moments of family dinners and conversations. Take the initiative to get back to the positive family routines of the days before your substance use.
While you work to rebuild trust, always remember that it takes time. Restoring the trust of others in you can be a lengthy process that takes hard work and commitment. With that in mind, it’s important to remember not to rush into fixing things for yourself and your loved ones. It could take anywhere from a few weeks to several years to rebuild those relationships.
Restoring long-lost trust among family, siblings, parents, and peers is integral to your recovery journey. Your loved ones have suffered a lot, and so have you. It is time to restore those relationships and the quality of life itself. Work towards restoring trust by taking steps to work on yourself and others. If you’re struggling, don’t forget to potentially seek external assistance. You can restore the trust of others in you after substance use. At HealthyU, we have the professional help you need. HealthyU is a safe place to begin your recovery process, with well-regarded healthcare professionals who are experienced in tracking your mindset, detecting the issues you are facing, and devising a customized treatment plan for you. HealthyU’s outpatient programs allow you easy access to a trustworthy counselor for up to three days a week. If you are looking to regain control over your life, call our representatives today at (619) 542-9542.
