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Recovering from an addiction can be ridiculously difficult, and the road to recovery can be long and full of obstacles. Ultimately, the feeling of success once the habit is kicked can be really rewarding, and maintaining that can be a real source of pride for people. Staying on the straight and narrow can be really tricky, with a constant tug of war occurring in your brain between the right and the wrong decisions. Here are the worst mistakes that a recovering addict can make, and how to avoid them.

1. Looking for a cure

Addiction isn’t something that can be cured. There is no magic wand or elixir that will make you all of a sudden stop craving that substance. It’s a long process, and it’s important to acknowledge that it’s something you will have to monitor for the rest of your life. The longer you’re in recovery from an addiction, the lower the chance or relapsing, but it’s always possible, and people who don’t acknowledge that are far more likely to fall foul of it.

2. Going it alone

Recovering from addiction isn’t something you can do alone from the comfort of your own bedroom. It requires the help of people around you, professionals, and support networks. Going it alone increases the sense of isolation, and makes the probability of depression and relapsing far higher. Some people find it easier to check into a rehab facility such as www.Beachway.com, while others find that a local therapist and support group will suffice.

3. Believing you can just control your intake

Many addicts believe the right path to recovery is by slowly limiting their intake of their substance of choice. In fact, this just serves to continue to feed the addiction, and doesn’t make quitting any more likely. That very first taste of the substance in the morning is what sparks the neurological addiction, meaning that binging throughout the day becomes likely.

4. Switching substances

Swapping one substance for another might seem like a way to decrease the harmfulness of a particular addiction, but it doesn’t confront the real psychological issues that prop up the addiction, meaning that you’re not closer to recovery.

5. Going back to old friends

Old habits die hard, and it’s difficult to move on with your life when  you’re stuck with the people from before. Going back to old friends can put a real spanner in the works of recovery. Yes, you need to surround yourself with people, but they have to be people who are promoting the kind of life you want, not the kind of life you had. If they’re bad influences, ditch them. It’s hard, but your life and health have to come first.

Recovering from addiction is never going to be easy, but making these mistakes can make it so much more difficult to be successful. Remember that you’re not perfect, don’t beat yourself up if you slip up, just keep on going, and make sure that end goal stays in sight.