In the big picture of drug and alcohol treatment centers, sometimes the value of small things gets lost.  The importance of structure in your life in relation to sobriety has been spoken about repeatedly.  When we talk of structure, what pops to mind most often is a good job with meaningful work.  Then next is groups that you can belong to that meet at regular intervals to learn, socialize, or exercise.  Volunteering on a regular basis is a great source of structure as well.

Developing a set of daily rituals can be another excellent source of structure in your life.  Getting up early every morning and having a cup of coffee by yourself and giving thanks to the world can be an wonderful source of structure.  If you take some music lessons, then practicing playing at the same time everyday is another way to put structure back into your life.  They become a grounding force in your life when you do them every day, NO MATTER WHAT.  In addiction as it progresses the drug  and alcohol use take priority over everything in your life.  In sobriety and sanity you can and will value many things and can honor them all.  Your sense of dignity and committment to many things becomes most valued of all.

Phoning a family member at the same time every day to check in and see how they are doing can be another source of structure.  If you have an eldery or solitary relative living away from you, it will become the high point of their day.  It will also be one more reason why you matter in the world and one less reason to drink or use drugs.

Filling a good chunk of your day with structure will free you from the tyranny of choice.  Being free to choose is a wonderful thing.  Having to choose what to do every waking moment of every single day is a burden.  Let structure and daily rituals bring peace and comfort to your life.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 27th, 2007 at 7:52 am and is filed under Drug Rehab. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.