Why Staying Active Is A Crucial Move Towards Sobriety And Recovery

Excessive alcohol and drug use can significantly impact your mind and body. If you’re addicted, walking away from using these drugs can be difficult. However, the good thing is that it isn’t impossible. If you work hard enough, you can live a drug-free life.

There are many treatment options that you can select to combat your drug addiction. Some of them include visiting San Diego drug and alcohol rehab, undergoing cognitive behavioral therapy, and taking a 12-step drug addiction program. But a less common way of attaining sobriety is engaging in physical activity.

Here are some ways that exercises can help you recover quickly:

  1. It Reduces Stress

Some individuals find themselves depending on drugs and alcohol because of stress. They think that by gulping glasses of beer or wine, they’ll alleviate their stress levels. Unfortunately, the stress relief brought by these drugs is occasional and may eventually disappear. When this happens, the drugs become a direct stressor.

When you decide to refrain from using drugs and visit a rehab center, stress won’t disappear. In fact, some people may come out of the rehab more stressed. Fortunately, you can reduce your stress levels through exercising. Research indicates that physical activity raises the heart rate and increases blood circulation, thus eliminating hormones that cause stress.

Other studies also show that regular exercises can help recovering individuals to stay sober and cleaner in the short and long terms. As you exercise, the brain releases chemicals that fight the stress. Therefore, by creating a healthy exercise routine, you’ll minimize your stress levels and hasten your recovery.

  1. It Enhances Sleep Quality

During the first recovery phases, it’s common to have sleep problems. Interestingly, almost all drugs, whether they’re stimulants like cocaine or depressants like alcohol, affect your sleep quality. When you seize from taking these drugs, the problems escalate. Without sleep, you’ll feel tired, sluggish, and unproductive for the better part of the day.

To combat this problem, you may form a habit of using over-the-counter drugs. Unfortunately, these also have their effects. Unlike these drugs, regular exercise can boost your sleep in terms of quality and amount of hours. They can also help you combat the urge to nap during the day because your wakefulness will also improve as your sleep improves.

With sound sleep, you’ll be more focussed and able to tackle various tasks during the day.

Exercise improves sleep by changing your body temperature. When you exercise, your temperature increases: when you sleep, it decreases. Frequent exercise helps the body to cool faster. This cooling process will help you to sleep easily. However, you may have to wait for weeks or months to notice significant changes.

  1. It Minimizes Relapse

Regular exercise can prevent you from returning to drug or alcohol use. Some studies show that it increases alcohol abstinence rate by 95%. That’s because it helps you avoid things, places, and people that encourage substance use. When you exercise, you’ll have the urge to want to spend time riding a bike, running, and rock-climbing instead of using drugs.

The Bottom Line

If you’re still grappling with stress and withdrawal symptoms even after visiting the rehab, why not try exercising? Studies have shown that can it can help you recover quickly in numerous ways.

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