Nutrition is important on the road to recovery. Clinicians often advise newly sober people to remember to HALT—avoid getting too “hungry, angry, lonely or tired,” any of which can trigger a relapse. Good nutrition is one of the most crucial elements in succeeding during early sobriety. Receiving the proper amount of vitamins and minerals can help you feel better as your body gets back into balance. This is often why newly received patients are seen by either a physician or nutritionist. Developing proper eating habits can help increase your overall physical, mental and emotional health.
Establish A Healthy Eating Routine
Following a healthy eating schedule is not only important in regaining your physical strength and stability, but it can also help mitigate the mood swings often associated with detoxing or recovery. It can help decrease symptoms of depression too. Developing a routine, such as eating breakfast at a certain time each day or ensuring that you don’t eat past a certain time each night, is helpful. Simply organizing your eating schedule aids in organizing other areas of your life as you continue to heal. Consuming the rights kinds of foods during these specified hours is crucial. Studies show the consumption of certain foods has been linked to increased production of neurotransmitters such as serotonin, which enhances mood.
Get Enough Vitamins and Minerals
Many people with substance use disorders also experience nutrient deficiencies. Ensure you’re getting the right amounts of vitamins and minerals to fuel your body during recovery. Citicoline, for example, is an essential B vitamin that helps promote optimal brain function. It also helps decrease addictive cravings. Other similar minerals such as thiamine, which is important for healthy neurological functions, can help you get the energy to recover while also helping you feel clear-headed. It’s generally recommended to get as many vitamins and minerals as you can naturally from fresh fruits and vegetables. Also, avoid sugar. It can play into addictive tendencies that might set you back and leave you feeling sluggish. If you opt to take supplements, read the ingredients carefully. Consult a physician before taking anything out of the norm.
Stay Positive
The road to recovery is a marathon, not a sprint. This is important to remember during the process. As with any big lifestyle change, recovery requires you to completely change old habits that center around your eating, nutrition and overall health. This is difficult for anybody to do, and more so if you are struggling with addiction. So it’s important to keep this in mind and put things into perspective. Focus on small, daily changes you can make in your nutrition and health. Eventually you will see the larger changes coming to fruition.
Sponsored DISCLAIMER: This is a paid advertisement for California Behavioral Health, LLC, a CA licensed substance abuse treatment provider and not a service provided by The Fix. Calls to this number are answered by CBH, free and without obligation to the consumer. No one who answers the call receives a fee based upon the consumer’s choice to enter treatment. For additional info on other treatment providers and options visit www.samhsa.gov.
