It’s simply your soul telling you it needs replenished and enriched by you and you alone. Another important thing to remember about loneliness is that it’s really just in your head. Just because you’re alone doesn’t mean you are necessarily lonely.

In a recent survey, nearly three out of four adults reported feeling a deep sense of loneliness. Whether you consider yourself a social butterfly or a wallflower, loneliness in sobriety all humans are social beings. There’s hardly a moment in your life when you aren’t interacting with someone else or benefiting from their activities.

Loneliness, Recovery, and SUD: What the Science Says

Solitude is not loneliness, but an opportunity to recharge your brain without energy-draining distractions constantly demanding attention. Solitude can also increase your productivity, improve concentration, and provide you with the time necessary to rediscover yourself. It lets you consider several solutions to problems that have been nagging you without interference from daily life interruption. It’s important to remember that loneliness isn’t just the absence of companionship; it’s the presence of psychological stress. Studies have shown that loneliness is linked to a greater likelihood of high blood pressure, diabetes, depression, and psychological distress.

• Isolation leads to people feeling more lonely, and loneliness can lead to substance use.
• Feeling this avenue of socializing is restricted in this way might make you feel lonely.
• Social support will provide you with a plethora of guidance, therapy, and advice on how to cope with loneliness and isolation.
• Bridges of Hope is a Joint Commission-accredited dual-diagnosis substance abuse treatment program.

And for millions, they’ve been the first line of defense against loneliness. After drug or alcohol rehab, those in recovery must build a new social support network, often from the ground up. A support system can consist of various individuals or groups who offer emotional, social, or practical support. This may include friends, family members, peers in recovery, support groups, or mental health professionals. The key is to identify individuals who are supportive, non-judgmental, and understanding of the challenges faced during addiction recovery.

Relevance Behavioral Health is Here to Help Overcome the Loneliness of Addiction

The last thing to remember is that there are healthy ways to cope with loneliness that don’t involve drugs or alcohol. If you and your loved ones can keep that in perspective, you’ll be a greater distance away from the threat of addiction. Nevertheless, that means your previous social support group is now gone.