Balancing parenting while prioritizing your addiction recovery journey can be a lot. Each takes an immense amount of time and commitment. That being said, you should never have to choose between prioritizing your recovery and raising your kids. If you’re worried about being a bad parent while you recover, keep reading to learn how mindful parenting in recovery can work in your family.
At Hammocks on the Edisto, we are a premier women’s treatment center in South Carolina that provides individualized treatment to best support each patient’s unique recovery needs. With a range of addiction treatment programs available, we’re here to help you break free of addiction and lead a healthier, happier life of sobriety. Contact us today to start your road to recovery.
How to Parent Effectively While Also Prioritizing Your Recovery Journey
You should never have to choose between prioritizing your children and prioritizing your recovery journey. Although both require enormous time and commitment, being a good parent while also taking care of yourself and maintaining sobriety is possible. And, your sobriety can help break any generational cycle of addiction that may be passed down in your family.
Oftentimes, addiction can be passed down from generation to generation. Research suggests that around 50 percent of alcohol addiction is inherited. This staggering statistic shows just how important it is for parents not only to get clean in recovery, but break the generational cycle and teach their kids lessons on how to maintain a healthier, happier life free from addiction. Keep reading to learn five tips you can use for mindful parenting in recovery.
5 Mindful Parenting Tips You Can Use in Recovery
Being in the Present Moment
First, mindful parenting is all about feeling grounded and being in the present moment with your child. Rather than being distracted or busy with other life responsibilities, it’s important you are fully engaged with your children so you can create a healthy and safe space for you to parent and connect with your child.
Model Self-Control & Regulation
As you progress through recovery and beyond, it’s important to model self-control and regulation for your child. This way when they get older and may be tempted to use drugs themselves, they’ve already developed the ability of self-control and saying “no” to doing any addictive substances.
Practice Healthy Communication
Mindful parenting in recovery also looks like practicing healthy and open communication with your child. Communication is important, especially as your child grows up and becomes a teen, so your child knows they can always come to you for advice and support, regardless of what they are going through.
Teach Your Child How to Cope with Stress
Next, it’s important to teach your child early about healthy coping strategies, or how to cope with stress in a healthy manner. Everyone experiences stress, and stress is just a normal part of life. However, how you handle your stress can potentially be damaging, especially if you turn to drugs or alcohol to relieve your stress. Therefore, it’s important to teach your kids when they start experiencing stress that they can turn to things like exercising or journaling to cope with stressful moments.
Be Aware of Potential Triggers
Mindful parenting in recovery also looks like being aware of any potential triggers or needs your child may have that puts them at an increased risk of abusing drugs. Whether this is you notice your child may be struggling with mental illness and helping them seek support from a therapist or you suspect they may be experimenting with drugs, it’s important to be proactive in your child’s life and needs.
Start Your Road to Recovery Today
Now you know more about mindful parenting in recovery, and how you can still prioritize your recovery while also being a great parent. Mindful parenting is not just about being the best parent you can be, but it’s also about breaking any generational cycle of addiction that may run in your family so your kids can grow up free from the chains of addiction. If you or someone you know is struggling with addiction, help is available. At Hammocks on the Edisto, we’re here to help you safely and effectively achieve long-term sobriety. We understand that no two recovery journeys are ever the same. That’s why our women’s addiction treatment center offers a comprehensive range of treatment programs and options to best support your road to recovery. Ready to break free of addiction for good? Contact us today!
