alternatives to NA Archives

Living a Healthy Lifestyle in Recovery – New Course

February 21, 2021 By Nick Leave a Comment

Are you ready to live a healthy life in recovery?

One thing that has become apparent in this last year of the global pandemic is the need to take care of ourselves physically and emotionally. We’ve been thinking about how that applies to those of us in the world of sobriety and recovery. In fact, anyone who is sober knows that self care and health is of critical importance for maintaining sobriety.

That’s why we decided to create and release a brand new course; Living a Healthy Lifestyle in Recovery.

When you are on a sober journey for life there are many things to consider. And, while not being addicted is certainly one component of sobriety it is not the only one. What we mean by this is that in order to successfully maintain sobriety over your lifetime you need to have things in order in your life. This includes eating healthy, maintaining decent activity levels daily and adopting some kind of mental health / spiritual health routines.

In Living a Healthy Lifestyle in Recovery we dive deep into these three topic areas. We’ll teach you exactly what you need to do in order to build habits and routines that will support you over the long term. The course is a short course coming in just under an hour long but covers three main areas:

Physical Health

In our physical health section we teach the core principles surrounding nutrition, fitness and sleep. These principles serve as the foundation for feeling great every single day from a physical perspective. You want to wake up each day with the energy and gusto to attack the day and if even one of these elements comes up short you won’t be able to operate in the peak zone required for a life of recovery.

Psychological Health

Once you’ve sorted out your physical approach to health you can then focus on being strong mentally (of course you can choose to start here if you feel inclined!). It actually doesn’t matter what order you focus on and you should likely be working on all areas of your life at one time. However, our psychological health section helps you establish good practices in all areas that affect mental health.

Social Health

Our final section deals with the social aspects of life. Every day we are faced with relationships that span work, friends and family. This means that you need to be aware of how to deal with these relationships in the right way to protect your sobriety and sober journey. If you aren’t prepared to deal with a hostile coworker, for instance, you might be inclined to pick up a bottle of wine when you get home as a coping mechanism.

This short course is a great reminder for why you need to be focused on the whole self during recovery. Think of it as a quick shot in the arm for recovery.

After finishing the course you will understand:

Why you need to incorporate the Sobriety Success Method into your life to live a healthy lifestyle in recovery;
The importance of nutrition while in recovery and what it takes to make a healthy nutrition plan;
The importance of fitness while in recovery and what a healthy fitness plan consists of;
How to incorporate healthy sleep habits to ensure you are living the healthiest life in recovery;
Why taking care of your psychological health is important in recovery and how to keep psychologically healthy.

Want to take this course?

Living a Healthy Lifestyle in Recovery is just one of more than 20+ courses that are included as part of your membership to Sobriety Success. Sobriety Success is a comprehensive program that helps you overcome addiction through self-paced courses, workbooks, eBooks, podcasts and much, much more.

Find out more about the available plans by clicking here!

Free Online Substance Abuse Courses

January 15, 2021 By Nick 3 Comments

Looking for free online substance abuse courses? In order to support your mental health we’ve been building our new vide series, 30 Days to Sobriety Success and we’re releasing it for free.

If you’ve been struggling to get and stay sober, this is the perfect opportunity for you to learn in a relaxed, easy way. Online courses are typically longer investments of time and money that not everyone can afford. That’s why our 30 day free tip series doesn’t require any kind of sign up process of registration.

In fact, we have been uploading a video each day to help people overcome their addictions. This series is designed to provide little nuggets of help to anyone who might need it.

How to access free online substance abuse courses

Access to our free program, 30 Days to Sobriety Success, is done via YouTube. No special registration is required and it means you can take action and implement the techniques we’ve created for you right away. No purchase is neccessary – we strongly feel that these tools and supporting activities are a way for you to jumpstart recovery.

As you build up your skills and strategies for coping with getting sober you will learn how to properly deal with your substance use disorder. These tips aren’t a complete substitute for a proper addiction recovery course however.

Designed to provide you with short bites of information you can use we recommend starting with Day 1 and moving through each of the days from there.

Supporting Mental Health Online

There is an assumption, created from professionals in the industry, that getting help for your addiction needs to be done in person. But, the pandemic has taught us that we can actually get access to the same materials and resources online. By building awareness of online programs, like Sobriety Success for instance, we hope to provide a generation of people the tools neccessary to counteract the harmful effects of addiction.

New technology has enabled the delivery of treatment for substance or behavioral addictions remotely. This has opened up the possibilities for so many people around the world. If you are already sober and working on your long-term recovery then continuing education is a great way to keep invigorated and focused.

There are many factors that contribute to living a healthy life. And, while it is never possible to perfect 100% of the time, if you arm yourself with the strategies needed for success you can expect to have much more success in the long run.

Each person is unique when it comes to overcoming addiction which is why a unique, individual approach, to recovery is the recommended approach by many professionals.

Your Next Steps

If you are ready to get started now on your free videos then head on over to our YouTube channel. However, if you are interested in exploring more of a comprehensive approach to overcoming your addiction then I’d recommend checking out our full online program, Sobriety Success.

Sobriety Success is made up of over 24 online courses designed to support your recovery at every level. In addition we provide bonus materials, learning guides, ebooks and master class sessions along the way. Pricing is affordable with simple, month to month pricing and no long term commitments. Sobriety Success is a smart option when it comes to fighting addiction and it doesn’t require an expensive rehab program.

Furthermore Sobriety Success has a private, exclusive, support group that helps other people like you to achieve your long term recovery goals.

You don’t have to do this alone and by becoming a part of the global community you’ll see incredible success.

The Sobriety Success Method

February 5, 2020 By Nick Leave a Comment

Fighting addiction is hard. The Sobriety Success Method makes it easier.

Over the last few years we’ve been working with more than 2,000 students worldwide to help them overcome their addictions. For some people, the journey has been relatively straightforward. For others, however, the journey has been a little bit more complex.

We founded Live Rehab and developed our approach to recovery to help anyone who might be struggling with addiction. A while ago, we realized that a book might be a fundamental way to help people and that’s when the idea was born, The Sobriety Success Method.

I’m excited to announce that The Sobriety Success Method is now officially launched and available for purchase on Amazon. Within just a few days it has also become #1 on Amazon for Sobriety!

So, what exactly is The Sobriety Success Method and why should you get yourself a copy?

The book is split into 4 main sections and each section is designed to work together in order to help you overcome addiction from a holistic, 360 degree perspective.

Physical Health

Psychological Health

Social Health

Addiction Focus

The old approach to addiction recovery is broken

There’s a problem with how the modern world is approaching getting sober.

Breaking the chains of addiction typically means you’re thinking about either a) rehab in person or b) alcoholics anonymous (or narcotics anonymous). And that’s a major problem.

In our normal, everyday lives, we would never accept a 5-10% success rate on just about anything would we? Imagine visiting a restaurant who said that 9 out of 10 times your dish would be inedible. Oh and that they didn’t give any refunds.

That’s what visiting traditional rehab is like. Marketwatch in 2014 did an investigative report into traditional rehab centers and found that relapse rates and success rates were horrendously bad when they were even reported at all.

The rates for AA/NA or a 12-step program aren’t much better either and they don’t even have to publish their results either. Ofcourse, there will be plenty of people who can come forward and explain how AA or a treatment center saved their lives. But, that’s not the point.

It’s time for something new.

The Sobriety Success Method is the first approach towards getting sober that changes it all. Designed to be done at home, The Sobriety Success Method allows people to get fight addiction without having to leave friends, family, pets or work like a normal rehab program does.

Here’s how the book is broken down and how it supports long-term sobriety.

Physical Health

Your physical health represents an important function of overcoming addiction. The book dives deep into how to rebuild your approach to healthy living. This includes things like how to overhaul your diet, sleep and activity levels.

Physical health has been shown to be linked quite closely to mental health and the same goes for addiction. Mastering your physical health becomes vital after years of abuse from addiction.

Psychological Health

It should go without saying that focusing on your psychological health has plenty of benefits. But this section of the book is designed to walk you through the process of setting the proper mental health foundations you need.

Your psychological health isn’t just limited to your mental health however as The Sobriety Success Method also examines key topics in areas like spirituality and living intentionally. Strong psychological health gives you the strength to overcome addiction and you need to build resilience to win the battles ahead.

Social Health

Social situations crop up all the time in recovery. You need to know exactly how to deal with things like family, friends and work. If you don’t know how to deal with them or build strong social relationships, your ability to stay sober is at risk.

In The Sobriety Success Method I provide you with the tools you need to make smart decisions around who to keep in your life and who to hold at arm’s length. Making these kinds of decisions is hard but needs to happen for your recovery’s sake.

Addiction Focus

The last section of the book dives into key topics such as setting a quit date, taking inventory and managing triggers. These are all vitally important functions if you want to get sober from home. Managing triggers, for instance, helps you to identify aspects of your life that may lead to a relapse and what to do about them.

This book is about creating a holistic, 360-degree, approach to sobriety. You can’t try to get sober without tackling each of these different subject areas. All 4 of the sections build off of each other and are really very connected.

It has been my experience over the last few years that overcoming addiction requires a full approach to every aspect of your life. By writing The Sobriety Success Method I’ve given you the tools you need to get it done. Long-term recovery is not only possible but can be part of your recovery story.

What does success in sobriety look like?

A life in recovery means developing the tools, skills and mental power to live a sober life. There are many assumptions that regular meetings are the only way to achieve a successful recovery. We’ve been conditioned by other people in recovery that we need to mimic their recovery journey even if the cost of rehab is far too great.

Your journey to a successful recovery means building a recovery program the way that suits you and your life. This book gives you everything you need to create that successful sobriety journey. I know many of you want a life in sobriety and are scared to take that first step. Maybe you’ve been burned before with other alcohol treatment programs. Maybe you have other mental health issues that you need to also tackle at the same time.

To overcome a substance use disorder you have to take action. But that action can’t come at a price too great to pay. That’s why we wrote the book.

I’ve done it in a way that means you won’t ever have to leave your family, friends, pets or work and it won’t break the bank either. No more 12-step meetings and no sober living houses required.

Pick up your copy today – click here to visit Amazon.

Not convinced? Check out what Ivan had to say on his review of the book:

This book have ALL what you need to start your recovery journey right now, from home and without investing a lot of money, time and energy. The Sobriety Success Method WORKS, why do I say that? Because I had use it before.

In this book you will find all the information that you need to create your path to leave your adicction, also the book comes with some FREE PDF WORKSHEETS as bonuses that you could use to design your recovery program.

You have to get in mind that a full recovery means a full live change, you can’t change your future being the same person you were in the past, so you have to accept it and work on it (the results you will have deserves the work).

So in this book you will learn the very fundamentals that will keep you up with your full recovery:
-Diet and Excercise: (one of the most importants parts on recovery)
-Sleep: (to recover and recharge your body and mind)
-Psychological Area: (the second most important part of your recovery, this is very personal, deeper and longer work for some people, other will have nothing or just simple issues there, it depends on your live past and mindset)
-Spirituality: (another important area of your recovery) does not worry, it does not runs on religions or this kind of topics, actually the book invites you to find what is best for you
-Living Intentional Life: (third most importan area of your recovery) if you have a broing with no intention life, would be so easy to just go back to your addictions, so you have to change your way of life, everyone has something to reach on life, so here you will find the path to (find or work) on you life intentions and aspirations
-Social Life: (other very important area for your recovery) you have to connect with your social being, so let loneliness and start living a whole new life
-Adicction Topics: Triggers, Relapse Prevention (this is very, very important) how to keep your recovery

I had beeing doing the Sobriety Success Method from some time ago when I found Denise’s work on her online courses, and also I read this book and done her theraphy and online workbooks, so I know that this method works to start your path to your recovery. Always keep in mind that this is the foundation of the recovery process and that process is so personal, there is not and could not be a “one size fits all” method. So you will have to DO your own work on recover yourself, with the help and guide on this book, you will start that process, then is up to you to keep working on your new life.

Link to review

Addiction Radio EP007 Mental Health

November 24, 2018 By Nick 1 Comment

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS

What is it about mental health and addiction that go together so frequently? It’s a question we wanted to dive into during this months podcast episode. Upfront, we’d like to just say that they don’t have to go together and they are definitely not always linked in ways you might think. However, we do frequently hear from people who ask about this very subject.

Mental health is an important subject to consider when talking about addiction.

Do you have a mental issue that is perhaps the cause of your addiction?

Did your addiction potentially cause a mental health issue for you?

What came first? The Chicken or the egg theory.

There’s this thing in the addiction community called the chicken or the egg theory. We talk about this when we talk about co-occurring disorders. A co-occuring disorder is when someone is diagnosed with a mental health disorder as well as a substance use disorder. The reason we call it the chicken or the egg theory is because many times we don’t know what came first.

Co-occurring disorders – why you have to treat both at the same time

If you were already struggling with a mental health disorder then it’s important that you treat that at the same time as your addiction.. You’re going to need the help of a mental health professional.

Here’s why you must treat both at the same time.

You can go into recovery from a substance use disorder by simply not drinking or taking any mind altering substances. That’s great if that happens and for some, that’s all that’s needed to live a productive healthy life. But for others, there’s much more to it than that.

Unsure? Take the 30 day test

Oftentimes, in the beginning of sobriety, people go through the honeymoon phase. This means that after detox they feel quite well, ambitious, and energetic. But then once real life starts to set back in, mental health symptoms may start to appear and triggers or post acute withdrawal syndrome start and start to become super strong. This is one of the main reasons for relapse. But if you’re armed with the knowledge of what to expect you can prevent this.

So, the 30 day test is this. If you stop your behavior or substance use for 30 days and you don’t have any major mental health struggles then you’re likely okay to just keep on doing what you’re doing and continuing to take care of your mental health by doing things from home. However, if after 30 day of abstaining from your addiction you still have mental health struggles such as anxiety, depression, thoughts of suicide, and so on then it’s important that you make an appointment with a mental health professional.

Those symptoms will not go away on their own.

You need to take action and take charge so that you can also obtain a life free from your addiction.

How to find a mental health professional in your area and what to expect.

So now that we’ve talked about how important it is to tackle your mental health at the same time as your addiction let’s talk about how to go about finding a mental health professional.

There are many ways you can talk to a professional. The first thing you’ll want to do it decide what kind of professional you need.

Some people start with counseling. Counseling is a good way to get professional help if you’re struggling with things are that are currently going on. Let’s say you’re dealing with the death of a loved one, having a hard time being a parent, or maybe you are having problems in your marriage. A counselor is there to counsel, to give professional advice.

Some of you may prefer a therapist. A therapist will provide you with therapy. There are different types of therapy that therapists can offer but in the grand scheme of things, a therapist will be able to treat psychological problems through therapy. So for example, if you are dealing with past trauma, severe anxiety, depression, etc. you may need therapy. Now therapists do not prescribe medication, they are skilled in a specific niche such as psychotherapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, family therapy, etc. You just need to do some research to find out what type of therapy may be best for you.

Then there are psychiatrists. Psychiatrists treat mental health disorders through the use of medication. They are the ones who will prescribe anxiety medication, anti depressants and so on. In order for a psychiatrist to prescribe medication though, you do need to have a mental health diagnosis.

If you’re unsure about what you need, many behavioral health centers offer what is called a mental health intake. A mental health intake is done by a mental health professional and it’s where you go in and sit down with someone for an a hour or two and they’ll ask you questions and then give their professional advice on what they think you may need.

Taking care of your mental health (self-care, etc.)

Taking care of your mental health should always be a priority for everyone. You should think of this on the same lines of how taking care of your physical health is important.

So there are things you can do proactively and in your everyday life to make sure your mental health is where it needs to be.

Self-care looks different for everyone and what you do depends on what your mind, body and soul need in certain situations or periods in your life. A solid self care plan has been shown to reduce anxiety, depression and can lift your overall mood and ability to cope with day to day situations.

A message from Live Rehab:

Are you looking for online rehab or alternatives to AA or NA?

Here at Live Rehab, our online drug and alcohol courses help people obtain sobriety without having to leave their homes.

Does rehab really work?

For some people, traditional rehab does work but it’s clear that the option is not for everyone. This is why we have created rehab alternatives. Taking courses online means you have the flexibility to work on your sobriety on your own time.

Visit liverehab.com/pricing for more information.

Stop Drinking Alcohol – 6 Steps to Take Right Now

October 27, 2018 By Nick Leave a Comment

Stop.

Before you go any further in this blog you need to know something…

Quitting alcohol on your own, without medical supervision or a plan/program in place can literally kill you. You’ve been warned.

Now…

That being said, we decided to publish these 6 steps for anyone who wants to stop drinking alcohol. These 6 steps are the essential building blocks you need to take.

Obviously the 6 steps don’t cover absolutely everything that you need to consider but they do provide a solid foundation.

Quitting alcohol takes considerable effort and dedication. However, it is obviously a road we feel pretty dang passionate about.

The truth is…

You don’t need traditional rehab.

In fact, relapse rates are incredibly high for rehab.

The costs for traditional rehab are shockingly bad.

Plus, the time commitments are pretty much impossible for most people to be able to work.

Here are 6 fundamental steps you can take right now to stop drinking alcohol without going to rehab:

(oh and before you start any of these steps: DO NOT QUIT COLD TURKEY – IT’S DANGEROUS!)

Step 1 – Start by Tapering Down

The first thing you can do, even if you can’t do some of these other steps for a few months, is to begin tapering down. Figure out how much you are drinking every day and make a log.

After a week or so you should have a good idea of just how much alcohol you are consuming regularly.

Reduce that amount gradually.

Example:

Bill drinks 15-20 beers a day/night. Over the next few weeks, Bill commits to reducing that by 1 every other day or so.

The goal is to get to around 1-2 drinks a day before moving on to the next step.

Step 2 – Create some distance

By now you should be down to 1-2 drinks a day.

Our next step is to get you to only drink 6 days out of 7. You can do this by picking a specific day of the week you don’t drink.

It’s going to take a couple of weeks to get to this point (hey – perhaps even longer but don’t get discouraged).

Once you can do this consistently then you can consider adding in an extra day making it 2 days in a row.

Step 3 – Set a quit date 30 days

Congrats!

You’re now drinking (hopefully) considerably less than you were before and potentially having a day or two a week of sobriety.

What you need to do now is set a quit date 30 days from now.

Over the next 30 days be focused on going 1-2 days per week without drinking and only consuming 1-2 drinks a night.

30 days, with reduced alcohol intake, is enough time to get your body back to a somewhat normal baseline.

However…

If you experience any kind of body shakes, headaches or physical symptoms still at this point then you need a little more time to get your body to baseline.

Keep working on step 2 if you fall into this category.

Step 4 – Make yourself accountable

Find someone you can tell in your life who is important (think a trusted family member for instance) about your quit date.

Studies have shown that making yourself and your recovery accountable by telling someone improves rates of recovery.

It’s something we teach in all our courses too.

Step 5 – Prepare for triggers

This could probably be an entire blog post in itself!

Essentially you need to be thinking about what it is in your life that triggers you to drink in the first place.

Triggers are the “things” that make us want to drink.

Sometimes it’s music.

Other times it’s a location.

Heck, it can even be the people you love the most.

What you need to do is prepare to take your mind off of them;

Go for a walk
Take a shower
Listen to music
Watch a comforting TV show
Cook food
Garden

The important thing to do is find a quick way to get the triggering feeling away.

Sometimes though?

That trigger is you and that is something you’re going to have to learn to work through.

Step 6 – Stop drinking alcohol on the day

You’ve arrived.

Make the day count, stop drinking and celebrate each day as it comes.

We’d encourage you to post your success to the sobriety and recovery communities online if you can.

Each and every day you are sober is a win and worth celebrating.

In our platform Sobriety Success we have a specific area for the community to come together and share their progress.

If you aren’t a member though there are plenty of ways to share your success.

You can always post a photo to Instagram with the hashtag #sobrietysuccess and join in!

At the end of the day there is a lot more to consider with regards to your ongoing sobriety and recovery.

We didn’t even touch on nutrition, exercise, mental health and the social aspects in these steps.

They are important.

These 6 steps are a guide to help you understand the basic fundamentals needed to stop drinking alcohol.

We cover a lot more in our alcohol recovery course so we’d encourage you to check out Sobriety Success if you need more help.

One last time – don’t quit alcohol cold turkey.

Living a Healthy Lifestyle in Recovery – New Course

Physical Health

Psychological Health