Aging baby boomers in their 50s and 60s are using illegal drugs at alarming rates. Beating an addiction to drugs or alcohol isn’t simple when you’re in your midlife years, but it can lead you toward ways to find new purpose in your 50s. Counseling is an important aspect of addiction treatment that can help you overcome your dependence on substances and find new purpose in your 50s and beyond.
Addiction Treatment and Counseling
If you have developed an addiction to drugs or alcohol, it’s important for your physical and mental health to enter addiction treatment. An adult addiction treatment program should focus on approaching recovery through a variety of counseling and therapeutic methods. If you are in your middle years, the treatment approach should be different from programs that treat young adults in their 20s.
As a midlife adult, you may begin to feel as though your purpose in life is gone, especially if you’ve been mired in drug addiction for years. Through individual and group therapy sessions, you can find new motivation and goals that will change your perspective and help you find a new purpose in your 50s.
Therapeutic Approaches: Find New Purpose in Your 50s
A rehab facility for midlife adults that takes an integrated approach to recovery understands that drugs and alcohol affect the mind, the body, and the spirit. Treating all of these physical, psychological and spiritual aspects of your life may involve the following treatment modalities:
- Individual Counseling: These one-on-one psychotherapy sessions are helpful for those in midlife, as struggles and despair are very common for those in their fifties, with or without an addiction issue. You may discover things about yourself that you once knew but have lost track of in the last few years, and counseling will help you renew your life’s goals.
- Exercise: Chances are good that while you were drinking or using drugs, you weren’t paying attention to a regular exercise routine. Exercising regularly can increase your energy levels and make you feel happier, in addition to improving your physical health.
- New Friends: Make friends with people who are sober, rather than keeping up with enabling friends who may entice you to drink or take drugs again. Spending time on new friendships will be a boon to your self-esteem and will give you the support you need to stay sober.
- Discover New Hobbies: Getting into new hobbies or activities can change your life for the better. It will keep your mind off using substances as it also gives you a new lease on life. If you’ve always wanted to act, join a community theater. Find a hobby, volunteer somewhere, practice artistic endeavors and take advantage of the extra time you now have in life since you’ve given up drinking or taking drugs.
- Relieve Stress: Stress is often one of the main causes of substance abuse and relapse. Nurture your spirit and relieve stress with mindfulness classes and meditation.
Start fresh, beginning with taking these five steps to help you find new purpose in your 50s. If substance abuse is part of your struggle, treatment is available to help people in your age group find renewed life in sobriety.
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