If you are struggling with substance abuse, you are not alone. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), 48.5 million people suffered from a substance use disorder in 2023.[1]
While total abstinence is often recommended in addiction treatment programs and the recovery world, it’s not always right for everyone. For example, if you need to treat chronic pain or a mental health condition like post-traumatic stress disorder, medical cannabis might be your best route to recovery. It is possible to use medical cannabis in addiction recovery while staying sober and creating healthy routines.
If you are using medical marijuana in recovery from addiction, attending a sober living program can help you stay on the right path. That said, you’ll need to do some work to ensure you create a healthy routine that supports long-term sobriety from other substances. The best ways to do this include finding a job or attending school, keeping a healthy sleep schedule, attending regular sober support meetings, making time for fun activities, and using resources to help you manage your medical marijuana use.
At Patrick’s Purpose, we pride ourselves on being a medical marijuana-friendly sober living program. We help our clients balance addiction recovery with cannabis use by offering Go Green Meetings, a support group that can help you learn how to manage your weed consumption in recovery from other addictions.
How to Create a Healthy Routine in Sober Living
When you are in a sober living program, creating healthy habits is important. If you create good habits while you have support, you’ll be better off once you begin your journey of independence. A healthy routine can lessen the risk of physical and mental health problems and support your sober lifestyle at the same time.
The best ways to create healthy daily routines while you are living in a sober home include:
Find a Job or Attend School
Once in a sober living program, you’ll have tons of free time during the day. Having too much free time on your hands can lead to boredom, which can be a trigger for relapse. If you use medical marijuana, free time could increase your risk of misusing your medication.
To combat boredom, you should find a job or return to school. This will lessen the free time you have and provide you with a sense of purpose at the same time. Additionally, choosing to work can increase the amount of money you have, making it easier for you to pay your rent at your sober living home.
Keep a Healthy Sleep Schedule
Struggling with addiction can wreak havoc on your sleep schedule. If you were addicted to a stimulant, you might not have slept for days at a time. On the other hand, depressant drug abuse leads to oversleeping.
Once you are in sober living, it’s time to start correcting your sleep schedule. A healthy sleep schedule can improve your mood, physical health, and provide you with the energy you need to engage in physical activity or complete your responsibilities. It also helps you create a healthy routine by offering a set time to wake up and sleep.
Go to Regular Sober Support Meetings
Medical marijuana can treat a wide range of conditions, including chronic pain and PTSD. That said, there is a risk of developing an addiction when it comes to cannabis use. Because of this, you must continue to attend sober support meetings to ensure you have the tools and support you need to remain clean.
Making sober support meetings a part of your daily schedule also helps you develop a healthy routine. You could find meetings to attend at least 3 times per week, incorporating structure and social interaction into your routine.
Plan Fun Activities With Friends
While maintaining sobriety takes a lot of work, you also need to have fun. Scheduling time for fun with friends can increase your mental health, prevent feelings of loneliness, and allow you to blow off steam or reduce stress from activities like work.
Ideas for fun and sober-friendly activities include:
- Going to art museums
- Engaging in outdoorsy activities like hiking or kayaking
- Trying out new restaurants in the area
- Going to the movies or mini-golf
- Having TV show watch parties at a friend’s house when each episode airs
- Creating art or crafts with your friends
- Volunteering for causes in your local community
- Going to yoga meet-ups at a park
- And more!
Learn to Balance Medical Cannabis and Addiction Recovery
If you are using medical marijuana in addiction recovery, you need to learn how to balance your weed use with your sobriety. You should always remain open and honest about your cannabis use with your therapist. They can help you develop the coping skills you need to ensure your marijuana use remains healthy for your recovery.
Even further, you should join a support group specifically designed for people who use cannabis in recovery from addiction. At Patrick’s Purpose, we offer Go Green Meetings to our residents who engage in medical marijuana use.
Get Connected to a Medical Marijuana-Friendly Sober Living
If you or a loved one used medical cannabis in recovery from addiction, you might have a hard time finding a sober living program that will accept you. Thankfully, programs like Patrick’s Purpose understand the need for medical marijuana and accept clients who need to use it. We know that medical weed can be a good alternative to other, more harmful medications like opioids or benzodiazepines.
Contact us today to learn more about our medical cannabis-friendly sober living program.
References:
- The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA): Highlights for the 2023 National Survey on Drug Use and Health