Depression is one of the most common mental health disorders globally. Further, depression is one of the leading co-occurring disorders with substance use disorder (SUD). According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), approximately 21.5 million adults in the U.S. have a co-occurring disorder. Therefore, addressing the challenges of co-occurring disorders in early recovery and building a foundation of social support is invaluable to maintaining recovery.

At Driftwood Recovery, we know fostering connection through social support is vital to building a strong foundation for sustained recovery. The relationships you foster with others and the community you build through social support help turn the insights you learned in treatment into action. Our commitment to connection and community through social support can be seen in our attachment treatment approach. Thus, with a strong alumni program, you can be empowered by compassion, understanding, and sharing guidance.

However, numerous challenges in early recovery can make it difficult to lean into and build your social support system. Early recovery alone can make you doubt your ability to maintain your recovery. Learning to navigate your newfound independence in recovery can convince you that you are alone. Further, challenges with depressive symptoms can impede your ability to lean into your social support network. 

How do you engage in your social support network when depression weighs you down? Expanding your understanding of depression in early recovery and its impact on you can provide insight into the value of social support for healing.

Understanding Depression in Early Recovery

Depression in early recovery can be tied to preexisting challenges with depression. For example, you may have turned to self-medicating with substances as a maladaptive coping strategy to combat life stressors and trauma. Further, depression can also be present in early recovery due to features of treatment and recovery like detox and abstinence. As SAMHSA notes, depressive symptoms are common in early recovery and are often associated with withdrawal and addiction identity. Thus, the physical and emotional loss of substances can wreak havoc on your body and mind in the form of depression. 

Some of the ways depression can impact your recovery include:

  • Helplessness 
  • Hopelessness
  • Sadness
  • Decreased motivation
  • No energy to reach out for social support

Not only does depression in early recovery increase your risk for relapse, but it also has a significant impact on your relationships.

Impact of Depression on Interpersonal Relationships

According to the Development and Psychopathology Journal, depressive symptoms and interpersonal relationships can impact parent-child, peer, and romantic partner relationships. Depression and your interpersonal relationships can act as either a predecessor or a consequence of a weak social support network. Thus, depression and or poor social support can create a negative cycle in which depression can impede social support, and poor social support can increase depressive symptoms. Listed below are some of the ways depression and poor social support can harm well-being and recovery:

  • More likely to be withdrawn, respond negatively, and behave aggressively
    • Increases relationship conflict
  • Lack of energy to take an interest or participate in activities with loved ones
  • Problematic interactions and relationships like verbal abuse and emotional neglect
    • Increases depression

Further, depressive symptoms can disrupt your recovery as it leaves you feeling like maintaining your recovery is impossible. Therefore, understanding and building a social support system can be invaluable to early and lasting recovery.

Addressing the Value of Social Support for Depression

Social support considers the number of relationships you have and the function of those relationships, such as informational, instrumental, and emotional. Moreover, the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health defines social support as the resources you receive from social activities, which are broken into objective support and subjective support. Objective support includes material assistance and direct services. Meanwhile, subjective support is the emotional experience in which you feel respected, understood, and supported. 

Listed below are some of the ways strong social support can reduce depression and support mental well-being:

  • Improves adaptive coping 
  • Increases psychological resilience
  • Supports a sense of belonging
  • Helps sustain motivation
  • Decreases loneliness and negative self-appraisal

The benefits of social support highlight the value of close interpersonal relationships in your life. Yet, how do you build social support and dismantle the consequences of depression in recovery? Humans are social creatures; from birth to the end of life, there is an innate need for connection and attachment with others. Your family plays a significant role in your development as they often offer shelter, support, and affection, among other things.

Building Social Support With Family Therapy

Your family can play a crucial role in well-being, which presents family therapy as a valuable tool for building social support across different networks of support. Some of the ways family therapy can help repair relationships and foster social support include:

  • You will learn how to express your experiences to your loved ones
  • Your loved ones will learn how to best support you and themselves  
  • Increase family cohesiveness
  • Improve problem-solving skills

Looking at the ways family therapy can support building your social support network showcases connection as a path to sustained recovery.

Empowering Social Support in Recovery at Driftwood Recovery

At Driftwood Recovery, we know considering the entire family in recovery can give you the well-rounded social support you need to heal and restore balance in your life. With attachment at the core of our approach, we place great value on mutual support and community. Moreover, through our commitment to whole-person healing, you are reminded that recovery is not done in isolation but in the embrace of a strong and compassionate community. Thus, our peer-driven network is designed to support you and your loved ones throughout your recovery journey. No matter where you are on your recovery journey, in a vibrant alumni program, you can find the social support you need to lead the courageous life in recovery you deserve.

Early recovery can be exciting as you learn how to build an independent life in recovery. Yet, early recovery can also come with challenges like depressive symptoms, whether or not you experienced difficulties with co-occurring depression before treatment. Challenges with depression in recovery can increase your risk for relapse as it disrupts your ability to lean on your social support network to manage stressors. However, you can reduce depressive symptoms and foster interpersonal connection for healing with family therapy. At Driftwood Recovery, we are dedicated to providing a supportive, sober community in alumni where you and your loved ones can find the resources you need to reclaim your life. Call us at (512) 759-8330 to learn more today.

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