The Power of Connection: Dismantling Social Isolation and Loneliness in Recovery

Traditionally, social isolation and loneliness have typically been associated with older adults. For elders, the loss of friends and loved ones, coupled with distance from the busy lives of adult children, are often the root of social isolation and loneliness. As the World Health Organization (WHO) notes in “Social Isolation and Loneliness,” about 1 in 4 older people experience social isolation. However, social isolation and loneliness have grown in recent years across multiple age groups, particularly among young people. According to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), only 39% of adults in the United States feel emotionally connected to others. 

At Driftwood Recovery, we know reintegration into society post-treatment can come with a host of challenges. Unaddressed addiction and other mental health disorders are corrosive as your symptoms erode those important social support networks. Thus, social isolation and a loss of purpose from addiction and mental illness can make reintegration feel daunting. We recognize the challenges of integration and the importance of re-establishing a strong support network to maintain recovery. Therefore, we are dedicated to providing the services and resources necessary to continue to thrive long after treatment.

Yet, you may question how social isolation disrupts recovery and impedes your interpersonal relationships. It is easy to believe social isolation is necessary post-treatment as shame influences how you engage in the world. Expanding your understanding of social isolation can highlight its impact on your well-being. 

What Is Social Isolation?

Social isolation is generally associated with a poor sense of belonging, meaningful communication, and fulfilling relationships. According to the National Institute on Aging (NIA), social isolation is a lack of social contacts and few regular social interactions. Yet, social isolation is not an uncommon experience or inherently bad or harmful. As noted in General Psychiatry, social isolation is a universal human experience that seeps into every intrapersonal, interpersonal, and existential level of life. 

In some cases, you may use social isolation as a coping strategy to alleviate anxiety and depression symptoms. However, it is persistent isolation that contributes to the development of social isolation and loneliness. Thus, the universal nature of social isolation speaks to the need to understand the difference between social isolation and solitude.

The Difference Between Social Self-Isolation and Solitude

Social self-isolation can stem from a variety of factors that can negatively impact your well-being, like social anxiety and low self-esteem. However, solitude can showcase the value of alone time when done mindfully. As stated in the Journal of Personality, solitude can be conceptualized as a state of being physically alone and separate from others. In general, the definition of solitude can sound like a negative, unsociable, and harmful activity. 

However, the concept and act of solitude, much like social isolation, is not black and white. Solitude can lead to positive and negative outcomes like relaxation and loneliness, which speaks to the need for balance and reframing. When done mindfully, solitude can offer an opportunity to recharge and engage in personal growth. Listed below are some of the benefits of mindful solitude:

• Support relaxation
• Reduce stress
• Promote emotional regulation
• Enhance mindfulness
• Encourage self-reflection
• Support self-awareness and self-understanding
• Improve mental health
• Boost self-confidence
• Increase productivity
• Boost creativity
• Increase social skills
• Strengthen interpersonal relationships
• Enhance resilience
• Increase life satisfaction 

The benefits of solitude showcase the power of alone time for physical and psychological well-being. Although mindful periods of solitude can be a positive force in your life, persistent and undesired social isolation can lead to loneliness and poor health outcomes.

Understanding Social Isolation and Loneliness

Social isolation and loneliness are perceived as the same. While social isolation and loneliness often occur together, they are not the same thing. Social isolation is an objective concept in which you have few social relationships or interactions. On the other hand, loneliness is a subjective feeling in which you feel distress over an actual or perceived lack of connection with others. Moreover, loneliness is associated with the desire to have more social relationships and more satisfaction in those relationships. 

You do not have to experience the physical separation of social isolation to be lonely. Rather, you can be surrounded by people and even have several friends but feel significant loneliness. Although social isolation and loneliness do not have to exist together, they are fuel for each other to foster physical and psychological adversity.

Impact of Social Isolation and Loneliness on Addiction and Recovery

Substance use disorder (SUD) can cause significant changes to the brain that impair functioning. Challenges with anxiety and depression, poor impulse control, and emotional dysregulation highlight some of the ways addiction can fracture your relationships. Thus, addiction can push you into social isolation and loneliness, which can continue into recovery. A sense of shame, guilt, and stigma can make it difficult to reach out for recovery support or seek to restore your close relationships. Thus, social isolation and loneliness can harm your physical and psychological well-being in recovery:

• Decreased motivation
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Hypertension
• Heart disease
• Stroke
• Chronic illness
• Obesity
• Cognitive decline
• Relapse

The risk factors of social isolation and loneliness speak to the importance of meaningful social connection for health and well-being.

Dismantling Social Isolation and Loneliness at Driftwood Recovery

Social connection is an invaluable tool for sustained recovery and well-being. As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) notes, social connection fosters a sense of belonging and strengthens your social bonds. Through mutually supportive social connection, you feel loved, cared for, and valued, which contributes to greater self-esteem and fulfillment in your life. 

At Driftwood Recovery, we are committed to giving you the space and tools to break the cycle with comprehensive alumni services. In our alumni program, you can find a vibrant sober community to build meaningful connections with peers and your loved ones. You can lead a courageous life in recovery with access to meetings, events, a family program, and an engaging alumni app.

Social isolation is often associated with negative health outcomes like anxiety and depression. However, balanced solitude can support relaxation, mindfulness, and self-understanding, and even strengthen relationships. Rather, persistent social isolation can contribute to physical and psychological distress. Social isolation and loneliness together can leave you feeling disconnected and unmotivated, and impede your recovery. The sense of shame and guilt coupled with stigma can increase self-isolation. Therefore, engaging in social connection is invaluable to reducing shame and guilt and increasing your self-esteem and motivation to maintain recovery. At Driftwood Recovery, we are dedicated to providing a comprehensive alumni program built on the power of connection. With connection-driven support, you can restore your sense of belonging. Call us at (512) 759-8330 today.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 40.3 million people (14.5%) in the United States have a substance use disorder (SUD). In addition, as the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) notes, 59.3 million (23.1%) U.S. adults live with a mental illness. Further, as the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) states, approximately 21.5 million adults in the U.S. have a co-occurring disorder. The prevalence of SUD, other mental health disorders, and co-occurring disorders highlights the complexities of recovery and the need for continuing care. With continuing care in recovery, you can utilize resources like self-help groups to address various challenges in recovery. 

At Driftwood Recovery, we know fostering a connection with a community of peers in recovery is invaluable to recovery. Through the forging of deep connections with others, you can gain greater self-awareness and self-understanding. With greater self-awareness and self-understanding, you can build a strong base of connection with both the self and others to sustain recovery. The power of connection reminds you that you belong, are loved, and are deserving of healing. Thus, the power of connection with others makes self-help groups crucial to the healing process.

Yet, you may question how you can build connections with self-help groups. Often challenges with SUD and/or other mental health disorders work to disconnect you from others. SUD and mental health challenges isolate you and convince you that no one understands you or your experiences. However, self-help groups can help you recognize that you are not alone in your challenges or recovery. By increasing your knowledge of self-help groups, you can better understand their value for your well-being. 

What Are Self-Help Groups?

As noted in “Community-Based Rehabilitation: CBR Guidelines” by C. Khasnabis et al., self-help groups are informal groups of people who work together to address common challenges. At the core of self-help groups is the idea of mutual support in which the group members help each other. Further, as the American Psychological Association (APA) states, self-help groups meet regularly to help each other cope with various life problems. As a result, typically there is no fee or limit to the number of group members, and it is led by members rather than health professionals. Through self-help groups, you can find emotional support and practical help to share experiences, coping strategies, and resources. 

Yet, you may question why you would join a self-help group. Aren’t self-help groups and group therapy the same if they both offer things like experiential support? Why choose a self-help group when you can get professional support in group therapy? Group therapy can be invaluable to your recovery. However, understanding the difference between self-help and group therapy can provide insight into the value of self-help groups post-treatment.

Differences Between Self-Help and Group Therapy

According to “Understanding Group Therapy and Support Groups” by Marla Deibler, group therapy and self-help groups can play a significant role in your long-term well-being. Self-help groups and group therapy share many similarities and are often used in conjunction. While you can benefit from self-help groups and group therapy in your recovery, there are some key differences to note:

• Self-help groups
  • Affordable
  • Unlimited group size
  • More informal
    • May or may not have a set curriculum
    • Topics vary based on current challenges
    • Process-oriented
  • Most often led by peers
  • You can attend meetings for as long as needed
  • Supports the transition from treatment to recovery
  • Bridges gaps in support
• Group therapy
  • A greater expense but often covered by insurance
  • Small group
  • More formal
    • Follows a curriculum
    • Tailored to address specific issues
    • May include homework 
    • Focused goals
  • Guidance from clinicians
  • Often supports well-being in treatment

At the end of the day, the goal of continuing care services is to help you find the right resources for you. 

Finding Your Group: Types of Self-Help Groups

Much like your experiences, there are a variety of self-help groups that are unique in the needs they support. Some of the different self-help groups types include:

• 12-Step
  • Alcoholics Anonymous (AA)
  • Narcotics Anonymous (NA)
  • Dual Recovery Anonymous (DRA)
• Self-Management and Recovery Training (SMART Recovery)
• Online support groups
• Condition-specific support groups
  • Alzheimer’s Association
• Educational support groups
• Family support groups

Many different types of self-help groups can overlap with each other, like educational and family support groups. Thus, there is a support group that can meet your specific needs, from meeting in person or online, using a formal or informal structure, to serving specific communities. Access to different types of self-help groups can have a profound impact on your well-being.

Benefits of Self-Help Groups

Through education, shared experiences, and peer support, you can address challenges that impact every facet of your life. Self-help groups have become known for the value they bring to psychological wellness, sobriety, and vulnerable communities. Listed below are some additional benefits of support groups:

• Self-esteem
• Motivation
• Self-regulation 
• Adaptive coping skills
• Self-efficacy
• Reduce stigma
• Sense of belonging

Further, self-help groups are cost-effective, which can help close the gap in support for individuals and communities that experience greater socioeconomic barriers.

Building Community Through Shared Experiences at Driftwood Recovery

Self-help groups’ ability to address and close gaps in socioeconomic barriers speaks to its power as a tool for change and growth throughout recovery. At Driftwood Recovery, we are dedicated to providing a strong alumni program, where you can find connection, meet challenges head-on, and thrive at every stage of recovery. We understand that many of the challenges you have faced in treatment and recovery are intersectional. Therefore, you deserve a treatment and recovery program that meets you where you are. With compassion, guidance, support, and accountability, you can break the cycle of suffering to foster a purposeful and fulfilling life in sustained recovery.

Recovery from substance use disorder (SUD) and/or mental health disorders does not start and end with treatment. The challenges of addiction and mental illness impact every facet of your life. Thus, access to continuing care services like an alumni program is invaluable to maintaining recovery. Through an active alumni program, you can connect with peers and access resources like self-help groups to thrive post-treatment. While group therapy and self-help groups have many similarities, outside of treatment, self-help groups offer an affordable, peer-driven, and flexible support option. At Driftwood Recovery, we are dedicated to providing support that fosters physical, psychological, and social wellness. Call us at (512) 759-8330 to learn how self-help groups can support whole-person healing and sustained recovery.

Recovery is a complex and dynamic process that does not have a clear linear path or ending. Setbacks in recovery are a common feature of addiction and even mental health recovery. As the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) notes, 60% of individuals with substance use disorder (SUD) will enter sustained recovery, but many will relapse first. According to Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy, over 50% of people relapse post-treatment, with 40–75 % of relapses occurring three weeks to six months post-treatment. Despite the success rates for recovery, the prevalence of relapse is understandably daunting.

At Driftwood Recovery, we recognize the value and importance of building an attachment in treatment and recovery. Attachment is at the core of our approach to treatment and continuing care to support a strong foundation of self-awareness and understanding. With self-awareness and self-understanding, you can address and manage the difficulties that contributed to your substance use. We are dedicated to providing a vibrant alumni community where you can find the connection, guidance, accountability, and support needed to thrive in recovery. With support, setbacks in recovery do not have to equal relapse or the end of your recovery.

Yet, you may question what the setbacks in recovery are. How can attachment in alumni services prevent or dismantle setbacks in recovery? Expanding your understanding of setbacks can provide insight into the dynamic nature of recovery. Moreover, a greater understanding of setbacks in recovery can help you learn how to address challenges before relapse becomes a reality.

What Are Setbacks in Recovery?

When people think of setbacks in recovery, they often focus on relapse as the only challenge of recovery. However, there are a variety of setback challenges that can occur in recovery and eventually lead to relapse when left unaddressed. Listed below are some of the setbacks in recovery you can encounter:

• Difficulty coping with challenging emotions
• Poor stress management skills
• Boredom
• Difficulty managing cravings
• Unaddressed triggers
  • Being around friends and family who still abuse substances
  • Environments where substances are readily available
• Relationship conflict
• Co-occurring mental health disorders
• Transitioning from residential treatment to other continuing care services
• Relapse

Although relapse is the most recognizable setback, the range of setbacks in recovery highlights relapse as a gradual process. A relapse typically happens in stages as it moves from emotional, mental, and finally, physical relapse. As a result, recovery must be understood in stages rather than as a singular step or a journey with an ending. Further, each stage of recovery comes with its own risk for relapse, which can make trying to overcome other setbacks in recovery feel impossible. Understanding the impact of setbacks on your well-being is an important first step toward building tools to minimize setbacks and improve outcomes.

Impact of Setbacks in Recovery on Well-Being

A relapse speaks to the negative impact setbacks in recovery can have on your well-being. However, before relapse, there are numerous difficulties rooted in other setbacks that can impede your well-being. Regardless of the setback you experience, you can be left with upsetting emotions like guilt, anger, frustration, embarrassment, sadness, and disappointment. Distressing emotions related to setbacks in recovery can contribute to low self-esteem, decreased motivation, increased stress, and poor mental health. Moreover, some of the other ways setbacks in recovery can harm your well-being include:

• Maladaptive coping
• Relationship strain
• Social isolation
• Job loss

The distressing emotions that bubble up with setbacks speak to how unaddressed challenges can contribute to negative self-beliefs. 

Dismantling Negative Beliefs in Recovery

Not only can setbacks in recovery make you feel hopeless, but they can also convince you that you have failed. Feelings of guilt, shame, anxiety, and depression often bubble up from the thought of failure. Listed below are some additional negative beliefs that can impair the recovery process:

• The belief that you are broken
• Black-and-white thinking
  • Believing that there is only success or failure
• The belief that you do not deserve forgiveness
• Believing your sobriety is a fluke
• The belief that no one cares about you

For those in treatment and recovery, a sense of failure takes root as you build an all-or-nothing mindset toward your recovery. Negative beliefs about yourself and your recovery can impede your psychological health and prevent you from effectively using adaptive coping skills. According to Substance Abuse: Research and Treatment, a holistic model of care is crucial to addressing and dismantling negative beliefs about yourself and recovery. Yet, how do you overcome setbacks in recovery and thus their psychological harm?

Ways to Overcome Setbacks

An important first step in managing setbacks in recovery is mindset. First, recognizing that setbacks are a normal part of recovery can help diminish all-or-nothing thinking. You set yourself up for success when you understand that setbacks do not equal failure, and failure does not equal the end. Further, you can prevent and overcome setbacks in recovery by building a plan of action to help you stay on track. Listed below are some things you can include in your setback action plan:

• Identify triggers/cravings
• Give yourself grace 
• Identify warning signs or difficult days
• Treat setbacks as learning moments
• Practice adaptive coping
• Reevaluate and adjust goals
• Seek support
• Prioritize self-care

Looking at some of the steps you can take to overcome setbacks in recovery showcases the value of a positive mindset for maintaining recovery. A positive attitude is often made possible through connection with the self and others. 

Finding Resilience in Setbacks at Driftwood Recovery

At Driftwood Recovery, we believe in providing alumni services because we know how important mutual support and community are for whole-person healing. In an alumni program, you can find the support, resources, and guidance needed to overcome crisis moments. Moreover, access to positive community activities can help you foster self-worth and confidence to address setbacks and meet the challenges of life head-on. With a community of peers, you are reminded that you are loved and deserving of healing.

Experiencing setbacks in recovery can feel devastating, especially when you associate setbacks with relapse. Yet, setbacks in recovery are not exclusive to relapse. Setbacks in recovery can include poor stress management and unaddressed triggers. When stressors arise in recovery, they can contribute to negative self-beliefs that you are a failure and undeserving of forgiveness or healing. However, recovery does not have to equal failure. Recovery is a dynamic process with peaks and valleys that are equally important to your journey. With support, you can find connections, resources, guidance, and confidence to prevent, manage, and overcome setbacks. At Driftwood Recovery, we are dedicated to providing alumni services to support sustained recovery. Call us at (512) 759-8330 to learn more today.

A variety of factors, including the shame of stigma, can convince you that you must recover alone. However, recovery is not a sole endeavor as humans are naturally social creatures that seek connection and belonging to thrive. Without support, you can lose sight of the meaning and purpose behind the work you have been doing to heal. When you exit treatment, it can feel like you have lost your structured support system. Understanding peer support services is important to your recovery process.

At Driftwood Recovery, we know that connection to a community of peers is vital to sustained recovery. Through connection, you can find the support needed to meet and overcome challenges in life and recovery. Peer support services are a source of guidance, compassion, support, and accountability to lead a courageous life in recovery. With a commitment to connection and community, our peer-driven alumni remind you that you are not alone in your recovery.

However, you may question why peer support is so valuable to sustaining recovery. Expanding your understanding of connection can provide insight into the importance of peer support services.

Peer Recovery Support: The Value of Peer Connection

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), peer support includes activities and interactions between those with similar experiences and conditions. Whether you have experienced challenges with substance use disorder (SUD) or other mental health disorders, peer support can help you thrive. Mutually supportive relationships offer the opportunity to build skills and change unhealthy patterns. By sharing experiences, you and your peers can find connection, acceptance, understanding, guidance, and validation. You are empowered to achieve goals for a fulfilling and self-determined life. 

Yet, how does the experiential nature of peer support enable and encourage maintaining recovery? Your relationships inform your sense of self and how you navigate the world. As the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states, positive social connectedness encourages you to feel supported, valued, and cared for. Therefore, peer support has a long history as a source of mutual support in treatment and recovery. However, peer support services are not solely built on sharing experiences. 

What Are Peer Support Services?

Peer support services present services designed for and delivered by those in recovery. Many different adaptive-driven peer support services, from support types to services, can support whole-person healing. Listed below are some of the resources you can find in peer support services:

• Support types
  • Emotional
    • Empathy and care are found in individual interactions and support groups
      • Fosters self-esteem and confidence
  • Informational
    • Insight and skills are gained from sharing knowledge or life and work skills
      • Classes, training, seminars
  • Instrumental
    • Access to referrals and services for tangible resources
      • Housing, transportation, employment, food, clothing, healthcare
  • Affiliation/Social
    • Readily accessible spaces, groups, and activities
      • Learning, social and recreational skills, community, and belonging through connection with others
• Peer support services
  • Recovery centers
  • Peer-led support groups
  • Job training
  • Health and social services
  • Parenting classes
  • Child care services
  • Transportation services
  • Sports leagues
  • Volunteering
  • Sober activities and events
  • Peer mentoring

All peer support services can be valuable to healing the mind, body, and spirit. However, services like peer mentoring showcase the power of connection as a vital part of the recovery process.

Peer Support Services: Empowering Others With Peer Mentoring

As noted in Substance Abuse and Rehabilitation, peer mentorship is when individuals in long-term recovery provide support for those in early recovery. You can offer nonprofessional and nonclinical assistance through peer mentorship to help peers achieve sustained recovery. As a peer mentor, you walk alongside those in early recovery to help them develop a customizable plan and pathways to long-term recovery based on individual strengths, needs, and recovery goals. 

At its core, peer mentoring embodies emotional, informational, instrumental, and social support to meet each person where they are on their recovery journey. Therefore, peer mentorship can be a source of reciprocal healing as it empowers you to help yourself and others. Whether mentorship is the right path for you or not, there are numerous ways you can empower yourself and others with peer support services.

Finding Ways to Engage in Peer Support Services

One of the many ways you can contribute to your healing is by paying it forward. Giving back to your community can support sustained recovery as it helps you change the way you see yourself, others, and the world. By giving back to your sober community and the wider community, you can rediscover your sense of self-worth, belonging, and purpose through connection. Listed below are some of the ways you can give back to your community by engaging in an alumni program:

• Donate your time to alumni
  • Help set up for meetings
  • Mentoring
  • Become a sponsor
• Volunteer
  • Homeless shelter
  • Animal shelter
  • Pantry
  • Treatment center
  • Library
  • Museum
  • Hospital 
  • Nursing home
  • Local parks project
  • Community cleanup

Engaging in peer support services speaks to the power of connection as a source for healing and long-term recovery. No one should be left alone to recover or to figure out how to reintegrate into everyday life. With an active alumni program, you can remind yourself and your peers that recovery is a community effort. 

Learning How to Pay it Forward at Driftwood Recovery

At Driftwood Recovery, we believe a strong Alumni Family gives you the safe space and community to break the cycle of suffering. Through the sharing of experiences, compassion, respect, and support, strength and hope can be fostered. Together, in our peer-driven alumni network, you and your peers can find the guidance, encouragement, and accountability needed to pursue your life goals and be a productive member of society. A truly active and vibrant alumni program is about more than abstinence. Our strong alumni program is about building a foundation for connection with the self and others to thrive in recovery. With mutually supportive connections, you are not alone in building the courageous and purposeful life you deserve in long-term recovery.

People often feel like they must recover alone, but recovery is a process that is best supported by a community. Through interpersonal relationships, you can find connection, compassion, support, guidance, and accountability to lead a meaningful life in recovery. With a strong alumni program, you can access peer support services to find and foster connections with yourself and others. Moreover, engaging with alumni can empower you to not only heal yourself but support the healing of your peers. Whether you volunteer or become a mentor for peers in early recovery, giving back reinforces the value of connection for healing the mind, body, spirit, and community. Call Driftwood Recovery at (512) 759-8330 to learn how alumni can support you.