How Does Treatment Help Me Rebuild After a DUI?
Learning to rebuild after a DUI is not just a problem that affects the driver. Driving under the influence (DUI) is a dangerous practice that affects us all. There are few ways to prevent someone who wants to drive from driving unless we are present to stop them physically. Despite the risks, millions of Americans drive behind the wheel every year. In some cases, they injure themselves. But in more tragic cases, they destroy the lives of others.
Driving under the influence can mean many things to different people, but the bottom line is it is dangerous. We normally think of alcohol as the primary inhibitor of DUIs, but drugs can also be an influence. Even legal substances can cause problems for drivers on the road. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), marijuana, even in small amounts, can impair a driver’s reaction time, leading to dangerous driving practices.
No record tracks how many people lose their lives to DUIs every year. But we know that more than 4,000 drivers were seriously injured in 2020 from automobile accidents. Of them, more than half were impaired and tested positive for drugs from September 2019 to July 2021. The breakdown for these drugs was as follows:
- Marijuana: 25%
- Alcohol: 22%
- Stimulants: 10%
- Opioids: 9%
- Sedatives: 8%
Rebuild After a DUI, One Step at a Time
Committing a DUI is a serious crime in which we risk not only our life and safety but the lives and safety of all of the people around us. In some cases, we may cause immense pain and turmoil in other people’s lives through our actions. Coming back from a DUI takes hard work and a commitment to change. It also requires that we are willing to make reparations for what we have done and apologies backed up by actions.
We must understand that substance use disorder (SUD) is a chronic condition. People who suffer from SUD cannot be cured. They can treat the symptoms and work daily to maintain sobriety in recovery. Amid any chronic disorder, we must consider the quality of life of the person suffering. As a broad goal of recovery, care teams work to provide this by helping clients to find a measure of peace with their past.
This is the first way we begin to heal from committing a DUI. We must understand that while we have done something wrong, we also deserve forgiveness. One of the ways clients find this peace at Restoration Recovery is by employing complementary, holistic therapies. Finding ways to channel negative energy and center ourselves goes a long way to finding the sanctity we need to move on.
The Support You Need, When You Need It
Part of reaching recovery is learning the basic principles of living without controlled substances. These principles give us the guiding rules of how we humbly live, accepting help and permitting ourselves to seek forgiveness. While struggling to rebuild after a DUI, it is important to remember what these rules tell us. After all, they give us hope in our ability to overcome the challenges and conditions we face.
- Health is our first commitment. The principle of our continued and renewed health brings us into treatment. Our health and the health of those around us is a top priority. Without health, we cannot find happiness.
- Home gives us a place to live and stability that keeps us from the triggers of our addiction.
- Purpose drives us forward by engaging in meaningful, everyday activities and participating in our society.
- Community is what we gain through our purpose and how we truly heal.
There is not just one way we recover. While these principles guide us, we also have to reach out. When rebuilding after a DUI, we must reach out to those we have harmed, physically or not. We do not do this for their forgiveness but rather to alleviate our burdens by no longer holding in our pain. Instead, we turn that pain into action to make things right.
Finding the Support You Need After a DUI
When we think of DUIs, we often think of the criminal aspect of the situation. Facing a DUI is serious and terrifying, especially for someone who has never found themselves on that side of the law. But another aspect we rarely consider is that the perpetrator is addicted to a substance that controls them and needs help to break free.
Addiction is a chronic illness. Chronic illnesses are not able to be cured. They are recurring and can cause problems years after going into remission. Addiction is like other chronic illnesses, such as asthma and heart disease. Treatment is not a cure, but managing the disease is possible.
A relapse does not mean that we have failed at treatment. Like any other chronic disease, we will face setbacks and relapses with addiction. Our goal is to find our way back to recovery and sobriety immediately. We do this by utilizing the resources in Restoration Recovery’s aftercare program, where we receive the continuous support tools we need after treatment.
Earning Forgiveness From Your Family While You Rebuild After a DUI
A DUI affects more than the perpetrator and the victim. It also profoundly affects our family, friends, and loved ones. Our families watch what we do. Children emulate their parents. Breaking the cycle of SUD begins by showing children a better way.
In addition to families, marriages, and partnerships are profoundly affected by DUIs. The Office of Justice Programs (OJP) recommends therapy for couples and families who are affected by DUIs within their families.
When we think of driving under the influence (DUI), we often think of the criminal aspect of the situation. A person who commits the DUI is said to be “sentenced” to rehab. But if you commit a DUI, going to treatment for substance use disorder is more of a second chance. While we receive our second chance, we must also try to make amends for the harm we have done and free ourselves of the burden addiction has placed upon us. DUIs affect more than just us. They cause pain to victims we hurt, to our friends, our families, and our partners. To learn how you can rebuild your life after a DUI, call Restoration Recovery at (888) 290-0925 today.
