For many people in recovery from a drug or alcohol addiction, making amends feels like a massive, scary undertaking. When you’re in the throes of addiction, your behavior changes in ways that may not match up with your standards and values. That’s why you may feel uncomfortable confronting actions you’ve taken while using or withdrawing. However, it’s exceptionally important to confront how your behavior has harmed others and acknowledge that harm. A family therapy program can help many people take this step. Making amends and apologizing for the things you’ve done is intimidating, yes, but it’s also freeing.

At Oceanfront Recovery in Laguna Beach, we know that every part of the recovery journey can be difficult. That’s why we’re here: to assure you that you’re not alone. In our beautiful beachside facility, we cater our treatment programs to the individual and offer many resources to help you make the changes that will improve the rest of your life. In our therapy sessions, you can learn valuable tools to help you stay sober and form and maintain lasting relationships. For more information about our treatment programs, call 877.296.7477 today to speak with a member of our team.

Why Making Amends is So Crucial

Taking actions to make amends for your past behavior will benefit your recovery greatly. When you make the conscious choice to make up for things you have done in the past, you separate yourself from your addiction and move forward from it. It will help you understand that addiction is a disease, and substance abuse doesn’t have to be forever. In addition, making these amends with people will help enable you to forgive yourself. That forgiveness is crucial for you to leave your addiction firmly in the past.

Making amends isn’t as simple as making an apology, and the process will differ from situation to situation. The important part is that you take the time to examine your past behavior and how it affected someone else and then admit to that behavior. After you address your mistake verbally, you need to address it with your actions. Do what you can to repair the damage you caused, and don’t be pushy about forgiveness. You’ve done your part, but regaining someone’s trust takes time.

Tips for Healing Relationships

Your relationships can suffer a lot of damage under the heavy thumb of addiction. Your recovery offers you a chance to repair those relationships and make a fresh start. You can’t change the past, but you can do what you can now to build bridges. Here are some ways to work on healing relationships damaged by substance abuse:

Listen. This part of your recovery isn’t only about you. Speak less, and open your ears. By actively listening to the other party, you can show that you’re interested in what they have to say, which wasn’t likely when you were using.
Practice patience. The damage that substance abuse causes can take time to heal. You can’t control how others feel about your actions, and you can’t control whether or not they decide to forgive you.
Be steadfast. Chances are, you weren’t very dependable when using drugs or alcohol. The time to change that is now. Be consistent about contacting those that want to hear from you.
Understand that there’s not always a fix. Make sure your expectations about making amends are realistic. Any step you take to heal a relationship is a victory, even if it doesn’t end the way you’d hoped.

Learn More About Family Therapy with Oceanfront Recovery

At Oceanfront Recovery, our addiction treatment programs offer individual and group therapy, allowing our clients to form coping mechanisms and develop tools for lasting recovery. If you think that you or someone you care about needs help with an addiction, call us today at 877.296.7477.