One of the most important post-treatment activities you can do is to continue to undergo therapy or counseling frequently to hold yourself accountable and continue on your sobriety journey.
There are lots of programs you can get involved with that are part of the 12-step recovery network. One of these programs is called Celebrate Recovery. Celebrate Recovery is a Bible-based program that is available in 35,000 churches in 10 countries and involves over 5 million people. Here’s a little more information about Celebrate Recovery and why recovery programs are so important to help you maintain the sobriety you’ve worked hard to achieve.
What is Celebrate Recovery?
In the early 1990s in California, a pastor was struggling with alcoholism at a large megachurch that sees over 25,000 people a week in worship. As the man struggled with his addiction, he began to find a community of other addicts in recovery. The man joined Alcoholics Anonymous and became sober. He wanted to create a 12-step recovery program focused on God and Biblical teaching, which he called Celebrate Recovery.
Celebrate Recovery takes place in churches around the United States. Although it was created to combat alcoholism, Celebrate Recovery can be used for different addictions, such as eating disorders, sex or pornography addiction, and gambling.
How is Celebrate Recovery Different from Other 12-Step Programs?
There are several differences between Celebrate Recovery and other 12-step programs. First, in addition to working on the 12 steps in AA, members of Celebrate Recovery also follow principles found in Jesus’ Beatitudes. They meet at least once a week, either in group sessions, individual sessions, or both. Additionally, people are encouraged to find accountability partners to help each other stay away from their addiction. There are standard guidelines that every Celebrate Recovery leader has to follow.
Celebrate Recovery has many messages that resonate with people in recovery. Celebrate Recovery believes that anyone can push past addiction, no matter what addiction they’re struggling with or what their past experiences are. Celebrate Recovery, like many recovery programs, allows people to work through all their circumstances with workplace and family stress, trauma, and past experiences. Celebrate Recovery serves people with all kinds of unhealthy habits, including codependency, which is different from other recovery groups.
One of the reasons Celebrate Recovery has been so successful is that it follows the basic format of other recovery programs in seeking forgiveness and atoning for past actions. However, researchers know that when addicts seek help from a higher power and a group of people with similar experiences, their chances of maintaining their sobriety are much higher. In fact, 75% of all recovery programs have a faith-based component.
Celebrate Recovery also allows you the opportunity to be enveloped in a secure, nurturing environment with other people who are positive about their recoveries and always hopeful and optimistic. The more people you’ll have supporting you during your recovery journey, the more successful you are likely to be. Having a secure and nurturing environment around you allows you to feel more comfortable asking questions and opening up, which means you are less likely to make a mistake down the line. Take this opportunity to increase the number of people around you who can relate to your journey and help guide you toward the outcome you want most – maintaining sobriety.
If you aren’t sure how Celebrate Recovery will work for you, remember that it is only one tool of many that others have found helpful to remain sober. Celebrate Recovery is a great way to stay connected to others in the community, and this will help remind you that you are not alone. If you need help getting sober, or help to stay sober, contact SCA Recovery today. We can help you re-establish your sobriety goals, and help you stay on track to a positive and fulfilling life.