Are You Experiencing Fatigue in Recovery?
Addiction is not easy on the physical body no matter which drug or behavior was abused. Recovery also takes a toll on the body as withdrawal from substances or a behavioral addiction has side effects. When a person is using, they probably did not put much thought into how much their bodies were affected. Once in recovery a person may begin to feel the consequences of their addiction and fatigue just might be one of those.
There are many consequences of addiction including poor nutrition, not enough sleep, stress, and no exercise. When you enter recovery, you may continue to feel sluggish or worn out and feel like you can barely make it through the day. Recovery can be overwhelming physiologically and psychologically; however, you have worked hard and you want to create a new life for yourself. The thing is, you do not have enough energy to do this. Everyday activities just seem like too much work.
Fatigue is common in recovery because of what your body has been through during your addiction. For months or years, you ingested substances or engaged in activities that were emotionally and physically overwhelming to your body. The organs and systems of your body were overworked trying to process the drugs, alcohol, or unhealthy behaviors while attempting to protect your body and mind at the same time.
Your addiction took all your energy and depleted some of your natural resources. Once in recovery and even though you are sober, your body is still recuperating. Your body does have the ability to repair itself but this also takes energy and resources. When all this energy is being used to repair your body, the consequence can be fatigue. Fatigue is extreme tiredness and while some fatigue is normal in recovery, you should seek professional help if you feel tired more days than not.
Outside of the physical body, recovery is also an emotionally trying time. You are now working a program one day at a time and facing what life brings you. There are many emotions that you are feeling and you may at times experience stress or feelings of being overwhelmed. This stress and feelings of being overwhelmed also takes a toll on your energy levels.
Take some time for yourself to work on what you can each day and try not to overwhelm yourself. Get plenty of rest, drink water, and eat nutritious meals and you just may start to feel better again soon!
