Sunspire Health, a nationwide network of addiction treatment facilities offering personalized treatment and addiction recovery services across the United States, knows that new year’s resolutions can be tough to stick to, especially when trying to break a long-time health habit. Now that it’s the third week of the new year, it’s a good time to assess how these resolutions for self-improvement are coming along.

A survey from YouGov shows that three of the top five resolutions for 2018 are health-related, including the ‘Drynuary’ trend that has picked up steam as people abstain from alcohol throughout January. But no matter how motivated you are to succeed right now, researchers at the University of Scranton determined that only eight percent of people are able to keep their new year’s resolutions through December 31.

“Everyone approaches their habits differently, and the tools and approaches used in breaking these routines should also be individualized to ensure your goal is accessible, realistic and sustainable,” says Dr. Michael Frost, Medical Adviser to Sunspire Health and a nationally recognized addiction medicine specialist. “What works for one person does not work for everyone, so as you begin to work towards your resolution, it’s important to be aware of your progress and willing to redirect efforts, if needed.”

Here are four tips for maintaining your health resolutions throughout 2018:

1. Make SMART Resolutions. Refine your goals to be Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic and Timed. It’s easy to make vague resolutions but hard to maintain them. When you make SMART resolutions, you have a definitive outline for your goals and a specific plan to achieve them. For example, if your resolution is to get fit, your SMART resolution could be to lower your body mass index by two points before June. Then, in June, you can determine how successful your SMART goal has been and alter it accordingly to get you through the end of the year.

2. Focus on One Goal at a Time. As the American Psychological Association points out, creating bad habits takes time – so breaking those habits will take time, too. Prioritize your resolutions based on changes that are most important to you, and consider which resolutions may make others easier to achieve. So, if in 2018 you resolved to lose weight, drink less, and go to the gym more, focus on drinking less first. By cutting alcohol consumption, you’ll have a smaller calorie intake, which will also help jumpstart your weight loss.

3. Seek Community Support. One of the hallmarks of successful recovery from substance abuse habits or addiction is integration into a supportive community that holds people accountable for their actions. This same approach can work for meeting your new year’s resolutions, whether you aim to stop drinking or using drugs, or to improve overall well-being.

If maintaining sobriety is your goal, find one of thousands of national meetings to attend from support groups such as Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous and explore your city’s Meetup groups to find people with common goals. If you’d rather connect with people who aren’t in your local community, social sites like Reddit and Facebook are full of online communities for people across the world to seek support.

4. Still Struggling? Set an Intention. Transform your goals into intentions. Instead of working towards a specific outcome, make a change in your mindset that doesn’t tie you to a feeling of failure if you slip or make a misstep. If your resolution was to eat healthier but you are back to snacking on fries already, adjust your approach to an intention for better health instead. For example, if you have a food craving you just can’t shake, you can still have your small indulgence without guilt, and maintain your intention to make better choices tomorrow.

Some new year’s resolutions require additional resources and even professional treatment, guidance and care. If your resolution for the new year includes ending an alcohol or drug dependence, or if you want to help a friend or family member who is struggling with substance use, now is the time to act. “Substance use disorders are chronic diseases,” says Dr. Frost. “They require professional treatment and care so people can live with them for the long-term.”

Call a Sunspire Health care advocate at 866-349-0841 for assistance in taking the right step toward recovery.

About Sunspire Health

Sunspire Health is a nationwide network of accessible and affordable community-based addiction treatment facilities that offer personalized treatment plans for people of all walks of life, meeting them where they are and guiding them through recovery. Sunspire’s mission is to be a source of hope, knowledge, and support for people and their families affected by substance use disorders. Our vision is to change the course of the addiction crisis and set the standard for quality treatment in the United States. Our facilities offer an array of addiction recovery services across the United States and are able to provide the full spectrum of care including detox, residential and outpatient treatment programs in settings that are designed to promote healing. What distinguishes Sunspire Health facilities is that each one provides quality care for substance use and co-occurring mental health disorders from experts and specialists in the field of addiction medicine and mental health counseling. Our treatment teams utilize the latest advances in addiction medicine and draw on therapeutic modalities that are evidence-based, meaning that extensive studies and research prove that these methods are effective at treating addiction. For additional information, please visit: https://sunspirehealth.com/