Made a lot of progress in your recovery up to this point? In the early days, it may have felt like you were hitting one accomplishment after another. After all, there’s a lot to change in the beginning of your journey. Fast forward to today, however, and you may feel light you’re stuck, as if your recovery has stalled. This experience, called the plateau effect, can be a challenging one to navigate along your addiction recovery. Why does it happen and what can you do to snap out of it?
The Plateau Effect, Explained
According to GlobalLifeLeadership.com, a plateau effect occurs when you reach a stage in your journey where progress comes to a halt. Despite your continued efforts, it may feel like you can’t get any traction. Often frustrating, demotivating, and confusing, this plateauing effect is common in many areas of life both personally and professionally. And it also happens to many people in addiction recovery.
Along the recovery journey, you may be fighting the plateau effect in the here and now. Are you feeling frustrated and discouraged yet? It’s likely you’re wondering why this endless hamster wheel is happening to you. This season of stuckness can occur for a variety of reasons, including:
- Emotional challenges: Deep-rooted shame, fear of the unknown, or unresolved past trauma (such as adverse childhood experiences / ACEs) can hinder your progress.
- Mental stressors: Mental weariness, stress, and eventually burnout can arise due to the mental load that recovery requires you to carry over time.
- Brain adjustments: Behind the scenes, your brain’s entrenched chemical balance may cause resistance to new neural pathways forming that lead to positive change. It can also be hard to see your brain’s adjustments in real time during the recovery process.
- Vulnerability: Long-term healing from addiction involves vulnerability and new levels of trust during the process. If vulnerability is a hindrance for you, you may feel like you’re experiencing a plateau effect.
- Relationship difficulties: Rebuilding trust in a relationship, such as with your spouse or family, takes time. Trust may need to be restored before you can take that next step in your recovery.
Signs You May Be Going Through a Stagnant Phase in Recovery
Think you may have plateaued in your recovery? There are a handful of telltale signs that can indicate you’re going through a stagnant season, such as:
- Reduced confidence or hope in your ability to make progress in your recovery
- Keeping up with recovery practices out of obligation instead of heartfelt interest
- Regular cravings or urges with no marked improvement
- A lack of progress even though you’ve been continuing to pursue recovery goals
- Questioning whether it’s worth continuing to put forth the effort
- Feeling emotionally checked-out in therapy, peer meetings, or your individual development
Facing the Plateau Effect: How to Fight Back
You’ve done a lot in your recovery work to get to the top of this plateau. The last thing you want to do is falter or relapse. Just because you’re feeling the plateau effect doesn’t mean that you’ll stay stuck or start backsliding.
You can fight back against this plateauing effect, but it’s going to take intentionality and a willingness to adjust. And deep down, there still may be some inner work to be done to move on from your old ways of doing things. Here are some strategies to help you overcome the plateau effect in recovery:
- Change up your goals: The recovery goals that worked early on may not be doing the trick anymore. It’s time to re-evaluate and even change your goals to reflect this chapter of your recovery.
- Reflect on your current state: Why are you feeling this plateau effect? Take note of your emotions and behavior patterns to answer that question. Make time to practice mindfulness and consider journaling to get clarity.
- Get more support: Are you dealing with social isolation right now? A lack of support can keep you stuck. Reach out to your network and spend more time with people who can encourage and motivate you. Share your struggles and seek advice from your recovery mentor.
- Pursue new resources: If your recovery strategies are feeling old, consider seeking out new guidance and direction. Try a different form of therapy, attend a recovery retreat, or visit a different peer support group.
- Revisit your self-care: In the midst of this plateau effect, you need to ensure you’re caring for yourself. Make time for creativity or a new hobby. Keep up with your nutrition and exercise. Get adequate sleep each night. Self-care sets the stage for progress.
Heal the Root Causes of Your Addiction in New England
In many ways, your plateau effect may be due to the root issues behind your addiction remaining unhealed. If you truly want to achieve lasting sobriety, you need to get help for the underlying trauma, shame, or attachment issues driving your addiction.
At Sana at Stowe in Stowe, Vermont, our drug and alcohol addiction treatment programs use both evidence-based and experiential therapies to heal your addiction at its source. If you’re ready to begin this process of self-discovery and reclaim your life, call us today.
