Recovery is all about restoring your mind, body, and spirit – addiction and mental illness can have damaging effects on all of these, making it important that you spend time in meaningful activities that will contribute towards your overall health and well-being. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) identified 4 key components to a well-balanced recovery: health (including choices that support one’s physical and emotional well-being), home (having a stable and safe place to live), purpose (conducting meaningful activities), and community (having relationships and social networks).
Physical activities are incredibly important for recovery because they help individuals maintain a healthy weight, develop more strength and endurance, reduce stress, and more. A 2014 study published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry found that physical activity reduces depressive symptoms in those with mental illness, as well as improved aerobic capacity and quality of life overall.
Physical activities, such as aqua therapy, provide a unique approach to recovery by helping a person achieve physical and mental stability, helping them find purpose in life, and connecting them with others in their community. Aqua therapy has been shown to provide many benefits, including:
- Boosting one’s mood
- Reducing chronic pain
- Making depression more manageable
- Improving sleep
An alternative form of physical therapy, aquatic therapy uses simple, therapeutic exercises to help clients find healing and rehabilitation in the water. A physical therapist will guide you to walk, jog, do side lunges, move forward, balance, and more, which will not only release endorphins – but will keep your mind focused on a goal as well. Sometimes we find healing and growth from things that we do not expect – while you aren’t talking through your past in aqua therapy, you’re developing a different kind of strength that can translate to other areas of your life.
Transform your life, inside and out as you find freedom from addiction. At Tree House Recovery in Orange County, California, we’re helping men create the sustainable changes necessary to build a sustainable recovery. Call us today for information: (855) 202-2138
