Stress comes in many forms and is an inevitable part of life. Because of this, learning stress-management is essential to living a healthy life. Moreover, if you’re recovering from addiction or substance abuse, it’s important to understand how stress can impact your addiction recovery.

With this in mind, building a Christ-based stress-management strategy can help you maintain sobriety, live in wholeness, and deepen your faith.

What is Stress-Management?

Throughout our day-to-day lives, we all experience stress and stressors. But the science shows that not all stress is “bad.” According to the Handbook of Stress and Health, “mild to moderate levels of stress, within a person’s coping range, can ultimately produce positive outcomes.” In other words, some stress can be helpful in situations when we need to complete a task, or are in a competitive activity such as sports. Feeling a bit of pressure can bring us to our optimal performance and effectiveness.

But, as the Handbook explains, when stress becomes too much and “exceeds one’s coping capacity, [it] can result in threats to physical and psychological well-being.” In fact, unmanaged stress can become chronic and even lead to mind, body, and behavioral dysfunctions. This is often where a healthy type of stress leads to fear and anxiety.

When stress becomes a threat to our well-being and spiritual peace, it usually comes by way of these four types:

• Physiological: Poor nutrition, lack of access to health care, threat of physical danger
• Environmental: Noise and/or air pollution, unclean water or sanitation facilities
• Social: Immediate or past interpersonal conflicts and dangers, or PTSD 
• Cognitive: Negative thinking patterns that induce anxiety and depression

Why is Stress-Management Important for Healing?

For those in recovery, learning to manage stress and situations that cause high amounts of stress is central to the healing process. It has been well-established that stress is linked to how the brain experiences addiction. The parts of the brain that regulate emotions and even chemical reactions are triggered by stress and how we cope with it.

One of these triggers is called the “fight-or-flight” response. It’s the biochemical and physiological changes that happen in the body when an alarm response to stressors—real or imagined—goes off. When this triggers, the brain may turn to its craving or previous source of comfort, which for those in recovery are harmful substances.

The Christ-based stress-management tips below are intended to help you deal with stress that you face in your day-to-day life. Pursuing holistic treatments in faith-based professional settings can also help you analyze situations and people that trigger feelings of stress. As someone in recovery, you know that by making a plan and taking actions in faith, anything is possible (Philippians 4:13) even when stress comes!

 Unnecessary Stress and Speaking the Truth in Love

Some stressors are out of our control. But some are well within our scope and can be easily avoided. Once you begin to pay attention, you may be surprised by how easy it is to avoid recurrent stressful situations. It can be as simple as leaving 10 minutes earlier each morning so you are not stressed in traffic, or choosing to not talk to your high-maintenance friend right when you’re off work and have depleted energy. This doesn’t mean ignoring situations that actually need your attention though.

The key is to plan ahead and learn how to say “no” if you’re already at maximum capacity. You can feel confident in “speaking the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15) when you need to put up healthy boundaries. Saying “no” when you need to is one of the best strategies for successful sober living.

Continue Learning How to Cultivate Peace

Never stop learning or being creative with the way you handle stress. For example, cognitive-behavior therapy (CBT) teaches you to adjust your reaction to situations, including stressful ones. By working on these personal and interpersonal patterns, we can keep learning to “pursue peace with everyone” (Hebrews 12:14).

If you feel like your stress-cup is full or that you have repressed feelings, it might be worth it to pursue a type of talk-therapy you haven’t tried before. When we acknowledge stressors under the surface, we can then work through different scenarios to address or remove the stress.

 Changing Your Attitude to Joy

There are many ways to start changing our attitudes. The goal is to reframe the problem so that it allows you to process stressful situations with a joy and positivity (Philippians 4:4). For avoiding substance use relapse, this is one of the best tools to work with.

If this is something you struggle with, dialectical-behavioral therapy (DBT) might be right for you. Talk to your treatment center about this approach, which emphasizes emotion regulation, mindfulness, stress tolerance, and interpersonal stability. DBT can help you build emotional and cognitive strength while addressing the people, places, and situations that trigger stress.

 “Letting Go” Through Prayer

Since we know that some stressors can’t be avoided, sometimes the best strategy is the practice of letting go. With a network of support around you, acceptance of painful situations is one of the most effective ways to move forward. Philippians 4:5-6 encourages us: “Do not be anxious about anything but in everything, through prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your request to God. And the peace of God which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”

Many relapses happen when a person attempts to control a situation beyond their capability. Substance abuse and addiction are not the answer to the pain. Instead, reach out to your community who can help guide you to the wisdom of letting go at the right time.

 Healthy Bodies and Healthy Souls

It is clear that a healthy body and a healthy soul help you to manage stress better. Taking care of your day-to-day needs can significantly improve your capacity to deal with stressors. This can help us stay “in good health, just as it is well with [our] soul” (3 John 2). Some of these self-care strategies include:

• Exercise every day: Even for 10-15 minutes of cardio can make a world of difference.
• Eat a healthy diet: Avoid processed foods and eat fresh as much as you can.
• Get enough sleep: Prioritize your rest. Stress is more stressful when we’re exhausted.