The recovery journey can be a long, hard road. But it is entirely worth taking, because of the life and freedom that are awaiting you on the other side.

One of the tough things that you need to do on your journey is to set boundaries. This is a task that should be taken seriously because it can affect your success in sobriety.

If you don’t set boundaries and you leave things as they are, you may be at higher risk of relapsing. This is because you’re putting yourself in a position to be triggered. Instead, you need to think differently in recovery, which means doing things differently. It’s not just stopping substances, but creating a plan of action to help you achieve success.

Consider the people you have contact with. Think about the environments that you spend time in. Take time to even consider how you think and behave. It’s important to put thought into what could potentially slip you up.

This may mean that you need to delete contacts from your phone and your social media accounts (and even go as far as blocking these people so they can’t reach out to you). You may even decide you want to open new social media accounts under your middle name or a nickname in order to make it harder for people to find you. Or maybe you take a break from social media for a window of time.

Make sure you’re careful with who you spend time with. They should be people who support your recovery. People who respect your stated boundaries and those who will build up your self-worth instead of bringing you down. You need positivity in your life (not negativity).

For those that you plan to keep in your life, make sure that these relationships are helping you instead of hindering you. If there are steps that need to be taken in order to make it healthier for you, take those steps. Establish boundaries with these people and let them know what they are. Maybe you don’t want others drinking in front of you or you want others to stop inviting you to places like bars that could be too tempting for you. You need to speak up for yourself because your recovery depends on it.

Don’t be afraid to be your own advocate on your recovery journey. This will probably mean you need to say no to people sometimes in order to protect yourself and succeed. That’s OK, right now, your recovery is a priority.