Recreational therapy and occupational therapy for women are used in many forms of treatment. It’s a versatile therapy that improves mental and physical well-being across the board. When it comes to treating addiction, it’s most effective when combined with traditional therapy as well.

In terms of treating addiction and substance abuse, movement therapy for women comes with many benefits:

Improves Symptoms of Mental Illness

Many who struggle with addiction also suffer from mental illnesses. This is common as addiction and mental illness have a strong link, but it certainly doesn’t make things easier.

Engaging in the physical activities offered in recreational therapy can significantly reduce the symptoms of mental illness. For example, recreational therapy for depression and recreational therapy for anxiety is very effective in reducing behavoural symptoms. Additionally, recreational therapy for stress gives you a clearer head as you move through treatment.

Suffering from substance abuse disorder can result in feelings of guilt, shame, fear, and significantly lowered self-esteem. The activities offered at our physical therapy center for women can boost your self-esteem and help you feel better about yourself.

Improved self-esteem can help you become more engaged in your regular therapy sessions and feel more motivated to get better.

Improves Strength and Physical Fitness

Our play therapy center for women offers a variety of activities as part of our recreational therapy program – many of which include plenty of exercise.

Countless studies show the mental and emotional benefits of physical activity, including:

• Better mood
• Reduced anxiety
• Reduced stress
• Better cognitive function
• Better sleep
• More energy
• And more

All of these things are beneficial to your treatment and recovery process.

In addition, regular exercise will improve your strength and fitness over time while building good and healthy habits. If you find an activity you really like, you may be inclined to continue with said activity once treatment is over. This will offer continued mental health benefits while also continuing to improve your physical health and fitness!

Excessive and extended use of drugs and other substances can have a significant effect on your brain and its function. While recreational therapy can’t repair any permanent damage, physical activity can improve brain health.

In addition, mentally stimulating activities like chess and memory games can improve your mental sharpness and cognitive function.

Strengthens Social Skills and Connections

Most of the activities used in recreational therapy for women are done in groups. By engaging with other people you can work on restoring your social skills and your comfort level around others.

You’ll also build social connections with the other women in our program who are going through struggles similar to yours. This helps you feel like you belong to something as these activities create a sense of community and camaraderie.

You’ll feel less alone as you share experiences with each other and build trust through these activities. You’ll learn about the struggles and successes of others which can offer fresh perspectives and give you new coping skills.

Treat Other Conditions

Recreational therapy isn’t just for addiction. It’s used to treat a wide variety of things, many of which you may be struggling with at the same time as your addiction. Going through recreational therapy while in our program can help you address these things as well.

For example, we offer recreational therapy for eating disorders and recreational therapy for trauma. Physical activities combined with your other therapy sessions will help immensely with these things in addition to working through addiction recovery.