The purpose of this assignment is to assist you in understanding what chemically

The purpose of this assignment is to assist you in understanding what chemically dependent people face in treatment and recovery. You will also begin to assess the role personal habits play in your own life. For thirty days beginning 09/01/23, you will be asked to abstain from a legal substance/food or activity or acquire a new self-care behavior.
Substances/food to abstain from may include, for example, alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, sugar, salt, or chocolate. Activities may include, for example, using social media, going shopping, eating out, watching television, listening to music, cursing, or playing computer games. Consider choosing a substance/activity to give up that will be challenging (not something that you already dislike). The learning in this project comes from abstaining, thus it is important to make your very best effort in this regard.
As an alternative to abstinence, you may choose a behavior or habit that you would like to acquire as a means of self-care. For thirty days, work at developing that habit or behavior. Use the same guidelines as if you had chosen abstinence. Examples of a new behavior/habit include starting a daily exercise program, meditation, eating healthy food, or other self-care activities.
By the end of Week 1, each student should submit on Blackboard what they commit to abstain from or commit to begin for this project. You are not permitted to change your goal once the project begins. Students should also tell two significant persons in your life about this project and the reasons for it. Students are expected to complete a daily log (found at the end of this syllabus and on Blackboard) to monitor the progress made. At the end of thirty days, you will write a paper using the outline below:
1. Introduction
Complete this section at the beginning of your thirty days. Discuss what you expect from this project including:
a. What substance/food or activity are you planning to abstain from or a behavior you are planning to acquire?
b. What is your motivation for change or lack thereof?
c. What do you expect to experience in this project, including potential for success and potential stumbling blocks?
d. Who are your supports and your expectations of them?
2. Reflections on the Process
Reflect on your experience over the past thirty days. This should be an account of your struggles, successes, insights, setbacks, perceptions…etc. Incorporate course material as it relates to this project. Organize your reflections based on the bio-psycho-social and spiritual perspective.
a. Your physical state (health, energy, sleep, nutrition)
b. Your psychological state (motivation, emotions, coping skills, self-esteem, thoughts, insights, confidence, self-efficacy, emotional management)
c. Your social life (social support, undermining, changes, friends, family, classmates, insights about others, reactions by others)
d. Your spiritual state (choices, honesty, belief systems, ethics, practices, honesty, personal value system)
3. Relevance to Course
Explain how the information you’ve learned in this course applied to or was incongruent with your experience. Again, be sure to reference course materials to help make your points. This section of the project should answer the following questions:
a. What did you learn about behavior and attitude change?
b. How did your motivation change during the thirty days according to the stages of change (Ch. 10)?
c. Can change occur without intrinsic desire? Please explain. (Graduate Students Only)
d. What did you learn about relapse and relapse prevention, including your own relapse triggers and strategies to deal effectively with those triggers (Ch. 10)?
4. Conclusion
Summarize what you learned through this project.
a. Provide a summary of your paper, including what you learned overall about yourself and what chemically dependent people face in treatment and recovery.
5. Appendix
a. Include your daily log report as a supporting document at the end of your paper.
You will be graded on your understanding and insight about how this project relates to addiction, as well as the quality of your documentation about your experience. Incorporate references from class readings, PowerPoints, handouts, videos, activities, readings and/or other resources to help you explain or analyze what you experienced throughout the project. All students must include at least 3 scholarly references in the paper, including the textbook for this course.
You may write the paper from a first-person perspective, but all other APA rules apply, including appropriate use of a cover page, 1-inch margins, 12-point font, and double-spaced text. Your grade will be based on adherence to the assignment guidelines and inclusion of the listed information in a coherent and reflective paper.
Paper length expectation:
Undergraduate students: 4-5 pages (page limit does not include cover page, reference page, or attached daily log)
Graduate Students: 6 pages (page limit does not include cover page, reference page, or attached daily log) – with more extensive analysis and reflection in section 3