Sober Living Policy and Guidelines

As such, sober living associations now make finding a residence easier. There are also plenty of independent sober living houses that have not changed their protocols much since the late 1940s when these residences came to be. They first came into existence when a group of active participants in the Alcoholics Anonymous group created a “12-step” residence. This was a home, typically placed in low-income housing, that enforced policies around sobriety and required attendance to AA meetings. Meetings were held both in the home and in neighboring organizations in the community.

This support system allows residents to avoid the isolation that can sometimes come with returning home while in recovery. It further provides an environment to support recovery from substance abuse and addiction for those who are emerging from rehab. Sober living homes provide a combination of freedom and structure to help the person begin to adjust to life outside of rehab. They are set up specially to serve as transitional housing for people coming out of treatment. Sober living houses are often recommended for folks finishing up a drug rehabilitation program.Leaving the structure of a treatment program can be jarring, sometimes triggering a relapse. As such, sober living houses serve as a space to transition into a life without addiction, developing tools and community while getting used to the demands of daily life.

Graduate School of Addiction Studies

The drinking status of the social network was calculated by multiplying the amount of contact by the drinking pattern of each network member, averaged across the network. The same method is applied to obtain the drug status of the network member; the amount of contact is multiplied by the pattern of drug use and averaged across network members. Regardless of where you are in your sobriety journey, Real Recovery can help. With a variety of treatment programs and compassionate staff, you’re sure to find the next step toward freedom. The complexity of treatment programs, knowing which level of care you need and how to choose the program best suited to you can sadly become a hesitation for those who desperately need care.

A significant strength of the Options houses was that residents were able to maintain low alcohol and drug severity at 12-month follow up. Sober living homes may accept residents who are new to the rehab process, but most applicants have gone through a program before applying. This makes sense; residents must be able to stay sober in order to live the sober house.

What are standard sober house rules?

However, the people who are attracted to this form of living expect a lot of space, and amenities including pools, personal chefs, massage therapists, and more. As you complete an outpatient or inpatient program, consult with your treatment team to see if a sober living home or a halfway home is a good choice for your next step in your recovery. Live Free Recovery and Sober Living has numerous locations throughout beautiful New Hampshire. Halfway houses are also government-funded and have fewer amenities than a sober living home.

• Many people find it challenging after leaving rehab to immediately return to their normal lives.
• Sober homes provide an excellent bridge between rehab programs and traditional society.
• However, this is dependent on the type of substance use disorder at hand, and NIDA also recommends longer treatment for seeing lasting positive results.
• For example, members must often pay for rent and hold a steady job or attend school.

This measure includes 9 items and was developed by Humphreys, Kaskutas and Weisner (1998) to measure the strength of an individual’s affiliation with AA. The scale includes a number of items beyond attendance at meetings, including questions about sponsorship, spirituality, and volunteer service positions at meetings. The best place to start is usually just reaching out to a program you’re interested in and asking some questions. If they think you might be a good fit, they’ll likely ask you some of their own. You might be placed on a waitlist, as these tend to be in fairly high demand.

Options Recovery Services (ORS)

Facilities that are members of their Sober Living Coalition are guaranteed to be safe, well-managed, and ethical. If you are interested in researching sober living homes near you, you can consult their directory via their free search tool. In addition to studying a larger number of offenders, we hope to explore an innovative intervention designed to improve outcomes for these residents in terms of employment, arrests, and other Selecting the Most Suitable Sober House for Addiction Recovery areas. Our intervention modifies motivational interviewing to address the specific needs of the offender population (Polcin, 2006b). Specifically, it helps residents resolve their mixed feelings (i.e., ambivalence) about living in the SLH and engaging in other community based services. Thus, the intervention is a way to help them prepare for the challenges and recognize the potential benefits of new activities and experiences.