Why choose sober living?
Centered Recovery created their own program as an outpatient treatment model, mainly due to understanding the bubble of recovery and that many clients need to stay involved with their family, friends, and even work at some level in order to be able to devote the time necessary to heal. So why should I stay in a sober living environment while attending outpatient treatment?
The efficacy of outpatient recovery treatment has been studied at length in recent years, as costs for residential treatment facilities skyrocket and re-admissions are frequent due to relapse. According to recent studies that have been published, outpatient treatment has been shown to be just as effective as residential treatment, and is increasingly more desirable as people wish to stay close to family, friends, and connected with work and their own support network.
Here are some of the reasons why sober living
may be the right choice for you:
- You need more structure than living on your own right away. Often, clients will detox from alcohol or substances in a standalone detox facility or residential treatment facility. For the most part, detox just provides physical stabilization from substances so that you aren’t dealing with withdrawals, cravings, and other physical symptoms of not using. Detox stays are typically short, between 3 days and 2 weeks, so clients may not have time to establish new routines or turn their attention to their health since they’ve just gotten back on their feet. Sober living environments can be a great segue from detox back into life at home by allowing a client to take a short break from their routine, get focused on their health and what they want, and put some physical space between themselves and the environment they cultivated their addiction in. Sober living houses provide an additional layer of accountability, some common sense guidelines for staying safe and sober after detox, and should have knowledgeable house workers who know what to look out for and how to help you set up a healthy sober lifestyle.
- You need more freedom than residential treatment can provide. Maybe you need to keep in touch with your boss, clients, or family—something that often isn’t possible as often as desired in residential settings. Staying in a sober living environment allows clients to go to outpatient treatment, still stay connected with family and friends as well as work and clients, but provides a layer of support in the late night hours and weekends that is often crucial in early recovery.
- You don’t want to go far. Many clients may need more structure in the evening and weekend hours than an outpatient facility can provide, but they don’t want to leave their home town where they have friends, family, children, and support. There are many sober living environment offerings, from single rooms to apartments to entire houses scattered all over the state, so you’re much more likely to have one in an area that is convenient for you to stay connected with family, friends, and children.
- You think you may need a little more structure in the evening or on weekends. Real time recovery can be amazing—it allows clients to integrate new, healthy habits into their real lives, rather than learning tons of great ideas at residential that can be easier learned than done at home. But even with real time recovery, you may want the structure of a supportive sober environment in the evening hours and weekends. Most sober living environments require weekend check-ins, meetings, or establish curfews to help keep clients on the right track, depending on their needs.
- You want to build a sober network to integrate into your life. Going to outpatient treatment with other like-minded individuals is an amazing bonding experience with the right group. While supporting others in your group, you’re supporting your own recovery by hearing experiences and lessons that you can learn from. Another amazing place to meet like-minded individuals can be in a supportive sober living, where clients are committed to their own recovery and ready to make a change.
Comfortable and Accredited
The Client Services team at Centered can help make recommendations for respectable, clean, and GARR accredited sober living environments for all of our clients. We work closely with local sober living providers to ensure a complete continuum of care whether you just completed detox or have been sober for 6 months or more! Regardless of whether or not you choose to utilize a sober living environment during your outpatient treatment, having an effective outpatient program to help integrate your sobriety, health, and balance into your every day life at home can be crucial! Call us at 800.556.2966 to find out if an outpatient treatment with Centered is right for you!
