After detox and rehab for substance abuse, one recovery option for young men is moving into sober living homes. A sober living home is not just an extension of your treatment but also offers the opportunity to learn how to live your new life sober.
What Are Sober Living Homes?
Sober living homes provide a drug and alcohol-free environment for residents to work on their recovery without potential triggers and temptations to give in to cravings. Most of these communities have a house manager who oversees the day-to-day activities and operations of the house. Some homes also have an overnight manager to provide 24/7 access for support when residents need it. You can find houses that offer access to career and education counselors, therapists, and other professionals to tailor your recovery to your specific needs.
How Will I Spend My Time in Sober Living?
Sober living homes offer a structured environment where you will know exactly what you will be doing every day. This structure is an essential part of recovery to help reduce the risks of relapse and limits how outside influences affect your recovery efforts.
Daily life in one of these homes follows a set routine but can vary based on your own specific objectives. In general, you can expect the following:
- A set wake-up time
- Breakfast, lunch, and dinner
- Daily chores
- House meetings
- Group or individual sessions outside the house
- Work or school
- Career prep training
- Meal preparation
- Daily fitness/exercise
- Free time
- Family and friend visitations
- A set bedtime
In addition, if you are still receiving outpatient addiction treatment, you will attend your outpatient sessions during the day or evening and return to the home once you are done for the day. Most homes also have a set curfew time where all residents need to be at home unless they are working or still at outpatient treatment sessions.
What Makes These Programs Effective?
Sober living homes help eliminate potential temptations and triggering events one struggles with during the early stages of recovery. By providing a safe, secure, and sober living environment, residents are free to focus on their recovery and enhance their coping skills and techniques.
Furthermore, the other young men in your sober living home hold each other accountable for maintaining sobriety. This added peer support can be the extra motivation and encouragement you need as you are learning a new lifestyle of caring for yourself and living sober.
Another reason sober living homes are effective is that you can remain a resident for however long you need. Unlike other recovery programs that can limit your time to 30, 60, or 90 days, you can live in a sober living home for years.
The objective of the sober living home is to help teach you how to live an independent, healthy, and sober life. Then, when you graduate and move out of the house, you will be in a much better place to handle outside influences and avoid relapse.
Even though you complete your sober living program, you can participate in alumni events and activities or even move back into the home should you need to in the future. Plus, you will have formed strong friendships with your peers that you will continue to benefit from by supporting each other after moving out of the sober living home.
Is Sober Living Right for You?
You need to decide what your next steps will be in your recovery plan and what will benefit you the most to maintain your sobriety. To help determine whether a sober living home is right for you, answer the following questions:
- What is your home life like?
- Would you have support if you returned home?
- Are drugs and alcohol readily available in your home?
- Would your friends want to celebrate your recovery by drinking or using drugs?
- Would you be exposed to potential triggering events at home?
- Can you handle the stress and responsibility of returning to school or work?
- Are you ready to face the consequences your addiction had on your family and friends?
- Do you feel like if you returned home, you would relapse?
- Have you returned home and are struggling with your sobriety?
- Have you returned home after rehab and keep lapsing?
- Are you looking for a supportive, secure, and sober environment where you can feel safe?
Depending on your answers, if you find you are struggling with maintaining your sobriety or are not ready to return home after your initial rehab, then moving into a sober living home is the right choice.
Sober Living for Young Men in Los Angeles, CA
After completing rehab, learning to live without drugs and alcohol can be very challenging for young men. When you want to improve your success to maintain your sobriety and continue to work on your recovery, you should consider moving into one of the sober living homes for young men at New Life House in Los Angeles.
We have several homes in the area, including Redondo Beach. Each of our homes is designed for young men in specific age groups to provide stronger peer support. For further information about our intake process and what you need to do to move into one of our sober living homes, please feel free to give us a call or visit our admissions page.
Last Updated on May 24, 2022
