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How to Find a Reputable Sober Home

2 June 2020

Aftercare is a crucial phase of addiction recovery, and sober living housing is essential to comprehensive aftercare. In most cases, residing in a sober living house after leaving inpatient or residential treatment will mean the difference between relapse and long-term sobriety. Sober living houses are also frequently called halfway houses, and they provide newly sober men and women with a safe and supportive environment in which they can slowly transition back into completely independent living. Early sobriety is a rocky time for many newly sober individuals, and it presents many unique challenges and obstacles.

How to Find a Reputable Sober Home

How to Find Reputable Transitional Living

After years of active substance abuse, individuals will need to find a job, become financially independent, learn to support themselves, learn to live drug and alcohol-free, and learn to effectively manage uncomfortable emotions and navigate through difficult experiences without picking up. It can be a lot to handle, which is why additional support – the kind of support that a sober living house provides – is extremely important. The monitored and structured environment will feature a set of rules designed to keep residents on the right track. These rules typically include:

  • Sticking to a set sleeping schedule (for example, 8 am group meetings and a 10 pm curfew, which will be strictly enforced). 
  • Participating in group chores and being assigned an individual chore, which is to be completed daily. 
  • Keeping personal space and common spaces clean. 
  • Finding a job and keeping the same job for a prolonged period. 
  • No members of the opposite sex allowed in the household. 
  • Daily 12 step meetings required/12 step program involvement required (residents must be actively working through the 12 steps).
  • Regular drug testing, usually once a week unless suspicions arise amongst staff members – meant to hold residents accountable. 
  • Daily group sessions/the continuation of treatment in an outpatient program. 

At River Bend Residence, we provide men and women with the guidance, support, and structure they need to continue in their journeys of addiction recovery. We are a retreat-style sober living home located in New Jersey and catering to newly sober men and women statewide and in all surrounding areas. We pride ourselves on offering quality care in a structured and supportive environment. Call us today to learn more.

Sober Living Is Important in Early Recovery

With the rise of the New Jersey heroin epidemic came the rise of innumerable treatment options. Unfortunately, with the prevalence of sober living homes in New Jersey comes a fair amount of residences that do not have the best interest of their residents at heart. Finding a reputable sober living home is essential to your long-term recovery, and you must research all potential options thoroughly. How do you find a reputable sober living home? The best thing you can do is look into your options, and speak with both current residents and employees. It is a good idea to call a sober living home and inquire as to what specific services are offered. Ask if transportation to and from Alcoholics Anonymous is provided. Ask if drug tests will be given regularly, and ask how many staff members are available on the premises at any given time.

There are also some red flags that you can look for. These include a lack of rules regarding visitors, a lack of structure, residents spending ample time unsupervised, and the lack of an available outpatient program. You will also want to choose a sober living house based on your personal needs and preferences. For example, some sober living residences allow pets, which is something you may want to consider if you care for an animal that no one else will be able to look after. There are many factors to consider, but we are available to help in every way we can. Please feel free to call us at (844) 505-3447 with any additional questions, or to inquire about the specific services we provide. 

Does a Sober Home Help Avoid a Relapse?

31 May 2020

While we are in active addiction, we are usually continuing to use drugs or alcohol to keep ourselves from withdrawing. But in the beginning, when we first started to pick up a drink or a drug it may have been to socialize or wind down after a long week of work. There comes a point in time where it becomes more than just to socialize every weekend or for the holidays. It becomes necessary for us, or so we think, to use the drink or drug whenever there is some sort of emotional, psychological, or physical issue.

We use at a drop of a hat when we are in the cycle of addiction. When we get emotional, like feeling stress, trauma, embarrassment, or some other uncomfortable emotion. Another reason may be a psychological one such as a feeling of inadequacy or we may need to have a boost of confidence. And a physical feeling of needing a boost of energy or maybe a need to relax or go to sleep. Whatever the causes are of using, it is a temporary fix for these feelings, not a solution, and will bring on more life difficulties. As we continue to use whenever we feel these feelings, they become triggers and it becomes an automatic reaction to use therefore, we fall into this cycle of addiction.

Does a Sober Home Help Avoid a Relapse

Sober Living Can Turn Your Life Around

When we had enough and are ready to make that change to turn our lives around we ask for help or some of us may get an intervention or legal issues made us quit using. Whatever the case may be, the steps toward recovery usually start with discontinuing the use of drugs and go to detox for a bit and continue to a treatment center and hopefully complete with a set of coping skills that we can use when life shows up.

No matter how much time we have or how much education on recovery we’ve obtained, relapse will always be fear. According to the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIH), More than 85% of people with addictions who stop using a drug begin using it again within a year. Relapses can be pretty dangerous especially for persons that have been off substances for a long period.

When a person is sober for some time, they lose the tolerance they once had for the drug they were using frequently. When that person relapses and goes to use the same amount they were used to without having the same tolerance, their chance of overdosing is very high and they risk death.

When we have completed treatment or coming from a detox center and are ready for the next step in transitioning back into reality, it can be scary. Life is waiting for us with all the same people, places, and things. The only thing that has changed is you. We now have skills to cope when those triggers, those people, places, and things that bring back all those feelings that made us want to continue to use in the first place.

Transitional Living Helps You Stay Sober

Hopefully, while we were in detox or treatment we have maybe gone to a few support groups such as AA or NA and met some good sober people. We may have grown a relationship with a community of sober people and found a sponsor. We have people we can call when things get rough. But we still may be in need of a stable, alcohol and drug-free living. This is where a halfway house or sober living or home can be the difference between life or death.

Sober homes are alcohol and drug free-living environments for individuals attempting to abstain from alcohol and drugs. They are usually a transitioning step after detox or a treatment program. They are not licensed or funded by state or local governments and you have to pay for the rent yourself. This being said this is a good step as it gives the client sense of responsibility. There are many structured rules and guidelines to follow such as cleaning and daily chores as well as having a full-time job. Sober homes also have a no drug policy and tests for drugs randomly. Any evidence of using drugs or alcohol is cause for immediate dismissal. Most sober homes also follow the philosophy of recovery and emphasize 12-step group attendance and peer support.

So not being ready to go straight from detox or treatment back to reality right away is ok. Still needing that structured drug-free environment for however many more days, months or a year is strengthening your recovery. It is known that those that live in a sober house longer have a higher chance at relapse and here’s a breakdown as to why:

  1. THEY OFFER A HIGH LEVEL OF SOCIAL SUPPORT.
  2. THEY REQUIRE PARTICIPATION IN 12-STEP GROUPS.
  3. THEY TEST FOR DRUG OR ALCOHOL USE.
  4. THEY HELP YOU DEVELOP ESSENTIAL DOMESTIC SKILLS.
  5. THEY PROVIDE STRUCTURE.

Reduce Your Chances of Relapse With Sober Living

Sober living is helpful for those in early recovery, but because you live in a sober home doesn’t mean you automatically aren’t going to relapse. You have to put in the work and make an effort. You can improve your success in a sober home living situation by following the rules, engaging with your fellow residents, and offering as much support as you receive. Full engagement in your sober living situation promotes developing healthy, beneficial relationships, making good lifestyle choices, and gaining the skills you need to successfully fly solo down the road.

At Riverbend Residence, New Jersey’s Premier Recovery Residences, we offer safety and comfort for men and women affected by addiction. Strengthen your recovery in a caring, supportive, and structured environment. Call us now at (844) 505-3447 to continue down your road to recovery.