As you prepare to finish addiction treatment, you may feel excited to complete the program and proceed with your life. Completing rehab is something to be proud of, but making the transition away from rehab and into real life can be challenging. Obstacles such as lack of support, sober housing, and finances can be severe barriers to maintaining your sobriety.

One of the best ways to stay sober and obtain continued support after rehab is to live in a sober home. Sober living homes are multi-family residences that house people in early recovery. They are designed to provide recovering individuals with structure, housing, and support.

Six benefits of staying in a sober living home after rehab are:

 

1. Sober Support and Structure

Research shows that one of the biggest obstacles to staying sober is the lack of safe, supportive, and stable housing. Sober living homes help individuals overcome these obstacles by providing a sober, supportive living arrangement.

Sober living homes typically have a house manager who lives in the home, enforces rules, and facilitates randomized drug testing. All residents are encouraged to hold each other accountable for following the rules and practicing healthy life skills.

2. Create Relationships With Your Housemates

Addiction is an isolating disease, but one of the benefits of staying in a sober living home after rehab is that you are given the chance to build healthy relationships with other people in recovery.

Your housemates will all be working toward the same goal as you: staying sober. They also understand what you’ve gone through and the way you think. Having this type of understanding and compassion among the people you live with will make you feel less alone. The relationships you build in sober living are some of the first ones you will develop in sobriety, so they will leave a lasting impact.

3. Practice Life Skills

Sober living homes operate on a set of rules and regulations. All residents are expected to keep their personal areas clean, respect other members of the home, and complete their chores. Residents are also expected to:

• Attend 12-Step meetings
• Find a job or go to work
• Do laundry and grocery shopping
• Maintain personal hygiene
• Exercise and eat a nutritious diet
• Be home in time for curfew
• Go to sleep and wake up at a reasonable time
• Develop a schedule or routine

Practicing these important life skills while in a sober, supportive environment can help you be successful in your recovery. Many of the skills you learn in sober living will stick with you throughout your life.

4. Affordable Housing

Many people leave rehab in a bad financial situation. Either they have stopped working or they have dug themself into a hole after spending all of their money on substances. No money combined with a lack of safe, supportive housing significantly increases the risk of relapse.

Fortunately, sober living homes tend to be more affordable than renting an apartment or buying a home. You will typically share your room with one other individual, and most sober living homes have at least 4-6 people living in the house. When rent is split among this many individuals, it can bring each person’s cost down.

Some sober living homes will even allow you to pay on a weekly basis, further reducing the burden of coming up with a month’s worth of rent right out of rehab.

5. An Easier Transition out of Rehab

Early recovery may present numerous challenges. Leaving rehab means navigating life in sobriety without professional support or supervision. Poor choices can lead you down the wrong path and old habits may return with a vengeance. However, if you have continued support, you’re more likely to make healthy decisions and experience an easier transition out of rehab.

Sober living homes are a great way to obtain the support and structure you need to stay sober after rehab.

6. Reduced Relapse Risk

One of the biggest benefits of staying in a sober living home after rehab is that you’re less likely to relapse. The ongoing support and structure sober homes provide will encourage you to practice healthy coping skills, engage with people in recovery, and be motivated by watching the people around you recover.

Sober living homes also provide you with a safe place to stay, away from your usual triggers or distractions. Staying in a sober home is a great way to truly commit to staying sober.

Experience the Benefits of a New Jersey Sober Living Home Today

At Moving Mountains Recovery, we know that treatment is only the beginning of your journey. Our clients often stay in a local sober living home during and after treatment. Sober living homes help reinforce sober principles and lifestyles. Our dedicated addictions specialists can refer you to a top-rated sober living home in New Jersey that can help ease the transition from treatment to everyday living. Contact us today for more information on how to get started.