The feelings I have when I think of family are “warm fuzzies.” I had so many different thoughts about families regarding its importance when writing this. My family matters to me. I think it is an important factor in everyone’s life. I could not imagine not having my family, children, mother, siblings, aunts, uncles, and friends.

All of us have ancestors. Fortunately or unfortunately, there is no getting away from them. They are there, good or bad. As mental health professionals and substance abuse treatment counselors, we work in a field where we see the very essence of family. Families can give us hope or take that same hope away. We want our families to be involved in our own treatment and of course we want our patients to have the support of their families. But that doesn’t always happen. Addiction takes away trust, boundaries and self esteem. We learn to cope with shame and guilt. I am sure some family members pray and feel that no one hears these prayers. Counselors are dedicated to doing their best to give hope to the family and the addict. We have found families which are engaged in the substance abuse treatment process have a much better success rate. When everything else fails, families can stand like soldiers. The very thing needed to survive (love and acceptance) has been there all the time wrapped up in our family.

Families do matter! Most of us have been given love; maybe not the way we thought it should be, but love none-the-less. What we needed was encouragement… understanding… hope… comfort… advice… values… and morals. Most of us were taught something about faith. Faith gives us something to hold onto through the good times and bad. We can now be taught to laugh at our mistakes. We could be just a little proud of learning from our families, whether what we learned was “how to” or “how not to.”

In recovery, we are taught to enjoy life and to appreciate the beauty of everything. We learn by watching the examples before us. We’re told to try out new things, to laugh and enjoy being alive, to try harder or try again, to appreciate what we have, to help those who are less fortunate, to make friends, to be a friend, and to honor God. Through substance abuse treatment and the recovery process, the thing that matters most is family and with that our hope and faith are restored. We learn family does matter even if it is our own AA or NA family. The realization and acceptance of that can be our greatest asset, the wisdom to know family does matter.

There are many private residential treatment centers that offer sober living after one successfully completes rehab. These sober living facilities provide a safe harbor for people in the early stages of recovery from a drug or alcohol addiction. Recovering from an addiction can be a very long and drawn out process. It can also be difficult if one is still in the environment that led to the addiction in the first place. This is why many addiction treatment centers are located in destination places. It gives addicts the option of leaving a bad environment and seeking treatment in a fresh new environment. Due to this, many sober living facilities are located in beach resort areas.

Common Living

There are common themes when it comes to sober living. Often facilities that feature sobriety will have communal living. This allows for recovering addicts to continue to recover with those who suffered from the same addiction. It offers rehabilitation in a non-judgmental environment. Relapse is most common in the 3 to 4 months after rehabilitation, this is why it is crucial to continue with treatment, such as sober living facilities and counseling.

12-Step Program

In addition to communal living, residents are encouraged to stay clean and sober. In many cases, permission to stay is dependent on attending 12-step program meetings and working the 12-step program. This program was developed to support recovering alcoholics. It revolves around three principles, admitting the recovering drug or alcohol user is powerless to fight the addiction on their own and there is a higher power in whom they can find the strength to live a sober, clean life. The third main principle of the program is one of making restitution to the people who were hurt as a result of the recovering addict’s drug using lifestyle.

Residences

Sober living facilities tend to feature very home-like environments. This allows the recovering addict to be comfortable and live there life as normal as possible, while still going through treatment. The environment is supposed to mimic the home environment that they will eventually go back to.

Activities

Another important feature of sober living facilities is the promotion of social activities which may include volleyball, swimming pool and exercise rooms. Sports, leisure and community activities are essential to any recovery program. This gives the residents a choice of non-drug using activities as well as the chance to interact with other people and form drug-free relationships.

Convenience

Often, facilities are located close to shopping, public transportation and 12-step meetings. Private guidance counseling, along with alcohol and drug screening, may also be offered as part of the package. If recovery meetings are not held on site, one will be very near by.

Off-Site Living

Some residential care homes offer off-site homes as an intermediate step in the recovery process. Residents here are graduates of an early recovery program. These residences have similar facilities to the early recovery programs but with more independence. All necessary counseling and support services are available.