Sober living homes offer you a safe and supportive place to live after completing rehab. In these homes, you have to follow certain rules like staying sober, passing drug tests, keeping your room tidy, and making it home before curfew. These rules are in place to help you stay on the right path.
When it's time to leave sober living and return home, it's important to be ready for the change. Transitioning from rehab to sober living is already challenging, but moving from a structured environment like sober living to your own home can be even tougher.
Whether you've been in a Los Angeles sober home for six months or two years, adjusting to life at home after sober living can be hard. Here are some tips to make this transition smoother for you.
How to Efficiently Transition from Sober Living to Your Home
Moving from a sober living environment back to your home or a new apartment brings a lot of changes. Unlike in sober living, there won't be someone constantly checking on you, setting curfews, or giving you regular drug tests. Essentially, you're on your own.
Now, deciding if you want to attend meetings and contact your sponsor is up to you. After going through rehab, you've acquired coping skills and established a support system, so it's crucial to use those resources. To ensure a smooth transition and prevent relapse, focus on three key things:
- Try your best to follow your usual daily schedule.
- Don't skip important gatherings like attending 12-step or recovery-focused meetings.
- Keep in touch with people who support your sobriety.
Taking these steps will help you hold yourself accountable and actively contribute to your recovery. Let's explore how these steps can help you adjust to living at home after being in a sober living environment.
Keep Your Regular Routine
In sober living homes, they encourage you to create a routine that suits you. This routine might include:
- waking up at the same time every day
- having a balanced breakfast
- doing activities like working out, meditating, or having some personal time
- going to work
- relaxing after work
- handling chores and cooking
- attending a 12-step meeting
- going to bed at a reasonable time
Although everyone's routine will differ, sticking to your schedule as much as possible once you're out of sober living is crucial. This consistency helps you maintain a sense of normalcy and a routine as you transition to living independently.
Keep Going to Your Recovery Meetings
Whether you're part of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), Narcotics Anonymous (NA), or involved in a different recovery approach like SMART or LifeRing, make sure your meetings stay a consistent part of your routine. These meetings are crucial in keeping you on track, offering support, and helping you stay sober after completing rehab.
To smoothly transition to home life after sober living, it's essential to keep attending your recovery meetings. Skipping these meetings is often an early sign that you might be heading towards a relapse. Missing meetings, especially during a big life change, can lead to problems, so staying connected is important for your well-being.
Keep in Touch with your Sober Support Group
During your recovery, it's really important to stay connected with people who support your decision to stay sober. Your support group can include family members, lifelong friends, and others on the path to recovery and attend the same meetings as you. It might even include former housemates or people you met during rehab.
Talking regularly with these sober friends can help you stay on track with your recovery. It's a chance to build meaningful relationships that add value to your life and keep you away from alcohol or drugs. Avoiding contact with others is a sign that you might be at risk of going back to old habits, and it's something many people struggling with addiction tend to do.
But remember, staying isolated isn't good for you, especially when going through big changes like moving out of a sober living environment.
Begin Your Journey to Recovery Now
Recovery is a lifelong process that doesn't happen quickly. It involves several steps and requires many changes in the first few months and years of your recovery. One significant challenge might be getting used to living independently again, but you can succeed.
At Transcend Recovery Community, our team is committed to providing the tools and support needed for your recovery journey and long-term well-being. We'll be there for you at every step, including when you're adjusting to life at home after sober living. If you want to know more about our addiction treatment programs or find an addiction and mental health sober living in Los Angeles, get in touch with us today. We're here to assist you.