San Diego Sober Living
San Diego is California’s second-largest city is one of the best places in the world to begin your sober journey. Situated right between the Pacific Ocean and the Mexican Border, San Diego’s beautiful beaches and pleasant climate offer countless activities to people who are looking for joy in sobriety. It is also known for its quality sober living homes and its active recovery community. With plentiful resources for individuals pursuing addiction recovery, as well as activities for them to enjoy in their off time, San Diego is a clear contender for being one of the best cities to get sober in.
San Diego is known not only for miles and miles of beaches but also for being the world’s most active land border crossing. With plentiful military bases in and around the city, San Diego straddles the line between military culture and relaxed beachside vibes. It was the first European settlement in California, which is why this unique city is often known as “the birthplace of California.” This city by the sea is also adjacent to Santa Ana, Tijuana, Chula Vista, Riverside, and Anaheim, so it is no surprise that San Diego is an important hub for business and tourism alike.
San Diego’s thriving economy is based primarily on tourism, international trade, and military-related industries. As a result, it is generally easy for new residents to find a job in San Diego. Moreover, the city is home to a wide variety of colleges and educational institutions, including the University of California, San Diego, the NewSchool of Architecture and Design, National University, Point Loma Nazarene University, and San Diego State University. With new educational career opportunities and educational options galore, San Diego offers a fresh start to individuals pursuing sobriety after years of chaos and addiction.
Whether you already live in San Diego, are planning on making a move here soon, or want to attend a sober living home in a nearby city like Los Angeles, it is not difficult to find quality recovery if you are ready to seek help.
What Is a Sober Living Home?
Sober livings are houses where individuals work on getting sober together. Roommates agree from the outset to stay away from drugs and alcohol, which ensures a safe and trigger-free environment for all residents. Sober living houses do not specifically offer clinical addiction treatment. However, individuals who choose to live in sober living houses can benefit considerably from living in a structured environment free of substances — as well as from the strong peer support system they can obtain there.
In fact, the peer support network that residents develop in sober living homes is one of the most crucial aspects of long-term addiction recovery. A study on sober living houses demonstrated that individuals who go to sober living homes and strengthen their sober support system are less likely to relapse even years after graduating from their sober living. In part, this is because sober relationships help people get the support, advice, and hope that they need. It is also because these relationships are sources of joy that make life meaningful in the long run. In this sense, sober living homes not only offer recovery tools — but they help residents obtain the gifts of sobriety.
Recovery involves more than just changing personal behaviors. In fact, having a sober environment is crucial, especially for people in early recovery. Residing in a supportive, safe, and trigger-free environment helps people avoid the temptation of relapse. It also makes it far easier for residents to begin building new lives for themselves. After all, most people want to get sober because they want to lead different lives. By joining a San Diego sober living home, individuals in early recovery can obtain support as they build new relationships, heal damaged ones, develop new careers, restart their educations, and become the best versions of themselves.
Sober livings may seem, to all appearances, like any other home that roommates live in. Sober living housemates live together, head out to work, watch tv or joke around in their free time, and cook delicious meals. The crucial difference is that they are all sober, and moreover, they are working hard to support one another in staying sober. To that end, sober living homes in San Diego often have house rules, structure, drug testing, and recovery-related activities throughout the day.
Though sober living houses do not offer clinical treatment, they are often an essential step after a person has finished a residential treatment program. Sober living homes bridge the gap between acute inpatient treatment and the “real world.” These transitional living environments provide support as residents take steps toward increased autonomy and more fulfilling lives in the outside world. By the time residents graduate, they will be confidently able to make use of new coping skills, they will be connected to their local recovery community, and they will have the strength and resources they need to live independently, joyfully, and soberly long into the future. No matter where an individual starts off on their sobriety journey, recovery is possible for those who reach out to a sober living home for help.
Addiction in San Diego
San Diego is a common tourist destination because of its urban offerings as well as its beachside attractions. However, San Diego also suffers from a significant substance abuse problem behind the scenes. Part of this is due to its proximity to the US/Mexico border. As the most active border crossing in the world, San Diego provides seemingly limitless opportunities to drug smugglers and Mexican drug cartels. It is no surprise that San Diego offers residents easy access to countless illicit substances, including marijuana, heroin, fentanyl, cocaine, crystal meth, and crack.
San Diego has a diverse population of 1.43 million people. Unfortunately, San Diego also has an above-average number of people living below the poverty line. In fact, San Diego is known for having the third-largest homeless population in the United States. Drug and alcohol abuse affects individuals of all socioeconomic classes, but people at the lower levels of the economic strata are significantly more vulnerable.
In recent years, San Diego has experienced a surge in opioid-related deaths. The opioid epidemic has prevalent throughout California and the United States, but in San Diego, prescription opioids are a particular problem. In fact, 2017 saw 273 deaths from prescription painkiller overdoses in San Diego. Heroin is also a serious issue here. In fact, approximately 11% of adults who are arrested in San Diego test positive for heroin abuse. Without proper recovery tools and communities, residents are increasingly likely to die from opioid overdoses.
The beaches and hospitable climate for which San Diego is lauded have a dark side. The relaxed and carefree vibes that visitors see on the beaches of San Diego is partly a result of addiction. It is not difficult to spend the day at the beach while intoxicated on marijuana, alcohol, or even opioids. In fact, San Diego attracts addicted people from all over the world. They move to the city for its sunshine — so that they can use heroin and live on the street without freezing to death.
Benefits of Sober Living Homes in San Diego
It is important to recognize that addiction recovery is an ongoing journey. No one has to suffer from addiction forever, but there is also no recognized “cure.” Even the most high-quality recovery programs cannot “get rid” of a person’s substance use disorder. However, by making use of a support system and new coping tools, people can learn to live free of the obsessions and compulsions that characterize addiction. Like any chronic disease, such as diabetes or high blood pressure, addiction can be managed. Sober living homes offer long-term support for people in early recovery who are working on learning to live without drugs and alcohol. This learning process takes time, and sober living homes allow residents to take all the time they need as they pick up the wreckage of their old lives and begin building new ones.
Sober living houses in San Diego offer a wide variety of unique benefits. The state of California contains more sober livings than any other state in the nation, and San Diego is the state’s second-largest city, so people in early recovery have plentiful options. In any of San Diego’s high-quality sober living facilities, clients benefit from:
Sober Peers
Addiction is often spoken of as a “disease of isolation.” Living with other people who share the same histories and struggles can be healing in and of itself. Residents of sober living homes include both people who are just getting sober and those who have more time under their belt. As a result, residents form a community containing a wide range of experiences. This ensures that people with more sober time can be of assistance to those with less time. It should be noted, too, that those with more sobriety benefit considerably from seeing newcomers struggling firsthand. Long-term sober living residents have the opportunity to become leaders and mentors in the recovery community, which ultimately strengthens their own recovery.
24/7 Support and Guidance
Sober living homes provide a guarantee of 24/7 support and guidance for residents. Not only are fellow housemates always around, but sober living staff is also available to offer their own feedback, strength and hope. Even at night, a house manager or other staff member will always be around to help with a crisis or any issue, from difficult cravings to painful emotions. Staff members and sober living home house managers also ensure that residents stay accountable and follow the rules.
New Life Skills
Daily life in a sober living home involves learning new coping tools to avoid relapse. But much of what residents learn in a recovery home involves everyday skills. These skills range from how to write a resume to proper grooming habits. After years of active addiction, most people need a refresher course — at the very least — in how to be a properly functioning human being. In a sober living home, you will learn how to manage your money, set a schedule for yourself, show up to work on time, and communicate better with family members and other loved ones. By the time you graduate, you will have the skills and abilities you need to live the life you want for yourself and face the challenges ahead.
Decreased Risk of Relapse
If it isn’t obvious from the name, sober living houses are known for their… sobriety! Regular drug screening ensures that residents participate in a clean and sober environment. In early recovery, avoiding triggers is essential. By living in a new location where the chances of benign exposure to substance abuse are low, sober living house residents significantly decrease their likelihood of being tempted. Moreover, the strong social support systems that they develop not only keep them sober while they’re living there, but they also provide long-term support even years after graduation.
Smooth Transitions
Sober living homes in San Diego offer people a way to obtain support and structure as they develop new lives in the outside world. As such, they are often recommended to individuals who have recently graduated from an addiction treatment program or rehab. Jumping from an acute treatment program back into normal life can be jarring. In early sobriety, it is important to develop new skills, build new relationships — and often make important structural life changes, like finding a new career. Sober living homes offer residents the resources they need to do so, ensuring that by the time they graduate they are prepared to handle independence and autonomy without fear of relapse.
Find a Sober Living in San Diego
It is crucial to select a sober living home that offers a high degree of support and structure. While there are many excellent sober living homes in San Diego, individuals in early sobriety often benefit from pursuing recovery in a new environment where they won’t be exposed to triggers. By making a fresh start, they can exercise the principles of recovery without fear of being pulled back into their old lives.
Design for Recovery – Sober Living Westis a structured sober living house for men located in West Los Angeles. In our sober living facility, residents support each other as they progress along their recovery journeys. As a structured sober living home, our staff offers residents a higher degree of scheduling, structure, and resources than a typical sober living house does. Residents take part in support groups, get employment help, and take daily steps toward both healings the wreckage of their past and building fulfilling futures. At Design for Recovery – Sober Living West, we are committed to the idea that recovery is about much more than physical abstinence — it’s about developing strong characters, joyful lives, and building lasting relationships.
If you are ready to make a change, contact Design for Recovery – Sober Living West today.