29 Apr 5 Things You Shouldn’t Do While Living in a Sober Home
Sober living homes can help ease the transition out of treatment and into real life. They can help patients stay sober after treatment, develop healthy routines, and reinforce the coping skills they learned in treatment. However, your experience in sober living is what you make it. You could live in the best sober home in Delray Beach but still relapse if you don’t behave correctly and take suggestions. Or, you could live in an older, run-down home and still stay sober if you do the right things.
Navigating life in early recovery isn’t always easy, but there are some mistakes you don’t want to make. Here are 5 things you shouldn’t do while living in a sober home in Delray Beach.
1. Don’t Lie About Your Sobriety
First and foremost, it is important you are honest about your sobriety while living in a sober home. Staying sober and maintaining a life in recovery is the purpose of staying in a sober home, and if you aren’t sober, you aren’t benefitting from all the things the home has to offer.
Most sober homes make you take random drug tests, so you won’t be able to lie about your sobriety for very long. If you are using drugs or drinking, you will get caught eventually, so it’s best to be honest about where you are at rather than getting caught in the middle of a lie.
Additionally, you are not alone in a sober home. You will have a roommate and other housemates who are trusting that everyone in the home is sober. Lying about your sobriety can not only break your trust with your housemates, but it can put their sobriety in jeopardy, as well.
Remember, nobody is there to judge you. Everyone in sober living knows that addiction is a disease and that relapse is a part of recovery for many people. When you come clean, you will find you get the help you need.
Do: Be honest. It’s the best policy.
2. Don’t Break The House Rules
Sober living homes in Delray Beach have strict rules and regulations that you are expected to abide by. If you don’t obey these rules, you may be subject to punishment or being asked to move out of the home. While living in a sober home, be sure you do not:
- Show up late for curfew
- Skip your house meetings
- Fail to do your chores
- Get into arguments with your housemates
- Steal from your housemates
- Eat another person’s food
- Keep a messy room
- Listen to music or TV too loud
- Have unapproved visitors
- Skip your therapy sessions
Rules are in place for a good reason. They help maintain order in the home and promote a functional living space. If you break the rules, you should be prepared to face the consequences of possibly losing your bed in the home.
Do: Follow all of the rules. They are there for your own good.
3. Don’t Get Into a New Romantic Relationship
Romantic relationships are generally not encouraged during your first year of sobriety. This is because relationships can distract from the recovery process. A new relationship is exciting and may feel more important than your recovery. Or, a relationship could end badly, causing you to feel depressed and lonely.
In early recovery, you are still vulnerable to relapse, so it’s important to do everything you can to stay clean and focus on yourself. As a result, it is a good idea to wait until you have moved out of sober living or have at least one year sober before dating or getting into a new romantic relationship.
Do: Focus on your sobriety. Now is the time for YOU.
4. Don’t Fall Behind on Rent While Living in a Sober Home
Sober living homes in Delray Beach do not offer formal treatment services and, therefore, are not covered by insurance. Instead, they operate similarly to your normal landlord-tenant agreement. You are expected to pay rent on a weekly or monthly basis. If you don’t pay rent, you may be evicted or asked to leave the home.
Some sober living homes will give you a grace period of several weeks or months to catch up on rent. It is normal for some people to not have jobs while transitioning from rehab to treatment, but it is important that you don’t delay finding employment as soon as you leave rehab. Doing so can cause you to fall behind on your rent.
If you’ve ever had a credit card before, you know that it is far more difficult to catch up on bills you are behind on than it is to simply pay your bills on time.
Do: Stay on top of your finances by paying rent on time so you can save for your own place in the future.
5. Don’t Take Your Housemates For Granted
You may have anywhere between 3 and 6 housemates while living in a sober home in Delray Beach. Naturally, there may be some disagreements. There may be some personalities you simply don’t mesh with. However, these are the people who are going to be there for you in early sobriety. By living in the same home, you will have endless opportunities to develop meaningful relationships with other sober people. You can even meet people from all walks of life to help expand your view of recovery and the world.
If you want to make the most out of sober living, don’t spend all of your time on your phone. Don’t avoid your roommates and don’t take them for granted, because they just may be the individuals that support you throughout your recovery.
Do: Take the time to foster healthy relationships. You won’t regret it.
Find a Delray Beach Sober Living Home Today
Here at Florida Recovery Group, we want to help you make the most out of your stay at our Delray Beach sober homes. Our rehab programs can prepare you for sober living and our sober living helps prepare you for life in sobriety. To find a sober living home near you or to find addiction help, pick up the phone and give us a call today.
