Difference Between Sober House and Halfway House
The continuum of care when it comes to addiction treatment doesn’t just end when addiction treatment ends. There are still measures that people in recovery from substance addiction need to take to make sure that they can maintain their sobriety long-term. For example, some people need active help transitioning back into the real world after completing their addiction treatment programs.
One way to receive such help is by staying in a sober living home or halfway house post-treatment. To know whether or not staying in a sober living home or halfway house post-treatment is right for you, you must first understand the difference between sober house and halfway house is.
What is a Halfway House?
A halfway house is a housing facility for individuals that have just left prison or jail. Many of these individuals are also in recovery from addiction. Thus, a halfway house is meant to help former inmates that are potentially in recovery from substance addiction transition back into regular society.
Halfway houses first became a thing in England in the 18th century. Back then, halfway houses were housing facilities for children that had committed crimes. Over time, the United States adopted the English idea of halfway housing. The halfway houses in the U.S. host individuals that have just been released from prison.
Today, most halfway houses host former inmates in order to help them transition back into regular society. Many of these former inmates are also in recovery from substance addiction.
There are also some halfway houses that are strictly for people that are new in recovery from substance addiction. Oftentimes though, the people that stay in halfway houses are court-ordered to live there for a designated period of time.
What is a Sober Living Home?
A sober living home is an apartment-style housing facility. People that are new to substance addiction recovery live in sober living homes to help them transition back into regular society post-rehab.
Sober living homes first began in the 1830s. Back then, sober living homes acted as “dry” hotels that didn’t allow their residents to consume alcohol. Now, sober living homes are housing facilities. These housing facilities are made just for people that are new to recovery from alcohol or drug addiction.
One thing that makes sober living homes so beneficial for individuals that are new to addiction recovery to stay in is that they tend to offer substance abuse treatment and therapy services for any resident that needs them. Thus, sober living homes provide their residents with the support and structure that they need to maintain their sobriety. Sober living homes also give their residents the freedom to function in society as regular people and tend to their normal life responsibilities when not at home.
Outpatient treatment programs also allow their patients to tend to their normal life responsibilities. They don’t though remove the temptations to relapse from the homes of the patients. This makes it much harder for individuals in outpatient treatment to maintain long-term sobriety after rehab.
Benefits of Halfway Houses
There are many benefits to living in a halfway house after completing a sentence in prison or jail. One of these benefits is that halfway houses provide former inmates with the support and resources that they need to get their lives back on track. For example, halfway houses often provide former inmates that are new to recovery with assistance when it comes to applying to and looking for jobs. This is huge as most inmates heavily struggle with getting jobs after completing their sentences.
Many individuals that have been living in prisons or jails for extended periods of time also don’t have anywhere to live. As a result, halfway houses provide such individuals that are newly released from prison or jail with safe places to live.
Halfway houses also help keep individuals that are newly released from prison or jail from getting in trouble. This is because halfway houses provide former inmates with places to live in housing communities that are filled with other people that are trying to better themselves after leaving prison or jail. Halfway houses also help former inmates stay out of trouble by providing them with structure in their lives.
Some activities that halfway house residents must complete while there, such as making amends with people in their lives that they allowed their substance use habits or unlawful decisions to negatively affect, are also beneficial. This is because such activities help former inmates repair the relationships that they had before they were arrested. Now let’s compare the benefits of a halfway house vs. sober living home.
Benefits of Sober Living
There are various benefits of sober living. One major benefit of staying in a sober living home is that it too helps its residents gain the skills and resources that they need to be able to maintain sobriety long-term. For example, it’s very common for sober living homes to offer their residents assistance with applying to and interviewing for jobs. Some sober living homes even offer their residents transportation services to commute them to and from their job interviews.
Sober living homes also make it a point to offer their residents addiction therapy services. This is definitely a benefit. This is because such services help sober living residents learn how to manage their addiction triggers while in the real world.
All of the individuals that live in a sober living facility are new to addiction recovery. Thus, it’s usually a requirement within sober living homes for residents to abstain from alcohol or drugs while living there. This helps sober living home residents get a break from the temptations to abuse substances that they must constantly face while functioning in society.
Similarity Between Sober House and Halfway House
There are several similarities between halfway houses and sober living homes. One of these similarities is the possibility for such housing facilities to host individuals that are new to recovery from substance addiction, regardless of whether those individuals are also former inmates or not.
Another similarity between halfway houses and sober living homes is that they both help individuals transition from one state of living back into regular society. Both halfway houses and sober living homes also help individuals gather skills and resources. These skills and resources help individuals transition smoothly back into regular society.
Difference Between Sober House and Halfway House
One difference between sober house and halfway house is that halfway houses host individuals that have just been released from prison or jail that also likely are in recovery from substance addictions. Sober houses on the other hand only host individuals that are newly recovered from substance addictions. Thus, sober living homes do not house former inmates.
Another difference between sober house and halfway house is that many people that enter halfway houses are required to receive addiction treatment while living there. Sober houses, on the other hand, don’t require their residents to receive addiction treatment since they’ve already recently completed rehab. Instead, sober living homes offer their patients additional addiction therapy services. Sober living homes also provide their residents with 12 step meetings, regular house meetings, and addiction recovery sponsors.
Another benefit of attending a sober house is that sober houses don’t specify the amount of time that their patients can reside there. This is different from halfway houses which often court-order their residents to live there for designated amounts of time. Instead, sober living homes require their residents to agree to other certain conditions prior to living there. One of these conditions is not bringing any alcohol or drugs into the sober living facilities.
Such an agreement keeps sober living home residents clean and sober. This is despite encountering addiction triggers in the real world. Such an agreement also helps sober living home residents practice abstaining from substances while functioning in the real world.
Receive Sober Living at Live Free Recovery
Live Free Recovery specializes in sober living. In fact, it’s the mission of Live Free Recovery Services and structured sober living homes in New Hampshire to help men and women recover from chronic alcohol and drug addiction. Therefore, you can not only receive high-quality, evidence-based inpatient or outpatient addiction treatment here at Live Free Recovery, but you also can live in a top-notch Live Free sober living home once your treatment is over.
Live Free Recovery and Sober Living has numerous locations throughout beautiful New Hampshire. The amount of care that people in recovery receive when entering a Live Free Recovery and Sober Living Home is truly a step above what people usually encounter when entering a sober living facility, especially a sober living facility in New Hampshire.
To learn more about Live Free Recovery and our Structured Sober Living Homes, contact us today! You won’t regret it.
Category: Sober Living