A temporary home-like place that helps people transition into permanent sober living is no less than a boon. When an addict has almost completed his/her detox program and wants to start life afresh it is like walking on a tight rope. You can fall anytime. That’s when temporary homes come to the rescue.
The homes are typically called halfway houses. Usually, they are stigmatized. Not because ex-alcoholics or ex-drug addicts live here. But because the houses also accommodate prisoners who are serving their last stage of the term and mentally unstable people who have nowhere to go. Most of the time, such people have a history of alcohol or drug abuse.
The houses that we are talking about here are exclusively for rehab people. These are people who have completed their recovery programs and wish to pick up the pieces of their life together. The house gives them an opportunity to do so before they actually start living back in society.
How does a house help?
Every house has rules. They may vary. But, certain rules stay the same in every house, such as:
- Residents must stay sober 24×7. They cannot do drugs or drink even once.
- You are not allowed to stay outside at night.
- Every house has a fixed routine for everything.
- Each resident must do the chores that they are assigned.
- They must attend therapy programs, meetings, and others, depending on their case.
- You must follow curfew.
Rules of a halfway house go a long way in helping recovering addicts build a strong foundation for their new life.
Are house rules suffocating or liberating?
These rules may seem suffocating at first, as many fully recovered people report. However, that’s only an illusion. As you begin to live here, you realize these are not rules, but a way of life, as it should be.
For example, staying sober can seem like a rule to somebody who is struggling with their sobriety. However, sobriety is a way of life.
Eating meals on time and taking care of nutrition may seem a rule to somebody who has never been particular about their health. They hardly ate well during their active addiction days. However, healthy and timely eating is a way of life. How it keeps diseases at bay!
Having a sleeping pattern can bring tremendous transformation to you. It creates a positive impact on physical and mental health. In a halfway house in Tennessee, you are supposed to wake up and sleep at fixed times daily. So, is this simply a rule? No, it will soon become your way of life.
So, guys and gals, before we see the rules of a house with skepticism, we must understand that most of the rules are not there to punish you. They are to help you adopt a healthier lifestyle, which has no place for alcohol or drugs.
Ultimately, you will realize, these weren’t rules, but a particular lifestyle that most successful people in the world follow!
Looking for a temporary home for yourselves or your loved one?