It’s a sad truth that 85% of people who get out of rehab are likely to relapse. Rehabilitation remains one of the best ways to help someone overcome their addiction to substance abuse or alcohol. However, often, it’s not enough.

Sober living homes are created to help and support people out of rehab who need more help to prevent them from relapsing.

Since Camelback Recovery is a women’s sober living program, based in Scottsdale, one of the most common questions asked is if we are a rehabilitation facility. Sober living and rehabilitation programs are both means to the same end, but they differ. So what is the difference between rehab and sober living? Read on to learn about it and find out how a sober living environment can help keep you on track.

What is the difference between rehab and sober living? Concept image shows life coach at a sober house.

Similarities and Differences

Sober Living

A sober living home is a living facility for sober people to live together. Often, these are people who were treated for drug or alcohol addiction and have recently emerged from rehabilitation facilities and need more help or support. It keeps the risk of relapse at bay.

Rules at sober living homes include absolutely no drugs, mandatory curfews, chore assignments, and no tolerance for violence.

Most of the people in sober living homes must apply to be part of the program. Compared to a rehab program, a sober living program is not mandatory after rehab.

Conversely, you don’t have to have been in rehab to join a sober living program. It’s a more voluntary tenancy than a rehab program which may be court-ordered or mandatory.

A sober living home aims to keep tenants away from temptations and risks of returning to drugs. It’s an accommodation or living space that transitions from post-rehab life to the outside world.

Rehab Program

A rehabilitation program is a more active, focused program specifically designed to cut off a person from their present addiction. They conduct counseling and addiction treatment, which works in different stages over several weeks.

Like sober living, they remove a person from their addiction and put them into a drug-free abstinence-b

ased environment. However, rehabilitation programs often have timelines rather than the rules in sober living houses. The timelines represent how far a person has progressed in their recovery from addiction.

The rehab treatment facilities also have what is called a detox process. This is the phase where a person living with addiction undergoes withdrawal symptoms.

A rehab center can help them during this difficult time when they are most at risk and likely in much pain. Sober living homes don’t have detox facilities.

Serenity Ranch, one of our halfway houses for women.

What Sober Living Programs Do

Sober living homes create a safe space that begins the recovery and assimilation process back to the outside world along with other recovering addicts. It feels very much like a community home, with stricter rules. There is also a house manager who can help tenants stay on track to recovery.

A sober living house is seen as a long-term recovery program. Now that a person has been cut off from their addiction and has been rehabilitated, a sober living home can ensure that they don’t return to old habits or return to places where they could be susceptible to relapse.

This is why splitting the genders in sober living facilities has been deemed necessary. A women’s sober living home can do much more than help a woman return to sobriety. It protects her from an unsafe environment or the people that may have been the initial cause of her addiction.

The Importance of a Sober Living Home For Women

Women’s sober living homes protect women from aggressive or predatory behavior from the opposite sex. During the recovery period, women and men alike can be susceptible to distraction. Still, women benefit more from a single-sex sober living facility as it protects them from cultural expectations at the same time.

They can focus on the issues and problems they are working through without feeling judged by the societal standards often placed on women.

Finding a Good Sober Living Program

Group of women at the garden of the halfway house.

When seeking out an excellent sober living home for women, look for programs that help both physical and mental health. A great program can provide constant guidance and support, with managers available to help you with your needs.

Most of all, seek out a place with positive and meaningful relationships. Because sober living is a long-term recovery process, you need to find a sober living program that forges real connections between occupants and counselors.

At Camelback Recovery, we can provide ongoing recovery coaching and even a comprehensive recovery plan. We believe in helping women gain every opportunity to grow and develop their lives in meaningful ways.

Women in the sober living program get constant contact with counselors and even a support network to help them achieve their goals. Learn more about the recovery coaching levels we offer or see our resources to help guide you to recovery.

If you feel that you or someone your love needs our help and guidance in sober living, contact us today and reserve your spot in our facility.