Sober House Rules

Recovering from substance abuse is a difficult and often long journey. Many people enter inpatient facilities or rehabilitation facilities and find themselves cut off from the bad influences that overran their lives; however, many of these recovering addicts find themselves unable to reintegrate into the world when they return. Sober housing provides an environment where recovering addicts are protected from substances and other bad influences yet are still exposed to every day life and its problems. Sober houses often have their own rules which must be followed to ensure they are both beneficial and safe for all tenants.

What are Sober House Rules?

If you’ve decided to stay at a sober house, you need to be aware that many of these houses have rules that must be followed. Since no contract is involved, breaking these rules can cause immediate eviction from the home, usually within the same day. The most common rules found at nearly all sober houses are:

• Zero tolerance for any type of drug or alcohol (including high alcohol mouthwash and things like shaving cream)
• Zero tolerance for misconduct such as fighting, violence, theft, harassment, sexual conduct between residents, etc.
• All fees must be paid on time

These are three major rules are usually found in all sober houses, whether they are for low income residents or even for top executive earners.

What Are Other Sober House Rules?

Some sober houses have additional rules that they will require their residents to follow. Breaking these rules may not result in eviction like breaking any of the three main rules; however, each sober house operates differently. Some of these rules can include:

Cleanliness. The living area as well as the person living in that area must be clean and well kept. Any areas that the residents use such as the kitchen or bathroom will also need to be cleaned after use.
Daily chores must be completed. Many sober houses assign a daily chore to each resident that must be completed. If the resident consistently fails to complete this chore, they can be evicted from the residence.
Attend any weekly meetings. A sober house will often have a weekly recovery meeting that they require all residents to attend. Some sober houses will require the resident attends all meetings while others will only require a minimum amount.

Why Stay in a Sober House?

Sometimes those recovering from substance abuse or alcoholism may feel that the inpatient treatment was enough and they are ready to get back to their lives. However, many of these residents don’t realize that they’ve been isolated from their daily stresses and only a few days or weeks of exposure can cause the person to backtrack. A sober house provides an environment where everyone is trying to learn how to live their normal lives again and still deal with the final issues of their recovery. Sober housing provides a support system for these people and allows them to slowly reintegrate themselves back into society while still having help available in moments of weakness.

If someone you know or love is coming out of an inpatient program or rehabilitation facility, a sober house can be a great way to gently reintroduce them back to society without overwhelming them.