It’s clear to see how supportive housing and other community integration programs have made a real difference in the lives of clients recovering from addiction and substance abuse. In the past, finishing treatment was considered the end of the recovery journey. However, this often left vulnerable alumni without support. Without this support, many were prone to depression, anxiety, and relapse.
To prevent this outcome for their alumni, many mental health care and addiction treatment facilities began to utilize what is known as supportive housing. With this safety net in place, clients and alumni can practice their coping skills in a supportive environment with the help of professionals. Driftwood Recovery is no different with its supportive housing program. With a secure place to live and continued peer support, it gives alumni the training they need to succeed.
Most people are unsure of what happens in supportive housing. For many, it might seem like a vacation from an outsider’s perspective. But in reality, it’s an essential treatment tool that makes a clear difference in the lives of those in recovery.
What Happens in Supportive Housing?
For most, supportive housing is just like being in a home. How big this housing is or how many people are there varies. For Driftwood Recovery, clients utilize an actual house with shared bedrooms. Clients share common spaces with other clients in a situation akin to having roommates in a dorm or an apartment. They are expected to perform normal household chores to keep their spaces neat and healthy. Overall, it’s just like being in a home.
However, clients are still in treatment and will participate in therapeutic activities throughout the day. Though not as intense as residential treatment, those in supportive housing will still meet with mental health and medical professionals. Individual therapy, group therapy, craving management, and relapse prevention are all important activities in supportive housing.
Clients in supportive housing are not prisoners. Though some may be recommended to stay close to professionals based on their current health, all residents are free to leave the premises. It’s not uncommon for residents in supportive housing to go on day trips or accomplish simple tasks such as shopping. All of these are considered training for life outside of treatment.
Why Is Supportive Housing So Successful?
As a program, supportive housing is a vital tool in preventing relapses and preparing clients for normal life. Simply telling an alumnus that they are done with treatment doesn’t prepare them for the immediate turmoil of normal life. Alumni have to resist a large amount of pressure to use once more and may not have a loving familial support network to take them in post-treatment. For many, they worry that they aren’t strong enough to deal with normal life without the safety net of treatment.
Supportive housing solves these issues by giving clients training wheels for normal life. Clients in supportive housing still perform home chores and duties, but they can also go to work or school. Learning how to balance these duties on top of preserving your sobriety cannot simply be taught. It must be experienced, and the client must have opportunities to practice what they have learned in real-world situations. It’s much safer for a client to have supportive housing to return to after a particularly hard day than to be alone and risk a relapse. Having access to peer support who can keep each other accountable is also a perk of supportive housing, allowing clients to keep each other on track.
Some addictions carry lasting scars and require medical intervention for a successful recovery. Drugs such as alcohol and opioids will cause strong cravings for months to even years after detox. Knowing how to handle these cravings or any medical issues resulting from an addiction takes time and oversight. Having medical personnel available as part of supportive housing trains clients on how to care for themselves on their own. Eventually, clients leave supportive housing as strong and capable people.
The Driftwood Recovery Approach
Supportive housing is just one of many essential treatment programs featured at Driftwood Recovery. We believe that our clients are capable of great things if allowed to thrive. As a result, clients using our supportive housing program do so knowing that they will be cared for. With a focus on safety and security, clients can utilize supportive housing while maintaining their privacy. Our supportive housing buildings are simply normal houses with professionals at the ready. An average person looking at a supportive housing building would never be able to tell that it’s anything other than a simple house that people live in. Clients come and go easily with little fuss, perfect for clients who wish to recover without scrutiny.
Those utilizing Driftwood Recovery’s supportive housing program also enjoy access to continued compassionate and high-quality mental health care and addiction treatment. Clients recovering from addiction and any co-occurring disorders do so under the guidance of top professionals utilizing the latest in holistic, evidence-based treatments. Though not as intensive as a residential treatment program, supportive housing is designed to provide enough support to help you stay stable but allows you to practice what you know. With other supportive programs that help with work and school, clients get everything they need for a successful recovery.
Supportive housing, in the end, is a stepping stone. It allows clients to get a feeling for life in recovery and prepares them for common pitfalls they may encounter. With supportive housing, however, clients don’t just gain support. They gain a community that will be there for them every step of the way for the rest of their lives.
Those who have completed or are currently in addiction treatment have learned the skills needed to remain in recovery. However, jumping right back into previous obligations can make a client feel apprehensive or even frightened. To ease this transition back into normal life, Driftwood Recovery in Driftwood and Austin, Texas, offers a supportive housing program. This program involves clients living in housing created by Driftwood Recovery while they finish treatment. Supportive housing allows clients to practice the skills learned in treatment in a real environment while being safely monitored and helped by medical and mental health care professionals. To learn more about supportive housing at Driftwood Recovery, call (512) 759-8330 today.