Moving from Rehab into Transitional Living

Addiction recovery is a journey, and it’s comprised of many different stages. Your recovery journey may begin in rehab, but sooner or later it will be time to make your way into “regular life” once more.

This comes with its own share of challenges—specifically, maintaining your recovery while dealing with the everyday stresses of school, work, and family responsibilities. It’s generally best to ease back into the daily grind, continuing to receive plenty of support and encouragement from the recovery community. This is basically what transitional living is all about.

What is Transitional Living?

In a transitional living setting, you will be free to go to school or work as needed, but you’ll be living with others who are in recovery. Surrounded by peers, you’ll have the accountability you need to keep working on your own recovery journey. You’ll also have people you can talk to when you experience hard days, and you’ll continue to go to therapy or counseling for additional support.

Transitional living has been shown, time and time again, to aid the recovery journey. Those who seek a transitional living experience are less likely to relapse than those who simply go straight back into “normal” life. As such, it’s something we recommend highly here at Experience Recovery.

Making the Most of Transitional Living

How can you ensure that you are getting the most out of transitional living, though? Here are a few tips from our Experience Recovery team.

• Don’t go until you are ready. Remember that transitional living is designed for those who have completed an inpatient recovery program; if you rush your way through the program and into transitional living, you may not have the coping skills needed to handle everyday pressures. Complete your recovery program first, and only pursue transitional living when your addiction recovery counselor feels you’re up for it.
• Pick the right transitional living community. Not all transitional living communities are created equal—so how can you find the one that’s best for you? Start by asking your counselor for recommendations. Also remember that what ultimately matters is finding a place where you feel comfortable and at peace; when in doubt, just listen to your gut.
• Ask the right questions. As you learn about a particular transitional living community, make sure you do your homework and establish the proper expectations. Some questions you should be asking involve the success rates of alumni; crisis protocols; the qualifications of the on-site staff; typical lengths of stay; and amenities offered to make your time more enjoyable and restful.
• Pack properly. You’ll obviously want to make sure you bring along the right clothing, toiletry items, reading materials, your devices and computers, etc. Be sure to check the packing rules, too, as some transitional living communities may have stipulations on what you can and cannot bring.
• Understand the rules. Also understand that your transitional living house may have certain rules you need to comply with—whether that means doing chores, pitching in with clean-up, respecting “quiet hours,” or checking in at a certain time each day. Take these rules seriously. Remember, they exist to help you along in your recovery journey!

Move Forward in Your Recovery

Transitional living can be a critical step in your recovery journey—so make sure you invest in it. Take it seriously. Embrace it for the great opportunity that it is.

Experience Recovery endorses transitional living, and we have some resources we’d love to share with you. Learn more about our approach to transitional living by contacting our admissions staff today!