Do you struggle with addiction and live in California? If you’re a recovering addict, you may be interested in learning more about the recovery culture. To best understand the need for sober living tools, you must grasp that addiction is a learned response. Cravings are real, and they can be agonizing. The detox process is a tiny first step in truly learning to thrive as a person who doesn’t use drugs or alcohol. 

Below, we discuss how to use California as a haven for sober living!

Options for Getting Sober in California

Detox

The first step in learning to live in recovery is to undergo a managed detox. The point of a detox is to clear your body chemistry of drugs. While this can go a short way toward recovery, detox does little to reduce the psychological need for drugs. It also does nothing to build the newly learned behavior of sober living.

Unfortunately, the detox process can be pretty painful. When detoxing, keep the following in mind: 

• It can be life-threatening, so have professionals who manage detox help you and your loved ones.
• Stay hydrated and nourished.
• Manage symptoms such as nausea, diarrhea, and sweating.
• Sleep, or if you struggle with sleep, get adequate rest.

After a managed detox, you may be ready for an inpatient rehab treatment we discuss next. 

Inpatient Rehab

Depending on the drugs you use, inpatient rehab may be a good option. When you attend inpatient rehab, it may include maintenance drugs to control cravings, such as methadone. You will be encouraged to participate in group and private therapies during inpatient rehab. Wellness treatment, including regular exercise and meditation, may also be part of your inpatient treatment.

Sober Living Houses

It may be determined that the next best step for you is to move to a sober living house. Once there, you will learn the habits of sober living. There will be therapies and wellness practices. You’ll also be required to participate in 12-step meetings and chores. 

In sober living settings, you will learn to function again as a member of a household. Sober living is available throughout the state of California. For example, there’s sober living in Studio City. 

Out Patient Rehab

For those who cannot take the time to attend inpatient rehab or to stay in a sober living household, outpatient rehab may be necessary. One of the challenges that addicts face is that they may have become entangled with the law. If that’s the case, that’s even more reason why outpatient rehab is essential. 

Outpatient rehab typically includes the following:

• Screening tests to confirm you’re not using it again
• Group therapies and 12-step meetings
• Private therapies
• Medical checkups

Many who abuse drugs start because they try to control extreme physical or emotional pain. Some undiagnosed individuals experience mental illness. 

As you learn to function without addictive drugs, you may need medications. Anxiety, depression, or hallucinatory conditions are common, but medicine can help. Furthermore, private therapies and regular medical checkups are critical. They will help you manage these new symptoms.

Reward Programs

Many drugs and mood-altering substances provide a significant reward each time you take them. You may feel calmer instead of anxious. Your physical or emotional pain may evaporate. All of these rewards go away after detox. Detox may feel you’re being tortured if you have an enormous tolerance for the drugs you were using.

The state of California provides time for your body and brain to build new habits. For example, the sober living programs are effective. Some programs may pay addicts to stay sober. 

Addicts have to function in a culture that treats them as criminals. So, the idea of cash payouts for a clean urine test boosts dopamine and serotonin production. Instead of being punished for what you’ve done in the past, you get rewarded for a positive choice.

Conclusion

Indications are that a punitive view toward addiction is not practical in helping people build a habit of sobriety. Habits take time to build. Rewards help people move toward a goal. If we can work with the brain science of addiction away from the courts, we have a better chance of building a true recovery process.