3 Ways Sober Living Can Save Your Life
I am writing this during the Covid-19 Pandemic. In our lifetimes, truly one of the most devastating and difficult times we have experienced. I can’t imagine what it must have been like a mere 100 years ago with the Spanish Flu killing 50 million people around the planet and coming on the end of the WW I. How bleak things must have been back then.
Luckily, it does not seem that the numbers will reach anywhere close to 50 million but time will tell.
Still, we are in our modern day crisis. At this point in time the pandemic continues to hold the world in its grip and there seems to be no immediate end in sight. It is August 15, 2020 as I write this and at this point in time the world is adjusting to the new normal and the race is on for a vaccine.
Technology has given us the ability to stay in touch with family, business and other necessary meetings. Social media, online meetings and our trusty cell phones give us all the opportunity to stay connected on the phone or text as much as our hearts desire or escape into the world of YouTube videos, video games, Netflix, Hulu or a host of other streaming options.
Our world is vastly different then it was 100 years ago but still we have something we don’t like to look at in the shadows of our modern world. Overdose and addiction. Here is an epidemic within the pandemic of Covid-19. The numbers are astonishing and if it was any other category the press and all of the mainstream news media would be blasting stats all over our screens.
Suspected overdoses nationally jumped 18 percent in March 2020, 29 percent in April 2020 and 42 percent in May 2020, data from ambulance teams, hospitals and police shows.
The story no one wants to talk about. It won’t be in any of the political debates, it won’t be on the front page of the newspaper or on the news feed slide show but it is real and it is not going away.
Here are 3 ways reputable sober living programs help to fight this epidemic. Notice the word reputable. Not all Sober Living Programs are the same. They all sound the same, the websites might look the same, but they all do not function the same. The Arches has been in existence since 2008. More Sober Living Programs have started in the Atlanta area in that span of time then you can count. Many of them come and go in the span of a year or two. The ones that stay are usually the ones that create a safe and healthy environment.
3 Ways Reputable Sober Living Programs Save Lives
#1 Living Within a Community – Of course this is obvious but the importance of that has multiple layers. One of the biggest right now, during Covid, is that it gives the addict a sense of belonging and some human interaction where the new normal would tend to keep more isolation in play. Isolation is detrimental to an addict in any case but now even more because there is fear and anxiety attached to the scenario and with that combination it becomes a huge weight for some people to deal with.
#2 Sense of Purpose – To be connected to a community gives us a sense of purpose. Another essential need as a human being is to feel like we matter. To the addict who has lost and given away so much in their life to be somewhere that is nurturing and encouraging and connecting can be a life saver in the see of guilt and shame.
#3 Safety and Security – This might be one of the biggest in the bunch. Being in a program that feels safe and secure can give you the ability to get some rest and start to rebuild trust in society again. We have to trust others before we can learn to trust ourselves. Being around solid people who have our best interest at heart helps us to feel better about who we really are. The altruistic movement of the early AA groups was what astonished Dr. Silkworth more than anything. Realizing that people can change allows me to have hope that I can change. Feeling safe and secure gives me the space to gradually rebuild those levels of trust in others and myself.