When Elevated Sober Living first came to life, the idea was to help as many people as possible. The vision for us was not unlike what most advocates for recovery want. With that said, being the only sober living house in McKinney, Texas, an idea came about to do something different and take a chance: a coed sober living home. There is at least one coed treatment facility in the DFW area, Turtle Creek Recovery that only separates genders by floors. While there were initial concerns about doing this, Elevated Sober Living is a large two story home and has a house manager on site. We began to do some research and looked at what is happening in other states. In San Francisco, California, there is a successful coed sober living program called Gateway. In Los Angeles, California, you will find Miracle Villa. We wanted to be more progressive in our vision, similar to these programs.
Some of the disadvantages to a coed sober living are obvious. There is a risk of sexual contact between residents, clients who have been victims of assault by the opposite gender may not feel comfortable in this environment and clients may not be able to focus on their recovery program due to temptations to enter into a relationship. However, at Elevated Sober Living, we have outlined house rules that include automatic eviction if certain ones are broken, including sexual contact, relationships, and entering the opposite sex living quarters. Further, it should be noted that gender specific sober living does not preclude relationships among residents.
A coed sober living home provided benefits that Elevated Sober Living wanted to explore. For example, addicts in recovery can learn to communicate effectively and live with both genders in this environment. In our groups and house meetings, clients are able to get both genders perspectives on situations that are pertinent to sobriety. Clients are able to learn how to remain focused on recovery despite any temptation that may arise to develop a relationship with a peer in the home.
We understand that this is a personal decision and Elevated Sober Living may not be the right choice for everyone. We have a screening process in place to help you determine if this is the right facility for you or your loved one. We hope you will contact us today if we can help!