An Oxford house provides recovering addicts a safe, substance-free place to live. At any given time there are about 2,000 Oxford House residents who have served in the military. During the course of a year more than 4,000 veterans will live in an Oxford House. Some houses are all veterans but primarily veterans are integrated into the normal Oxford House population. Generally an individual comes into an Oxford House following a 28-day rehabilitation program or at least a 5 to10-day detoxification program. Experience of Oxford House has shown that from 8 to 15 members works very well.

Having houses in good neighborhoods with a safe environment for recovery to flourish may be the single most important reason for the Oxford House success. We are always adding NEW HOUSES and are  dedicated members of recovery communities all across Florida. This study found that 81.5% of the participants who left Oxford House residences, reported no substance use during the following 1 year. A 2010 article examined the characteristics of the houses and participants and also reviewed two studies funded by the National Institute of Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) and the National Institute of Drug Abuse (NIDA).

Q. What is the “ideal” number of individuals to assure a well-run self-run, self-supported recovery house?

A variety of other studies have also found that sober living homes appear to be an effective component of the recovery process. There is no in-house treatment or requirement to attend a specific recovery what is an oxford house program, but 12-step participation is popular in Oxford Houses. A new house member must be interviewed by current residents and must receive an 80 percent vote of approval to be accepted.

Receiving abstinence support, guidance, and information from recovery home members committed to the goal of long-term sobriety and abstinence may reduce the probability of a relapse (Jason, Ferrari, Davis & Olson, 2006). This experience might provide residents with peers who model effective coping skills, be resources for information on how to maintain abstinence, and act as advocates for sobriety. These findings provide a challenge to psychologists working in the addiction field.

Q. How many individuals lived in an Oxford House during 2010?

An average day at a sober living home usually includes group breakfasts, lunches and dinners. Most homes have household meetings nightly, and residents often attend treatment, support group meetings or other wellness activities together. The ways that sober living houses work vary depending on the level of support provided. The National Alliance for Recovery Residences is one of the largest associations of sober living homes in the United States.

Sober living homes don’t require accreditation, a state license or oversight from a behavioral health care provider. The lack of regulation has led to the creation of homes that lack access to support services or strict rules. Your friends or family members may tempt you with alcohol or other drugs by consuming them in front of you. Second, only a lease to the House as a group accurately reflects that the House is responsible as a group.

Q. Do studies show that many Oxford House residents have co-occurring mental illness?

Of course, no one particular type of treatment setting is appropriate for all individuals. Individuals early in their recovery or with particular interpersonal characteristics might need more of a structured and professionally-led milieu in order to maintain abstinence given the freedoms that are provided in Oxford Houses. In the past 90 days, the sample had an average of 1 day of residential treatment for psychiatric problems and an average of 3 sessions with a counselor for psychiatric problems. Certainly, it is clear that the sample of Oxford House residents do have significant mental health problems and that they do utilize mental health services outside of their Oxford Houses. One of the largest examples of a community-based, mutual-help residential community for high risk substance abuse individuals is Oxford House.

Oxford House will not charter a house with fewer than six individuals because experience has shown that it takes at least six individuals to form an effective group. Any recovering alcoholic or drug addict can apply to get into any Oxford House by filling out an application and being interviewed by the existing members of the House. The application is then considered by the membership of the House and if there is a vacancy and if 80% of the members approve, the applicant is accepted and moves in. If an applicant does not get voted into one house he or she should try another house in the area. The Oxford House website contains an application and information about How to Apply to live in an Oxford House. The present article addresses the primary outcome studies conducted on one form of recovery home called Oxford House.

In this same study, we examined the combined effects of 12-step involvement and Oxford House residence on abstinence over a 24-month period (Groh, Jason & Ferrari, 2009). Among individuals with high 12-step involvement, the addition of Oxford House residence significantly increased the rates of abstinence (87.5% vs. 52.9%). Results suggested that the joint effectiveness of these mutual-help programs may promote abstinence and extended our previous research indicating that OH residents frequently engage in 12-step program use (Nealon-Woods, Ferrari, & Jason, 1997). Sober living homes are an effective resource for individuals who have completed treatment and are ready to begin their lives in recovery. They provide a balance of supervision and independence that allows people to transition back to work, school and daily life.

• Individuals early in their recovery or with particular interpersonal characteristics might need more of a structured and professionally-led milieu in order to maintain abstinence given the freedoms that are provided in Oxford Houses.
• In 1975, a tight budget in Montgomery County, Maryland led to a decision to close one of the four county-run halfway houses.
• During 2010, approximately 24,000 individuals lived in an Oxford House for some or part of the year.
• Alcoholism and substance abuse affects over 20 million Americans, and thus is the most prevalent mental disorder facing our nation (Jason, Ferrari, Davis, & Olson, 2006).
• Oxford Houses of Texas, established in 1990, is a state-wide network of addiction recovery homes chartered by Oxford House, Inc., the 501c3 umbrella corporation.

However, some halfway houses are designed to reduce drug relapse rates for high-risk individuals leaving incarceration. Having time to become comfortable in sobriety might be the single most important part of the Oxford House success story. Using this cost-effective method to improve the chances of recovery from alcoholism and drug addiction, may be the best way to show the community that recovery works and that recovering individuals can become model citizens. Oxford Houses of Texas, established in 1990, is a state-wide network of addiction recovery homes chartered by Oxford House, Inc., the 501c3 umbrella corporation.

New roles for psychologists in working with these types of support systems are identified. Half the individuals interviewed also had concerns about being the only Hispanic/Latino House member. Despite their initial concerns, participants reported overwhelmingly positive experiences in Oxford House, with the majority of interviewees indicating that they “blended into the house” within their first few weeks.

The Oxford House model suggests that there are alternative social approaches that can transcend the polarities that threaten our nation (Jason, 1997). We believe that there is much potential in the Oxford House model for showing how intractable problems may be dealt with by actively involving the community. Today, most sober homes are unregulated, but some homes are part of larger organizations such as Oxford House, the Florida Association of Recovery Residences or the New Jersey Alliance of Recovery Residences.