Social support in early recovery has been proven to be a huge help in a transition from a life of addiction to a life of recovery. Bonds with other people in recovery can help bolster confidence and conviction that a life fueled by alcohol and drugs leads to despair and misery. Relationships with like- minded people who can truly empathize with what it feels like to be in recovery and quell the loneliness and uncertainty of a sober lifestyle are invaluable.
At AToN Center, we require residents to attend at least one community support meeting per week to encourage the forming of social bonds in recovery. It has been shown that this requirements aids in the continuity between residential treatment and aftercare. AToN Center does not favor any one particular self- help meeting, in fact, we provide a variety of self-help meetings so that the resident can determine what resonates with them. The following is a list and brief description of some of the self- help meetings we offer on a weekly basis:
Refuge Recovery: According to founder, Noah Levine, it’s a Buddhist path to recovery. It is a practice, a process, a set of tools, a treatment and a path to healing addiction and the suffering caused by addiction.
Alcoholics Anonymous: An international mutual aid fellowship founded in 1935 by Bill Wilson and Dr Bob Smith. Its primary purpose is to help alcoholics stay sober and help other alcoholics achieve sobriety. This self- help meeting utilizes the 12 Step approach where participants give their will and life over to a higher power, take a fearless moral inventory, and commit to helping the alcoholic that still suffers.
Life Ring: A secular, non- profit organization providing peer run addiction recovery groups. The organization provides support and assistance to people seeking to recover from alcohol or drug addiction, and also provides support for their family members.
SMART Recovery: Self- Management and Recovery Training is an international non- profit organization which provides assistance to individuals seeking abstinence from addiction behaviors. The approach used is secular and scientifically based using non- confrontational motivational, behavioral and cognitive methods.
*Definitions of meetings from Wikepedia
Kate Judd MS, CADC II
CD Counselor
AToN Center 888-535-1516
