Sober Living Montana

Montana, located in the Mountain West region of the United States, is named after the Spanish word “montaña” — which literally means mountain. This enormous state, the nation’s fourth-largest by area, is home to countless mountain ranges. Many of these ranges are considered part of the world-famous Rocky Mountains. However, the state’s eastern half is known for its wide-open prairie terrains and badlands, though even these flat terrains are punctuated by small mountain terrains. The state is bordered by North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, and the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan.

Montana’s economy is based on agriculture, ranching, and cereal grain farming. A large portion of the land in Montana is farmland, and the cities tend to be small. In fact, the population of Montana is the eighth-smallest of any U.S. state. Much of the population is employed in industries including gas, oil, lumber, coal, and mining. At this time, however, tourism is the fastest growing industry in Montana. Thousands of people visit the state each year to enjoy its natural marvels, which include Yellowstone National Park, Glacier National Park, Big Sky Resort, and Flathead Lake.

However, Montana currently suffers from a significant public health problem. Addiction runs rampant in Montana’s small towns as well as farming communities. A major source of the addiction problem comes in the form of opioids, most notably prescription opioids. In Montana, physicians write an average of 54 opioid painkiller prescriptions for every 100 residents. It should come as no surprise, then, that half of the state’s drug overdoses are opioid overdoses. The other half consists of alcohol-related deaths, crystal meth and cocaine overdoses, and other assorted prescription drug overdoses.

For Montana residents with addiction problems, it can be difficult to recover without outside help. In smaller towns, it can be hard to find other people who have experience recovering from addiction. Individuals who try to control or manage their substance use disorder on their own rarely succeed. Without seeking outside help, most drug and alcohol addictions tend to get progressively worse, wrecking health, breaking apart families, and taking lives.

Fortunately, Montana is home to many sober living houses that offer people with addictions a source of hope. Sober living homes are designed to facilitate long-term sobriety by providing support, structure, and a safe environment for recovery. By taking part in a sober living home in Montana, or even elsewhere, young people with substance addictions can free themselves from the vicious cycle of addiction and rebuild their lives.

What Are Sober Livings

Sober living homes in Montana are residences that facilitate addiction recovery. They are designated clean and sober homes. Staff members enforce recovery house rules, the most important of which is that residents remain drug and alcohol-free. As such, every person living in a sober living house is guaranteed a trigger-free environment. Environmental triggers can be extremely destabilizing for individuals in early sobriety, who are often emotionally vulnerable. By preventing housemates from being exposed to substance abuse, sober living homes significantly decrease the likelihood of relapse.

Sober living homes also provide housemates with opportunities to develop their social support systems. Sober living home residents are more than just roommates — they work together toward the common goal of recovery. To that end, individuals who have been sober for longer periods of time often take on mentorship roles, offering support, advice, and strength. House members keep each other accountable. In fact, the peer support networks that sober living homes offer have been shown to decrease the chances of relapse even years after a person has left. The relationships that residents develop in sober livings often outlast graduation, and these friendships make sobriety both joyful and meaningful.

Sober living homes often take an active role in residents’ recoveries. Many of them offer intensive scheduling and a great deal of structure for residents. Residents with underlying issues, such as mental health disorders or legal problems, can expect to be put in touch with any services they need. All housemates work toward addressing underlying issues, repairing past damage, and working toward new futures. Sober living staff guide residents as they secure jobs, develop new life skills, and face the challenges of early sobriety.

Sober Fun in Montana

The term “sober fun” might sound impossible to individuals who are actively embroiled in addiction. However, for residents and graduates of sober living homes, sober fun becomes very achievable. By taking part in activities in the company of newfound sober friends, any event can become fun and exciting. The coping skills that sober living homes help reinforce make it possible for individuals to approach activities with positivity and open-mindedness.

Opportunities for sober fun in Montana are plentiful. This state of the American West has a touch of wildness that even clean and sober people can appreciate. From its massive unaltered natural spaces to its cities and small towns, Montana inspires creativity and is always open for exploration. Instead of staying in a dark bar night after night, newly sober people in Montana have a wide range of outdoor activities to choose from. Just a few examples of excellent places to explore in sobriety include:

Fly Fish Blue Ribbon Waterways

Montana is famous for its fly fishing. Anglers have been casting lines here for as many years as there are fish in the river! Montana’s bountiful rivers include the Gallatin River, the Blackfoot River, and the Yellowstone Rivers. Not only can visitors enjoy seasonal hatches at a wide variety of rivers and mountain streams, but most also offer beautiful mountain scenery.

Yellowstone National Park

The nation’s first national park, Yellowstone, contains over two million acres that visitors are free to explore. Visitors who enter from the North Entrance in Gardiner, Montana will immediately encounter the Boiling River, followed by the stunning travertine terraces of Mammoth Hot Springs. Visitors who come in from West Yellowstone can enjoy the Norris Geyser Basin, Steamboat Geyser, the Grand Prismatic, and the world-famous Old Faithful.

Lewis and Clark Caverns State Park

This state park is located entirely underground. Visitors here can take a guided tour led by park staff to explore the underground caves. Distinct tours are offered depending on the month and the visitors’ abilities. During the colder month of winter, tour guides offer a special Candlelight Tour. These limestone caverns are filled with bats, tight spaces, and other crawlspaces.

Enjoy Montana’s Hot Springs

Montana has many hot spring locations. The western half of Montana includes many developed hot springs, which feature man-made pools that pipe natural mineral water in. Chico Hot Springs is a historic location, featuring a large open-air pool. Other options include Lolo Hot Springs, near the Idaho border, as well as Quinn’s Hot Springs Resort. Relaxing in sobriety is important — and it’s hard not to feel relaxed while soaking in piping hot mineral water.

The C.M. Russell Museum Complex

Located in Great Falls, Montana, the C.M. Russell Museum is entirely devoted to celebrating the artist Charles M. Russell. Charles M. Russell is sometimes known as the Cowboy Artist. His career spans the end of the 19th century to the early 20th century. Visitors can check out his extensive collection of paintings and artifacts, visit the original Russell studio, and even walk through the Russell Riders Sculpture Garden. For more historical education, the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center is only a short drive away, providing visitors with more opportunities to learn about regional history.

Glacier National Park

Glacier National Park is sometimes known as the Crown of the Continent. Located in Northwest Montana, this scenic national park is composed of alpine meadows, glistening lakes, mountain ranges, tall waterfalls, thick forests, and even glaciers. It provides opportunities for adventurous exploration as well as relaxing picnics. Camping is available throughout the park’s extensive backcountry, though many stop by for simple day hikes.

Explore a National Forest

Montana is famous for its mountain ranges, but it is also home to 10 different national forests. Together, these forests add up to almost 20 million acres. If you’re visiting Montana, a trek through at least one of these forests is essential. If you’re visiting the university town of Missoula, you’re in luck — the city is encompassed entirely by the Lolo National Forest.

Benefits of Montana Sober Living Houses

Individuals recovering from substance use disorders need to invest as much time as possible. Addiction is not a condition with a “cure.” It is a chronic mental health disorder. However, individuals can learn to live quality lives free from the obsessive cravings that characterize addiction. To do so, it is important to develop a strong social support system, plentiful skills, and a balanced lifestyle. Sober living homes allow residents to stay as long as they need to do so, often for a year or more. Benefits that sober living house residents get to experience include:

Supportive Staff

Staff members have often been through the recovery process themselves, so they are living testament to the fact that recovery is possible. Many staff members and sober living house managers live on-site with residents, so staff members are always available to answer questions, offer emotional support, and share their own experiences. 24/7 staff presence also ensures that house rules are always followed.

Social Support Systems

Perhaps the most critical aspect of life in a sober living home is the peer support that residents get. Addiction, often known as a “disease of loneliness,” tends to make people feel like no one understands them — that they’re the only people in the world who feel the way they do. Living with others in recovery proves that they’re not alone. Housemates learn to rely on one another, keeping each other accountable and offering actionable advice and feedback. Many of the friendships people develop are lifelong, which makes it easy for sobriety to be filled with fun, laughter, and excitement.

Life Skills Training

Sober living home staff recognize that successful addiction recovery involves far more than just quitting drugs and alcohol. Few people want to return to their old lifestyles when they get sober. Sober living homes help residents restructure their lives by teaching crucial life skills that they may have missed out on during years of active addiction. From applying to jobs to conflict resolution, residents grow in countless areas. By the time they graduate, they are more than prepared to live independent and prosperous lives in the outside world.

Transition From Rehab

Many people successfully get sober in sober living facilities. However, sober living houses are also commonly utilized as transitional programs by individuals who have gotten sober in rehab. Research shows that taking part in further recovery-related programs after rehab drastically reduces the likelihood of relapse. Sober livings are one of the most commonly recommended types of aftercare programs, allowing recent rehab graduates to rebuild and develop their lives before venturing off on their own.

Is Montana Sober Living Right For Me?

Montana is home to many quality sober living homes. These homes offer support, structure, and safe, trigger-free environments for individuals in early recovery. Individuals who spent their active addiction years in Montana may benefit most, however, from enrolling in a sober living house outside of Montana. This is because their home state may be associated with too many triggers, from old drinking buddies to neighborhoods that remind one of purchasing drugs. It can be helpful to make an entirely fresh start, develop new habits, and cultivate a new social circle.

Many addicts in Montana flock to California as they begin their recovery journeys. Southern California is the birthplace of a highly lauded type of sober living home: structured sober livings. Structured sober livings provide residents with additional structure and access to recovery resources. Southern California offers familiar mountain ranges as well as enormous cultural diversity. Its thriving recovery community can be found throughout this open-minded and health-conscious city.

Recover From Drug and Alcohol Addiction at Design for Recovery

Design for Recovery is Southern California’s top structured sober living for men. Staff at Design for Recovery are committed to helping residents address their underlying issues, develop new coping tools, and rebuild their lives from the bottom up. No matter how hopeless an individual feels, how devastated their life may seem, recovery is possible at Design for Recovery.

Our community welcomes young men regardless of their history. We firmly believe that recovery is achieved through working together. While supporting each other and holding each other accountable, housemates work hard to develop fundamental values and principles. These include accountability, honesty, integrity, and kindness. Moreover, residents work to develop life skills and plan for their futures. By the time they graduate, the young men at Design for Recovery can expect to be the best version of themselves possible — and our alumni continue to strive forward to make further progress.

If you are ready to put down drugs and alcohol and begin gaining the gifts of recovery, contact us today. Consultations with Design for Recovery staff are both free and entirely confidential.