The Importance of Community in Recovery
Mare’s House Transitional Living Combats the Epidemic of Loneliness by Providing Support through Community
In a recent blog post, Mare’s House founder, Alex Zemeckis, addressed the “epidemic of loneliness” plaguing people in the United States and said that loneliness and isolation are two of his biggest concerns for young people today, above even drug abuse and other reckless behaviors. According to the US Surgeon General, Vivek Murthy, loneliness has negative health impacts equal to smoking fifteen cigarettes per day, is more damaging than obesity, and puts people at an increased risk for anxiety and depression. Currently impacting one in two American adults, loneliness and isolation are major public health concerns and pose a “profound threat to our health and wellbeing.” At Mare’s House, we see the impact that loneliness and isolation have on our residents, and it is a problem that we take very seriously.
As a transitional living home for women in recovery, our mission is to support our residents with systems and instruction that address the whole person. We are here to help our residents develop habits that promote a healthy lifestyle, and a significant part of that is providing opportunities for residents to build a network of friends, mentors, co-workers, and sponsors who will help them on their journey long after they graduate from our program. Living within a healthy community is critical to developing self-esteem, self-efficacy and self-empowerment – crucial building blocks for successful living and long-term sobriety.
Recovery Through Community – Social Engagement and the Mare’s House Program
Our residents benefit from an environment where community and healthy social engagement are integral to recovery. Whether cooking and eating meals together, maintaining the house through shared chores, or attending group therapy sessions, our residents learn to rely on each other, trust each other and help each other. Mare’s House residents will start in a shared room (2 to a room), but as they progress through the program and meet the programmatic requirements and benchmarks, they are able to move to available single rooms. The Grounds have shared rooms throughout the main house and step-down house.
The Mare’s House program relies on structure, schedules and stimulating activities. Our residents are expected to participate in outings, classes and meetings. They are expected to find and maintain employment when ready and are expected to be active during the day, with limited downtime.
Some of the Group Activities at Mare’s House Include:
Fitness Classes
- Yoga
- Self Defense
- Physical Conditioning
Therapeutic Opportunities
- Surf Therapy
- Group Therapy
- 12 Steps Programs
- Family Therapy
Outdoor Group Activities
- Hiking
- Biking
- Walking
- Swimming
Communal Living
Meal Prep
House Chores
Gardening
The Arts
Rock to Recovery Music Program
Culinary Classes
Mala Making Meditation Class
Reiki and Sound Healing
From the Day to Day to Special Events, Mare’s House Makes Social Engagement Central to Living a Healthy Lifestyle
In addition to daily group activities, Mare’s House residents also benefit from regularly scheduled mini adventures and excursions. We dine out at restaurants, go mini-golfing, work out at climbing gyms, spend plenty of time together at the beach and visit local attractions like the Japanese Friendship Garden at Balboa Park, which we toured last spring.
We also regularly host alumni events and activities where our graduates can come back to not only catch us up on their lives and maintain their connection with our staff but serve as inspiration for current residents. We do this because we are invested in our graduates’ continuing success and want to be there for them for as long as they need us. At Mare’s House, our residents are more than clients – they are people, they are friends and they are a part of our community always.
Recovery is a Group Effort
We believe that social isolation and loneliness stand in the way of true recovery, and because of this, we believe that recovery cannot be truly successful without a network of caring individuals and organizations engaged and ready to help. That’s what Mare’s House provides. We know how hard it is to beat an addiction. We know how hard it is to maintain sobriety without help. We know that substance abuse is often a reaction to trauma, neglect and low self-esteem. We’re here to tell you you’re worth the effort, and we’ll do everything we can to prove it to you every day.
If you or someone you love needs help transitioning out of a rehab, wilderness program, detox, or other intervention back into everyday living, we can help.
