In order to really understand the differences between a sober living home under the Oxford model and a structured sober living home you need to be familiar with the lay-of-the-land as it applies to sober living. In this article we will attempt to explain a little history on sober living and how it evolved, what an Oxford house is, the NARR levels of care and finally show a comparison between Oxford sober living homes vs. Riverhouse’s structured sober living model.
A Little History on Sober Living
In 1975 the first Oxford House was established in Silver Spring, Maryland. As we understand it, this may not have been the very first “sober house” but it was the very first Oxford House. Oxford House describes itself in its simplest form as “A democratically run, self-supporting and drug free home” which describes the lowest level (level 1) of a sober living home. From 1975 to 2015 Oxford House, Inc. grew from one house to over two thousand houses across 39 states. The Oxford House Inc. has fought and won legal battles on both federal and state level courts which has paved the way for other variations (levels 1-4) of sober living homes to be accessible and provided a basic model for others to follow.
As Oxford homes grew and other sober living homes started popping up there was a lot of confusion and the definition of “sober house” became very difficult to define as price, living conditions and structure differed from one sober house to another.
In 2011 the National Alliance for Recovery Residences (NARR) developed and published a standard that defined the spectrum of recovery oriented housing and services.
So, Which is Better?
The comparison between an Oxford House and Riverhouse is a bit like the old and cliche’ saying, “That’s comparing apples to oranges”. Below is a brief and very general comparison of the two different sober housing structures in Louisiana (as of this writing). Because the Oxford homes are governed by current residents votes, there can be a large swing in how each individual Oxford house is run from one week to another and this list may become outdated. For the most part this list is accurate.
Oxford House Sober Living Homes
(Level 1 – Peer Run)
- House manager is a resident new in recovery and chosen democratically by other house members.
- All house issues are dealt with in a democratic way by house vote.
- Most Oxford Houses allow opposite gender visitors (male & female) to hang out and stay overnight unsupervised and unregulated.
- Oxford Houses are a non-profit entities.
- Medically Assisted Treatment (MAT) is allowed – Narcotic Prescriptions are allowed in the house
Riverhouse Structured Sober Living House
(Level 2 – Managed)
- House manager is a strong member of the recovery community with multiple years of continuous sobriety.
- House issues are addressed in a group forum and house members are able to have input, but the house manager makes the final decisions based on whats more conducive to recovery.
- Visitors are only allowed during visitor hours, only in common areas & no female visitors are allowed to stay overnight.
- RIVERHOUSE is a DBA of Sober Enterprises LLC.
- Zero Tolerance | NO narcotic drugs or alcohol – (Prescription drugs must be non-narcotic)
Summing Up the Differences:
The Oxford House sober living homes are a great resource. Most professionals in the chemical dependency will agree however, that the Oxford model (with its limited structure and lack of accountability) is better suited for those that have spent a few months in a level 2 home first. Riverhouse and Oxford sober living structures share many similarities with a few key differences.
