It may seem strange to think about the best cities for recovering addicts when all you want to do is get well again. As you’re thinking about where to go for treatment, consider the best cities for sober living and recovery. While you can recover successfully anywhere, these cities can make it more enjoyable and easier to continue in recovery after rehab.
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Why Travel to Recovery?
No matter where you live in the United States, chances are good that there’s a recovery center near your city or town. 12-step meetings are held in churches, hospitals and other meeting places throughout the nation, by telephone and online. You can recover successfully no matter where you live. So why consider traveling to one of the best cities for recovery?
Although your recovery program will address how to live a happy, sober lifestyle back home again with family and friends, while you are in the early stages of recovery, living in a new environment can be helpful.
A new environment gives you a fresh start. You won’t have the same routines to fall back on. Your old friends – those people with whom you drank or did drugs – are also far away, so it’s not as easy to find substances to abuse in your new community.
Also, some people are afraid of running into former acquaintances, co-workers, friends or family members during their rehab. You may still be working out some issues with family or friends, or working on your list of people with whom you need to make amends. It may be uncomfortable to run into these folks while your past life is still fresh in your mind. By traveling to a new city, you lessen the risk of running into people you know, and you can focus your complete attention and energy on recovery. You can deal with healing personal relationships later.
Recovery Cities Versus the Geographic Cure
Although we’re addressing one of the best cities for recovering addicts, please don’t confuse this with the so-called geographic cure much talked about in recovery circles.
The geographic cure is an old AA saying that refers to alcoholics moving to new places, convinced that the move itself will help them gain sobriety. Of course, this doesn’t work. When you move, you take yourself with you, as the old saying goes, and your old habits, ways of thinking and cravings come along for the ride. The geographic cure doesn’t work because it does nothing to address the problems that underlie your addiction.
Looking over the best cities for recovery and choosing a place to relocate to is simply looking for the best places to live and work while focusing on your recovery. These best cities provide many amenities conducive to a full recovery. Just moving to these cities won’t work. You’ve got to do the footwork yourself. However, these cities can help you more easily move into the recovery mindset and live a sober lifestyle after rehab.
What Makes a City Among the Best Cities for Recovering Addicts?
The best cities for recovering addicts share specific characteristics. Most of the cities on the list include the following amenities:
- A recovery center providing counseling, inpatient, and outpatient rehab services for a variety of addictions
- A vibrant and active local 12-step community
- Large number of therapists, doctors and other professionals serving the recovery community
- Low percentage of local drug use
All of these factors work together to enhance a city’s reputation as the best place to move to for your recovery.
Of course, the absolute best city for you may be different from the best city for your relative or friend. You may loathe hot climates and much prefer winter weather. In that case, Boston may be for you instead of a sunny beach in Jensen Beach, Florida. Conversely, you may find that being outside in the sunshine and warmth, meeting friends for coffee and Big Book study along the boardwalk and availing yourself of the many courses, lectures and other recovery programs in Florida is a great thing. It’s all about finding a good fit between your recovery needs and what cities have to offer.
Jensen Beach, Florida
Jensen Beach is a small town that is part of the larger Treasure Coast area in Florida. Despite its small size, Jensen Beach is home to 12 Keys Rehab. The small town feel and close proximity to the coast make Jensen Beach an ideal destination to recover and rejuvenate while taking the first steps toward a life of sobriety. The town’s closeness to larger metropolitan areas means that people in recovery can easily find regular meetings and communities of like-minded individuals, while still enjoying the comforts of a small and close-knit community. This “best of both worlds” feel is what makes Jensen Beach, Florida one of the best places for recovering addicts to live.
If costs or other factors are holding you back from going into rehab, consider calling 12 Keys and talking to a counselor today. You may be surprised at the many options there are for paying for your rehab. Insurance can offset much of the cost, and there are other methods available to make it more affordable to travel to a great rehab center so you can start your recovery off in the right direction.
Best Rehab Center in Florida
As part of the Jensen Beach community, at 12 Keys, you’re treated like an individual, not a patient. Our center is staffed by former addicts, just like yourself, who understand what it is like to go into rehab. They care about you and want you to feel safe while you’re in recovery. We keep a very small ratio of clients to staff, which means you’ll always find someone to talk to when you need them.
12 Keys is located along waterfront property, so if you love the water, you’ll love it here. The plantation-like setting, comfortable rooms, gourmet meals and beautiful grounds make it more pleasant overall to stay with us while you do the hard work of recovery.
We offer a lot of recovery options, and make a schedule that suits your needs for recovery. You may go into group therapy, individual therapy or attend 12-step meetings on any given day, with time left in your schedule to do recovery reading, journaling or other work recommended by your therapist. You can hang out by the pool to do your reading, stay inside in the air conditioning or meet up with a group of new friends to talk over what you’ve learned.
12 Keys arranges for your transportation to and from the center, and can help you figure out how long you’ll need to stay with us for your recovery.
The best cities for recovering addicts include our area here in Florida. We’d love to welcome you into recovery here at 12 Keys. Someone is here to talk to you anytime, day or night, seven days a week. Contact us today!
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