What Is a Recovery Coach and Do Sober Homes Have Them?

What Is a Recovery Coach and Do Sober Homes Have Them?

A recovery coach is a trained peer support specialist who helps people navigate early sobriety, but the availability of recovery coaches varies by facility.

Recovery coaches are different from therapists or counselors. They are people in recovery themselves who've been trained to offer practical, day-to-day support. Think accountability partner meets life coach.

They help with the stuff that trips people up in early recovery. Finding a job. Managing triggers. Navigating family relationships. Building new routines that don't revolve around substances.

Recovery coaches work in various settings, including outpatient treatment centers and as independent practitioners. Some residents hire their own recovery coach while living in a sober home.

The house manager fills some of the same role. They're there for daily check-ins and practical support. But they focus on house rules and community management, not intensive one-on-one recovery coaching.

If you want a recovery coach while in sober living, you'll probably need to find one yourself. Many work virtually now, which makes it easier to maintain that relationship even if you move between homes.

The combination can be powerful: the structure of sober living with the personalized support of a recovery coach who's walked the same path.

Sources