maintaining sobriety in a socially vibrant city - blur people walking - mountain laurel recovery centerMany people think a geographical change is necessary when they are trying to stop partying.

While a move may be a good way to motivate the life changes required for addiction recovery, it can be easy to fall into the trap of thinking that location is more important than inner commitment. As the saying goes, “Wherever you go, there you are.”

Drugs are accessible everywhere. Although drugs may be more prevalent in cities, they are also easily found in the suburbs and in rural settings. That said, maintaining sobriety in a socially vibrant city can have its pros and cons. It is all up to the mindset of the person in recovery. On the one hand, it may be easier to find drugs in a city than in the suburbs or in rural parts of the country. On the other hand, if it is recovery and sobriety that you are seeking, resources and support are often more available in larger cities.

Being in the city lends more opportunities for recovery. People in recovery can try out different twelve-step or SMART recovery meetings because there are many meetings all over the cities. If you do not have a car or cannot drive due to a DUI, it is easy to get around by public transportation. Cites are filled with fun things to do that do not include alcohol or drugs.

Here are the top most sober-friendly cities across the nation:

  • Los Angeles – 3100 meeting per week
  • Boston—over 2000 meetings per week in the greater Boston area
  • Minneapolis – Known as the land of 1000 treatment centers, it is also the home to 11 of the country’s sober high schools
  • Houston – 580 AA groups
  • Delray Beach, Fla – over 5000 people attend 300 different meetings weekly
  • Nashville – Considered the soberest city in the U.S. by some, there are 280 meetings per week with monthly outings.
  • Prescott, Arizona – In a small city of only 40,000, there are about 1200 in treatment daily.
  • Portland, Oregon – this city boasts AA with cool names for the groups.

Recovery.Org looked into social media to find who was chatting up about recovery. They counted the number of hashtags that mentioned recovery and sobriety. Starting with the most social media exchanged, here are the top ten cities in recovery:

  • Costa Mesa, California
  • Los Angeles, California
  • San Jose, California
  • New York City, NY
  • Murray, Utah
  • Pasadena, California
  • Heath, Ohio
  • San Diego, California
  • Delray Beach, Fla.
  • Albertville, Alabama

If you are in recovery from drugs and/or alcohol and live in a city other than one of these, do not fret. Look online for lists of meetings in your area, and surround yourself with sober people. Once you begin searching, you will see that a city can be the best place for recovery. Make good choices like steering clear of bars and hitting café’s instead. Vibrant city life can be the most fun in sobriety because there is always something to do!

If you or a loved one is in need of addiction treatment, please contact our professionals at (814) 787-2200. We are here to help.

 

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