During our drinking and drug use years, and even before, many of us found it difficult to accept authority. Many individuals in society are able to abide by the strict letter of any rule, regulation , or law. Alcoholics and drug addicts seem to have a tendency to test and retest the validity of any what is alcoholism real, potential, or imagined restriction on their behavior. By the time many of us had stopped drinking, we had lost jobs; we had lost families, and some of us either had no place to live or no place to live which was not an invitation to start drinking again. Oxford House was founded not only to put a roof over our head, but also to create a home where the disease of alcoholism was understood and the need for the alcoholic to stay away from the first drink was emphasized. The bond that holds the group together is the desire to stop drinking and stay stopped.
Support for Recovery Without Relapse
- In 1975, a tight budget in Montgomery County, Maryland led to a decision to close one of the four county-run halfway houses.
- The Delaware Aging & Disability Resource Center (ADRC) is accessible by phone or email anytime – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
- An Oxford House member can stay as long as they like, provided they stay drug and alcohol free, are not disruptive, and pay their share of house expenses.
- This ensures that the environment promotes accountability and recovery, aligning with the principles of the Oxford House organization.
Oxford Houses seem to stop the recycling in and out of jail or treatment facilities. All they need to do is to find a house to rent in the name of the oxford house group, and apply to Oxford House, Inc., for a charter. In its simplest form, an Oxford House is a shared residence where people in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction can live together and support each other in a drug and alcohol-free environment. In addition, they offer WE CARE, Women Engaged in Community Assistance, Recovery and Empowerment, providing outreach and engagement to women and women with children who need pre-and post-natal supports. This structured management approach fosters a sense of responsibility and ownership among residents, contributing to their recovery journey.
Oxford Houses of Virginia
Second, an Oxford House must follow the democratic principles in running the house. Third, an Oxford House must, in essence be a good member of the community by obeying the laws and paying its bills. The only members who will ever be asked to leave an Oxford House are those who return to drinking, using drugs, or have disruptive behavior, including the nonpayment of rent.
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- The dissatisfaction was in part the realization that we were shirking responsibility for our own lives and in part a resentment of authority.
- House officers have term limits to avoid bossism or corruption of egalitarian democracy.
- An Oxford House Chapter is an additional level of support for individual Oxford Houses.
- Oxford Houses are dedicated to recovery and group support; not individual gain.
- Oxford Houses are democratically self-run by the residents who elect officers to serve for terms of six months.
- The thirteen men living in the halfway house rented the building and decided to run it themselves.
This not only helps those individuals to become more involved in AA or NA, and thereby reap greater individual benefits, but also helps to build strong bonds between local AA and NA groups and Oxford House. However, the members of Oxford House have found only by being active in AA and/or NA have they found comfortable, long-term sobriety — for themselves and the Oxford House in which they live. By running Oxford House on a democratic basis, members of Oxford House become able to accept the authority of the group because the group is a peer group. Each member has an equal voice in the group and each has an opportunity to relearn responsibility and to accept decisions once they are made. The OHI field staff travel to Oxford Houses, Chapters, and Associations to provide technical assistance and training, assist with expansion, and network in the community.
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The concept and the standardized, democratic, self-supported Oxford House system of operations itself are far more persuasive than any individual. Be honest and straight-forward when sharing the Oxford House concept with others. The situation should be avoided whereby certain individuals will begin to equate their persuasive qualities with the Oxford House concept. Individuals living in each of the Oxford Houses have also been responsible for starting many new groups of Alcoholics Anonymous or Narcotics Anonymous having meetings near an Oxford House.
Each group obtains a charter from Oxford House, Inc., the umbrella organization for the national network of individual Oxford Houses. Oxford House Inc., is a non-profit, tax exempt, publicly supported corporation which acts as a umbrella organization for the national network of Oxford Houses. It provides quality control by organizing regional Houses into Chapters and by relying heavily upon the national network of Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous groups.
The first Oxford House was established on May 28, 1975, in Silver Spring, Maryland, by Paul Molloy, who aimed to create a supportive living environment that encourages long-term sobriety. Staying for six months or more correlated with reduced substance use (15.6% usage prevalence) and better outcomes in employment and self-efficacy. Oxford House offers a supportive way of living and opportunities to learn life skills in a clean andsober environment. When we stopped drinking, we began to realize that in order to stay stopped, our lives would need to change. Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous provided a framework for us to change physically, mentally, and spiritually.
SMART Recovery: 4-Point Program, Tools and Techniques, Application, and Effectiveness
It is inconsistent with the Oxford House system of democratic rule to have a professional manager of Oxford House. Failure to adhere to any of these three requirements would bring the entire Oxford House concept into question. Therefore, it is important that each Oxford House meet these minimum responsibilities in order for its charter to be continued. All Oxford Houses have been careful to avoid undo dependence on government or other outside funds. Every Oxford House member attributes his sobriety to Alcoholics Anonymous and/or Narcotics Anonymous. Each Oxford House member, as an individual, considers himself a member of AA and/or NA.
