River House

About River House

River House is a sober living operator in Lafayette, Louisiana, running certified abstinence based recovery housing for men in Lafayette Parish. It has been in operation for thirteen years and holds certification through the Louisiana Association of Recovery Residences.

A Lafayette Sober Living Operator for Men

The organization houses men and describes its model as structured sober living with more accountability than a peer run house usually carries. Residents commit to a minimum of ninety days, work a twelve step program with a sponsor, take part in volunteer service, keep up housekeeping duties and submit to testing under a zero tolerance policy. Cognitive behavioral principles shape how the operator handles accountability. Anyone weighing this operator against another in Acadiana is choosing on the level of structure first.

Thirteen Years as a Louisiana Recovery Housing Provider

Thirteen continuous years in one city is unusual in recovery housing, where operators open and close within a season and a resident can lose a bed to a landlord's change of plans. Longevity also means relationships: with the outpatient providers in Lafayette, with the treatment programs that refer, with the courts, and with the neighbors whose tolerance keeps a house viable. For a family calling from out of state, an operator with that history is easier to check than a new one with a better website.

Certification Behind This Louisiana Sober Living Operator

Louisiana licenses no recovery residences, inspects none and publishes no list, so certification through the Louisiana Association of Recovery Residences is close to the only external credential available in the state, and it is entirely voluntary. An operator that submits to it accepts a code of ethics, an obligation to disclose fees and rules in writing before move-in, a written relapse and discharge policy, and a complaint process reaching beyond the house. The association's own prescribed way to verify a certified operator is the seal it displays, which this operator publishes on its site.

Abstinence Based Recovery Housing and Medication Policy

The operator does not accept medication assisted treatment. That policy needs to be understood before an application, because it is a hard line and it determines fit more than any other single fact. A man taking buprenorphine or methadone under prescription should look for a provider that accommodates it, since housing and medication tend to be lost together. Someone pursuing complete abstinence, and willing to hold to ninety days of it under testing, will find the rest of the operator's expectations consistent with that goal.

Where This Acadiana Sober Living Operator Works

The territory is Lafayette and the eight parish Acadiana region of south central Louisiana. Lafayette is the parish seat and the commercial and medical center for a large area, drawing people from Vermilion, St. Landry, St. Martin, Iberia and Acadia parishes for hospitals, courts, outpatient treatment and work. Recovery housing in the region concentrates here because everything else does, and a certified operator inside the parish seat sits at the center of a short list for men leaving treatment anywhere in Acadiana.