Last House on the Block

TLC is usually the last house on the block for recovering addicts and alcoholics.

And I say that because most of the people who come to us are not on a winning streak.  Generally speaking, they have no money, no insurance, no job, no luggage, no transportation, and usually no friends or family support.  So most of them seem pretty happy when we allow them to enter our program after they fill out their application.  At this point, they're so demoralized and downtrodden and in such emotional pain that they will do most anything to feel better.

But after they have a few days clean and sober, some start reevaluating their situation and decide to go back out.  I'm not sure what their reasoning is – perhaps they figure that a few days is all they need to get back on track so they pack up and leave.  The ones who stay at least five days have a better chance of completing the 90-day program, though some of them also decide they have their lives together and leave prematurely.

Because we have over 700 beds in our program, it's not unusual to see 20 people come in and 15 others rotate out on a daily basis.  But our management team knows that the real addicts or alcoholics will eventually be back – either to TLC or to another program.  And because we don't require upfront money they usually wind up coming back to us.  A real addict or alcoholic doesn't decide to get sober while they still have money in their pocket.  And we usually welcome them back.

An interesting aspect of our program – and one that has made us successful over the last 31 years – is that our management team is made up primarily of addicts and alcoholics in recovery.  The only professionals in TLC are the medical and counseling staff in our State – licensed treatment program, which holds about 60 clients at any time.  It seems like many addicts and alcoholics would rather get advice from a fellow addict or alcoholic than from a professional therapist.  And studies have shown that both professional counseling and peer counseling are about equally as effective.  The beauty of having a peer counselor is that we know that they know exactly what we're talking about when we're discussing addiction.

Sometimes we get comments on social media about how terrible our program is from an angry client who has left without notice.  And most people who know anything about recovery realize that that's good advertising for TLC.  Because it means that we are a tough program that doesn't coddle its clients.  

We give them what they need, which is a regular dose of tough love and honesty about what it takes to get sober.

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