Life Skills.

Life skills are easy to take for granted or to write-off as automatic or natural. But for men who have been living in the chaos of active addiction, they may not have acquired these life skills or know how to practice them in a healthy and sustainable way. 

 

Adapting to the demands of normal life is built into our structure: the men are expected to attain and sustain gainful employment; they’re expected to get up on their own in time for work, and to transport themselves to and from work. 

 

Another way in which men learn life skills is by attending the weekly group therapy sessions required by their phase. We understand that sometimes a work schedule may conflict with group therapy, and our men are expected to make our Program Directors aware of these conflicts and to work with their employer to ensure they’re available for these vital group sessions. 

 

Our campus includes several shared housing units, where men learn to live together, cook together, and clean together. Included in our expectations of our clients is that they treat their living quarters with care and respect, keeping them safe and clean. We have onsite laundry facilities and a shared food pantry stocked with staples that augment what the men purchase for themselves. 

 

Though fellowship isn’t a requirement of life at Sunset House, it’s practically unavoidable. Our men routinely prepare and enjoy their meals together. While their individual and group therapy sessions are teaching men vital recovery skills, these occasions of fellowship provide them with opportunities to practice what they’ve learned, including honesty, accountability, integrity, and empathy. Not to mention, the men are forging relationships and friendships that could last a lifetime.