I’ve been asked why someone would want their family member to start their recovery in Los Angeles. Concerned parents have wondered if LA might be a risky place for someone to get sober because it’s a big city with seemingly lots of temptation for a person who is attempting to get sober.

I’ve been polling my friends who have all had many successful years of sobriety about what they’ve found in the Westside LA recovery community that they haven’t seen in other communities where they’ve lived.

Here’s a synopsis of what they’ve found.

1. Meetings, there are thousands of recovery meetings every day from Malibu to Downtown LA. Someone who is beginning his or her recovery will start with attending seven different meetings and will begin to find meetings that he or she connects with. The diversity of meetings in this area is unparalleled. They range in topic and focus from young people’s meetings, to punk rock, to women’s meetings, gay meetings, serious meetings, fun meetings, Buddhist meetings, meetings that focus on recovery from anything and everything you can imagine. You can attend Marijuana’s Anoymous, Narcotics Anonymous, Gambler’s Anonymous and Al-Anon, just to name a few possibilities. When someone is new in their recovery, it’s important to have a strong network of peers and people to relate to, to build a strong foundation for long-term recovery.
2. Social Life and Entertainment: Los Angeles offers a wide variety of fun activities and parties that don’t involve using substances of any kind. People in recovery go bowling, go to Young People’s Recovery conferences, concerts, comedy events, sober parties, snowboarding, surfing, camping and in cool local coffee shops and restaurants. As a person is sober longer and longer, they discover new strengths, interests, and activities. Many people who get sober in LA find themselves trying things they’ve never tried before, like knitting, cooking, sculpture, painting, playing instruments, hiking, dancing, yoga, and mediation.
3. Education: When a person gets sober, he or she often rediscovers a desire to reengage in his or her education. Many people in sobriety in Los Angeles take advantage of higher education institutions like Pepperdine, UCLA, LMU, USC, OTIS, FIDM, Santa Monica Community College, or the local trade schools. A person who engages in recovery and education at the same time, is often successful in both, because each component of growth reinforces the other. As school goals are reached, sobriety proves itself to be valuable to the person who is new in his or her recovery.
4. Employment: Los Angeles is a major city with thousands of different types of job opportunities. Any interest you have will likely have a related job or internship located in LA. Many people who have had successful long-term recovery began with jobs in coffee shops, restaurants, retail establishments, office environments, the entertainment industry, internet and technology companies. Some people who complete a year in recovery decide that they want to work in the recovery field themselves and they begin working at the sober living environment that was helpful for them.
5. Family Friendly Environment: When someone is newly sober and excited about living in Los Angeles, he or she is often just as excited to show the family everything that the city has to offer. Families in Los Angeles can always engage in interesting and family-friendly activities like, the Getty Museum, Santa Monica Pier and Promenade, Farmers Markets, the Hollywood Boulevard Starwalk, hiking trails in Malibu, beaches and beach-town communities like Venice Beach and Manhattan Beach.

As you can see, this area is a safe and supportive place for someone who is just beginning his or her road to recovery.