Peer support can be termed as the process of giving and getting casual, nonclinical assistance from individuals with similar conditions or conditions to achieve long-term retrieval from psychiatric, alcohol, and/or other drug-related issues.
Different concepts are used interchangeably within the works to define peer-related support and contexts. For the objectives of this article, here is an attempt to use consistent language wherever possible. However, in specific situations, a term may be part of a broader term such as mentorship is a kind of peer support, but mentorship is particular to a person in later recovery providing peer support to an individual in earlier recovery, which asks for additional specification.21 There is need to adapt and build upon White’s20 definition of peer support to include people with similar conditions or circumstances and inclusion of recovery from psychiatric concerns in addition to substance use problems.
Since the 1960s, a range of domestic options have emerged to help individuals with alcohol and drug addiction. Based on the social model of recovery, these drug rehab impart support for individuals in recovery from alcohol addiction in a home-based setting that concentrates on Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) philosophy and practices. Most of the alcoholic rehabilitation follow the 12-step guidelines based on spiritual principles with a supposition that addiction is a disease. Prior work utilizing social model programs can be found as early as the 1940s. The kinds of social model programs available include social setting detoxification, inhabited social model recovery agendas, neighborhood recovery points, and abstemious living abodes.
Sober living houses are alcohol- and drug-free living settings for a cluster of peers in recovery. Using a peer-based social model modality, sober living houses count on shared sobriety support, self-efficiency, and resident participation. California Sober Living Houses and Oxford Houses are two variations of sober living houses.30–32
Previous studies have shown sober living houses to be beneficial and effective in assisting in the reduction of substance use. For example, Jason et al conducted a randomized study to test the efficacy of an Oxford House intervention compared to usual care (i.e., outpatient treatment or self-help groups) following release from inpatient substance abuse treatment. Results exhibited a considerable increase in monthly income with a major reduction in substance use and confinement rates among those in the Oxford House condition compared with the typical-care condition.
Some of the most prevalent peer support groups held outside the typical drug rehabilitation settings for addiction nationwide include 12-step programs including AA, Narcotics Anonymous, and Cocaine Anonymous. Twelve-step is an interference for drug abuse and addiction and can include dual recovery from element abuse problems and co-happening mental health disorders. Humphreys discovered 12-step groups to be the most widely talked-about adjunct support for professionally treated substance abuse patients. Other studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of 12-step groups for the treatment of substance abuse following treatment, and prior research of 12-step groups has shown reductions in alcohol and drug use.
AA has been known to be a heavily used drug rehab intervention for people with alcohol issues. Affirmative results such as self-efficacy and healthy coping have been linked with AA affiliation, which has been associated to enhanced outcomes. For those with drinking issues observed in treatment, specific AA activities such as getting a sponsor and doing service might be the important components of self-denial.
