Courageous Changes Recovery Homes Review
Founded in 2014 by Leska Sieber, who is a recovering alcoholic with over 18 years of sobriety and her business partner Chanell Nash, Courageous Changes Recovery Homes LLC provides gender-specific sober living homes for men and women in recovery. The women’s house, Peggy’s Promise is located in Austin, Texas and the men’s home, Arthur’s Place is in San Antonio. Their mission is providing their clients a healthy, safe environment conducive to recovery.
Accommodations and Amenities
Peggy’s Promise for women is a spacious residence, with rows of windows and a long flat roof. The house includes four bedrooms, two indoor living areas, an office, a dining room, a fully equipped kitchen and a spacious outdoor private patio. Clients are paired in rooms, which include twin beds with dark wood headboards, matching nightstands with lamps and closet space.
Arthur’s Place for men is a ranch-style residence with a spacious paved front yard that includes a pristine lawn and trees. The house includes four bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms, a fully equipped kitchen, two living rooms, an outdoor sunroom, a patio and an office. Up to eight residents live in the house at a time. There are two double-occupancy rooms, and a triple-occupancy master bedroom which includes three twin beds.
At Courageous Changes, clients are responsible for their own groceries and meal preparation. Amenities in both homes include Wi-Fi, a house computer and printer, laundry facilities and a short distance from public transportation. Both houses include live-in residential managers. The house manager at Arthur’s Place is a peer recovery support specialist.
Rules and Regulations
Prospective clients must pass a preliminary drug and urine screening. They are allowed to bring their cellphones, laptops and computers. The minimum length of stay is three months. The maximum recommended length of stay is one year. Courageous Changes employs three phases, with different requirements for each stage.
Phase one is 30 days. During this time, requirements include that clients return to work, or if unemployed, find a job. They also have the choice of enrolling in school or performing 20 weekly hours of community service. Additional weekly rules include attendance at four 12-step meetings, performance of household chores, attending weekly house meetings, participation in on-site yoga and meditation groups, acquisition of a sponsor and the establishment of a solid treatment plan, if applicable. During the house meeting, residents must show proof of meeting attendance, share their weekly progress and discuss their sponsorship status. Acceptable treatment plans include enrollment in an Intensive Outpatient Program (IOP) or transitional care. At Courageous Changes, clients often attend local outpatient drug rehabs, including Creekview Counseling and Right Stuff. The curfew is 11:30 pm Sundays through Thursdays, and 12:30 pm Fridays and Saturdays.
Phase two lasts between 31 and 90 days. By this time, residents are engaged in steady employment or are in school or involved in community service. Clients continue to attend outpatient treatment, if necessary. Weekly requirements include completion of steps one through three, execution of step four, adherence to a minimum of one meeting with sponsor, continued attendance at four 12-step meetings, the house meeting, and the yoga and meditation groups. The house and bedrooms must still be spick-and-span. Chores are assigned on a weekly basis. The curfew during past two is bumped up to 12:30 am Sundays through Thursdays, and 1:30 am on Fridays and Saturdays.
Phase three or the graduate phase prepares clients for the real world. Weekly requirements are the same as in prior phases, except clients must complete step nine. While curfew remains the same, exceptions are made for clients with viable excuses, provided that they notify the house manager.
Random drug and alcohol screenings are conducted. While Courageous Changes practices a zero tolerance policy to ensure the safety of the household, relapsed clients are dealt with on an individual basis after being dismissed from the property for 30 days. After that time, if they are allowed back in the house they must undergo an accountability phase which includes undergoing daily breathalyzers and random drug testing (at their cost), adhering to a seven-day 11 pm curfew, attending daily 12-step meetings and having regular appointments with their sponsor.
Extras
Other services provided at Courageous Changes include family support, in-house 12-step and Big Book studies, mental health counseling referrals, vocational/educational guidance and assistance with locating 12-step meetings and sponsors. Smoking is allowed in outside designated areas only.
In Summary
Founders Sieber and Nash have established two beautiful houses in Austin and San Antonio, for a small group of clients. Sieber has impressive credentials including working as a relapse counselor at La Hacienda Treatment facility, as well as being a licensed chemical dependency professional. Men and women who want to work their steps and be immersed in AA will find that Courageous Changes is an excellent choice.
Courageous Changes Recovery Homes Location
Courageous Changes Recovery Homes LLC
11459 NW Military Hwy, Ste 108, #413
San Antonio, TX 78231
Courageous Changes Recovery Homes Cost
$850 (30 days, first month $950, including a $100 drug screening fee). Reach Courageous Changes by phone at (210) 287-8180 or by email at courageouschanges@gmail.com. Find Courageous Changes at Facebook
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Photo courtesy of Baytownbert (Own work) [CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (https://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], via Wikimedia Commons (resized and cropped).
Sponsored DISCLAIMER: This is a paid advertisement for California Behavioral Health, LLC, a CA licensed substance abuse treatment provider and not a service provided by The Fix. Calls to this number are answered by CBH, free and without obligation to the consumer. No one who answers the call receives a fee based upon the consumer’s choice to enter treatment. For additional info on other treatment providers and options visit www.samhsa.gov.
