What is California Sober?

What is California Sober?

Published May 2021

Sobriety is the absence of drugs and alcohol and maintaining a clean lifestyle day after day. The term “California Sober” has been introduced in recent years as a way to claim sobriety without fully being abstinent, which can be dangerous for many people, especially those who struggle with addiction. Some will become sober from hard drugs and alcohol but then smoke marijuana occasionally, and this is what people are calling “California Sober.”

We see this as a problematic practice because the use of any mind-altering and intoxicating substance is not an intelligent avenue for people with a history of addiction-related issues. Claiming to be sober when you’re not is also misleading and for those whose lives you influence sends the wrong message. Many roads lead to a successful recovery from substance abuse. Still, we don’t see that using addictive substances to get through the day is healthy to achieve natural sobriety.

For many people who have struggled with addiction in the past, if a substance is introduced or try even one drink or one hit of marijuana, it could send them down a rabbit hole of self-destruction and a desire to try more problematic substances. Staying sober is the best option as it is a natural way of life. Being clean from drugs and alcohol makes life easier to manage; relationships and career ventures can flourish.

“At the bottom of every person’s dependency, there is always pain; discovering the pain and healing it is an essential step in ending dependency.”
― Chris Prentiss, The Alcoholism and Addiction Cure