Stairway to Freedom Sober Living

I was at the Stairway to freedom Condor house for about a year and a half. It was one of the best experiences I’ve had in a sober living home . Great people that I lived around and the management, both manager and assistant manager or both very active in my recovery can’t say more about either one of them. They are great people, and I am lucky to have them in my life today all in all great experience and if I had to go back there, I would do it in a heartbeat

Stairway To Freedom played a huge role in gaining my life back! I could not be more grateful for this organization. When I entered the doors of Stairway I had literally lost everything, not only materially but my entire “moral character” was at an all time low. Having been an active “using addict” for many years, I had lost all outside support, structure to my daily life and had lost touch with being ACCOUNTABLE for my actions. My active addiction had made me believe I was the center of the universe and I should be completely exempt from any and all consequence due to my past negative behaviors. Stairway To Freedom and their team was patient and supportive throughout my whole recovery process while in their care. Without the structure provided by the reasonable rules and practical standard of living during my stay with their organization, I do not feel I would have succeeded in my personal recovery and staying clean. Stairway to Freedom’s team and individualized “tailor made program” went above and beyond to assist with my regaining of a life of sobriety and INTEGRITY! Also, they are REASONABLY PRICED the houses are comfortable and their safe/prime location offers the opportunity for any client to commute from work or meetings and sober social gatherings with or without a vehicle. All of the other recovery houses and sober livings I had looked into prior to Stairway To Freedom were way out of my price range or their locations were not in the “safest neighborhoods” for a newly recovering addict. My stay at Stairway To Freedom was for over 1 year. I could not be more grateful for the 3.5 years of clean time and recovery I have gained from their assistance! My best advice for anyone interested in utilizing this organization is to not use, stay humble, follow the rules and Stairway’s team will go above and beyond to help you succeed!

This place has helped me grow in ways I didn’t think were possible for me. The structure and accountability that the director and house leaders provide is unmatched. There’s a lot of care that goes into running these houses that goes beyond just getting clean time. I wouldn’t be where I’m at today without their help, and I’m grateful to have had the support to become a productive person, along with getting 2 years and 10 months clean! Thanks for everything :))

Structure, accountability, and being around like-minded individuals was necessary for me to achieve long-term recovery. If you feel like this is what you need, this is the place for you. I lived there for 2.5 years and recently celebrated 6 years clean. While living at STF I worked a full time job, attended NA meetings, and 2 house meetings a week. I created a healthy routine so when I made the decision to move on, i was able to succeed in continued journey of recovery. Clean house and clean people. What more can you ask for? Just gotta have some open-mindedness and willingness.

Wow, my experience with Staiway to Freedom was eye-opening and life changing! I came to Staiway, a little boy trapped in a grown man's body. I lived to use drugs and used drugs to live. Very simply, my life had become unmanageable and I could not stop using drugs no matter what. I tried religion, psychiatry, and medicine and none of those was sufficient for this addict/alcoholic. When God gave me a day clean, I apprehensively moved in to Stairway to Freedom. With their help, I was able loose the desire to use drugs AND find a new way to live. It was here that I met Allan and Mel! Both of them are my recovery parents. They loved me until I could learn to love myself. Sometimes they even used tough-love on me and that is exactly what I needed. I came in off the streets. The two of them and the Stairway community broke my old attitudes and ideas. That is what "recovery" is. It's not just abstinence from mind and mood altering substances . . . it's an 'active' change in one's attitudes and ideas. Not everyone is ready to change the one thing that's necessary to recover: EVERYTHING! I'm certain that those who've written a poor review of Staiway are those that weren't ready to look at themselves and their self-centered behavior. I pray they may find the happiness, joy, and freedom that Stairway to Freedom provided me. - Paul S.

Let me start off by saying I have had my fair share of experiences with recovery homes. I was a counselor for over 3 years and had to drop off clients at some pretty bad places. Stairway to freedom is complete opposite of those. I unfortunately fell into my own addiction and I had heard about this recovery home from my brother who had an amazing experience here starting his life over and who now has 2 years sober. I will speak on my experience and this place helped me to learn to live again. The accountability and focus on recovery and living the right way to be a productive member of society is second to none. They actually care about your well being and your recovery program, not simply the business side of things which is so refreshing. It is a family environment here with everyone leaning on one another for support and being able to rely on one another to help deal with and manage whatever life throws at them. I would recommend this sober living to anyone who is serious about recovery, getting their life back and in return their loved ones as well.

Personal experience with family member. This place is a threat to one's sobriety! They will threaten to kick you out for something not related to sobriety and they will actually kick you out for something not related to sobriety thereby putting one's fragile sobriety at Great risk and oftentimes causing relapse! The manager yells and swears, they are defensive and aggressive and there's no empathy and no caring at all the bottom line is the money. They aren't concerned about the ultimate welfare of the women there. Rather than show compassion and caring and nurturing when someone is having a difficult time they react with defensiveness and anger and accusations and try to put it on the woman who's trying to work through her sobriety. God forbid they should be inconvenienced in any way. God forbid that they should take the proper steps in a situation because they don't. This is a life-threatening illness and they have no compassion and will kick you out for nothing and not show any kind of caring. As soon as possible we are going to be filing complaints and looking into what can be done about the way this place is being managed. We heard that some rehab centers have taken them off of their recommended list of sober houses and we will be working diligently to expose them. When someone enters that house they should be taken care of and their wellness and their sobriety should be a priority. Although everybody is important sobriety is far more important than anything else and they don't put that first. We have proof. Do not go there!

It’s taking me to long to finally say something about how I was treated, how I seen others treated living at stairway to freedom while trying to focus on my sobriety. The house Manager/Director showed no compassion to those as vulnerable as new comers. I was on complete edge every time she entered my space. I have memories I will never forget because of how awful she made me feel, and how terrified I was to make a mistake. It was unmotivating and crippling to say the least. I can say I was sincerely traumatized by the experience. I don’t recommend anyone old/new to sobriety to reside in this sober living because you will not find your internal peace and serenity. There has been 6 girls since I left that has also left solely because of the house manager/director. It’s unsafe. This is our lives! Life or death situation and the manager will kick you out with no remorse for things not related to sobriety or relapse. She’s unstable. Someone should do something more than write a review. But this is a start! Peace and love 🙏

Stairway to Heaven is run by members of the recovery community who truly care about the well-being and long term success of their residents. The women's house is beautiful and cozy and located near many meetings. The sense of community in the house is probably what stands out the most. The residents and management are very recovery and mental health focused. Residents often go to meetings together and spend time together in the common areas socializing and supporting one another. The residents are treated with respect by management and given a great deal an independence while also held accountable. I would recommend Stairway to Freedom to anyone serious about long term recovery.

Wow, my experience with Staiway to Freedom was eye-opening and life changing! I came to Staiway, a little boy trapped in a grown man's body. I lived to use drugs and used drugs to live. Very simply, my life had become unmanageable and I could not stop using drugs no matter what. I tried religion, psychiatry, and medicine and none of those was sufficient for this addict/alcoholic. When God gave me a day clean, I apprehensively moved in to Stairway to Freedom. With their help, I was able loose the desire to use drugs AND find a new way to live. It was here that I met Allan and Mel! Both of them are my recovery parents. They loved me until I could learn to love myself. Sometimes they even used tough-love on me and that is exactly what I needed. I came in off the streets. The two of them and the Stairway community broke my old attitudes and ideas. That is what "recovery" is. It's not just abstinence from mind and mood altering substances . . . it's an 'active' change in one's attitudes and ideas. Not everyone is ready to change the one thing that's necessary to recover: EVERYTHING! I'm certain that those who've written a poor review of Staiway are those that weren't ready to look at themselves and their self-centered behavior. I pray they may find the happiness, joy, and freedom that Stairway to Freedom provided me. - Paul S.

My aunt prepaid a visit here to reserve a spot however someone called her back that was extremely rude to her. how can a facility treat someone like that when they're trying to get better? she told my aunt "why would you prepay to hold a spot that's only for clients, i don't have room for you" in the rudest way possible! i will not ever recommend this place to anyone and i will be following up with management.

So stairway to freedom is supposed to be a halfway house to help support those who are struggling and I strongly believe they failed a friend of mine. OF COURSE staying sober is up to you and they can not force you to keep up with it. A friend of mine was judge ordered to stay at the halfway house and I can guarantee EVERYONE there could see by his behavior and actions that he was at high risk of relapsing. From day 1 he only talked about getting out of the house and I know that he didn't take it serious for himself. But the part that I believe they failed him was by writing to a judge that he is good to go on his own in only 2 months!! 2 months of him constantly saying he wants to be free and go back to his life. I don't believe this place truly cares about the guest. I read reviews before about them only wanting your money Before we put him there and now I feel like they 100% don't care about the people. To write to the judge of a 20yr old Heroine addict Saying after 2 months of being here he is capable of going on his own. It only took until the moment after his court finished for him to relapse. Which Had they paid even the slightest bit of attention and cared they would never have wrote a letter saying he is able to go on his own. It takes years for addicts to get and stay clean. No way a 20 yr old who is already doing heroine could be able to go back to the real world after 2 months. Again it's up to the addict to stay clean but I don't think stair way to freedom should've wrote him a letter saying he was okay to go.

The recovery that goes on here is contagious and its all one addict helping another. Your roomates become your best friends and the house votes on how well youre doing in your recovery granting you more freedom than you already have. Highly recommend if you are ready to start working on yourself and getting clean! This place will not work for kids who are on bullshit or do not want to help themselves. Keep up the good work, one day at a time.

Stairway to freedom gave me the opportunity to grow as a clean individual. By providing the tools necessary to live without mood or mind altering substances one day at a time. The group conscious is phenomenal, your roommates and housemates become your friends and your go-to whenever you're having a bad day, ever available to listen and provide positive and constructive advice or feedback. I have lived here 9+ months and made long lasting relationships.

I know it's been over a year since I've been there but I feel obligated to warn newcomers that this NOT a place for recovery. It's an unfriendly environment with nothing but gossip and the house managers themselves talk about the residents negatively. If you need a reason to drink or do drugs, this is the place to be. Please find alternatives to this horrible place. I'm 10 months sober now after leaving that awful place. Prayers and love to all.

Stairway is all about one addict helping another. There is a strong community within the Stairway to Freedom family and that network extends throughout Chicago. It provided me with a safe and accountable living environment to start my early recovery in. The house leadership encourages you to build on your recovery and your life to truly get a fresh start. Honesty and trust are at the core of the house dynamics.

I was a resident of Stairway for 10 months and during that time I was going through contested divorce, technically I still am. However while I was a resident of Stairway they helped provide me with the tools and support necessary to help me maintain my sobriety. I won't lie this isn't like some of those luxurious treatment facilities your health insurance might pay for. These houses are all about recovery and one addict helping another, I have made several friends while I was a resident there. While there they teach you that in order to maintain your sobriety you need a complete change, its all about the small things. For instance they give you a simple chore to do daily and you are required to do that chore, the manager or the house pointed out after several residents had relapsed that you could usually tell they were about to by how they would ignore their chore. In my honest opinion it isn't about what you get out the houses it is about what you put into your recovery.

This was my first experience at sober living and didn't know what to expect. I didn't like the managers non empathetic tone. The house allows for 14 female residents and only allowed half of a shelf in a cabinet and half a shelf in the fridge. Printer is broken and manager said it wouldn't be replaced and suggested to me that maybe each resident pitches in $30.00 They don't have many coffee cups and was suggested for me to by my own cup. 2nd floor bathroom is for seven women. The bathroom is small dirty there is mold in the shower. We are not allowed to use the bathroom on the first floor. Even residents living in the first floor only the manager can. The breathiLizer tip used every night is the same one and is used by everyone. I asked for a tip because I didn't want to get sick and was given one and the manager said "you loose it you are s.o.l ". All window blinds are closed shut and manager said I couldn't look out the window for my ride (it felt like jail). She came down on a resident d said "this room and you smell. You need to take a shower" the manager and assistant manager are un empathetic militants and gossipers. I moved out after 10 days and I'm much happier where I'm at. I can go on and on but you get the picture.