San Diego’s Premier Transitional Living Program for Young Adult Men

The Grounds Recovery is a transitional living program for young men (18-30) who have struggled with substance use and addiction, and who have completed primary treatment, a wilderness program, attended therapeutic boarding school or participated in other intervention. Our typical member is looking for a supportive environment to strengthen their recovery, prevent relapse and integrate newly acquired skills into everyday life. We focus on helping members develop the independent living skills necessary for a successful transition into a healthier lifestyle. We know that the needs of young adult men are unique so we have developed our program specifically to meet those needs.

The Program

Like life, everything at The Grounds is progressive, with challenges, expectations, and responsibilities increasing as members show they can make good, healthy choices.

The Location

The Grounds is located just minutes from California’s beautiful coastline on Soledad Mountain in between La Jolla & Pacific Beach—an ideal neighborhood for young men looking for a fresh start.

The Team

We believe in individualized support through meaningful relationships. With mentorship, peer-to-peer relationships, and clinical support, we help members set goals and achieve them.

From Addiction to Recovery

The Grounds is a transitional living program for young adult men ready to create a sober life. It is based on the model used by Founder Alex Zemeckis, MA, during his personal journey from addiction to recovery as a young adult. The foundation of the program is intensive mentorship, relationships and peer-to-peer accountability. We combine this with abundant recreation and work experience to follow the simple edict of “work hard, play hard” as a guiding principle and metaphor for a life in balance.

“I just realized one day that my way of living wasn’t sustainable and I couldn’t fix it on my own.  I needed help.  The Grounds helped me transition to where I am today – happy.  I’m doing things with my life now- working, living on my own, and being useful.  I am forever grateful to The Grounds staff that helped me turn things around.”

“Our son had a serious addiction that took control of our lives, resulting in a life-threatening overdose. His recovery journey led us to The Grounds, where he has progressed and is rebuilding his life. The structure, guidance and support of The Grounds has given us peace of mind, knowing he is in good hands with a solid chance of long-term recovery. The combination of round the clock staff, therapy, house responsibilities, fun activities, attending AA meetings and meeting with an individual sponsor all help to build a supportive network. With The Grounds’ encouragement, he found a good job opportunity that may lead to a viable future. While it is hard for us to have him so far from home, the distance has helped us all grow toward what will be a better relationship as a family – two parents supporting the path of a recovering young adult son. Thanks to Alex, Cannon, Cody and all the staff at The Grounds!”

“As a mother, I could never imagine my son would grow into a teen and young adult with such a dangerous drug addiction. The stress was more than my husband and I could bear. After a drug overdose, it became crystal clear that recovery was the only choice. After several steps in treatment, he is on a strong path for long term recovery at The Grounds. He developed a good network of supportive relationships with The Grounds staff and those in recovery meetings. The environment allows and expects the guys to grow in maturity and responsibility. They are shown how a good life can be lived being completely clean and sober. I can sleep at night, without the past nightmares and worry. We feel The Grounds was the best choice, giving him the foundation of a lifetime.”

“The Grounds was a great choice for our family on the road to recovery. There are so many things that make The Grounds unique to all the other programs out there. We loved that The Grounds was a six-month program, gradually allowing more independence as our son grew in his recovery and his independence. They had weekly activities from rock climbing to surfing to rock concerts, all things our son loved to do. They supported our son emotionally with daily meetings and small group meditation. He was able to work and learned how to create a budget for himself. We feel part of our son’s success in recovery and working a good program is due to the foundation that The Grounds helped establish, working closely with our son and our family. We are forever grateful to Alex, Cannon, Henry and the rest of the staff who lovingly supported us all on this journey in recovery.”

“The Grounds Recovery showed me a new way of life that I never knew was possible. It was through this program and everyone involved that I learned how to create a successful program of recovery. I also learned basic life skills which I have applied every day beyond my time at The Grounds. Words cannot express the level of gratitude I have for this program—it helped me get my life back.”