List of Drug Rehabs with Wilderness and Adventure Therapy Programs
Here is access to our entire drug rehabilitation database with wilderness and adventure programs. Please select a state. If you need help locating the right treatment for you, do not hesitate to contact one of our treatment specialists at 1-800-304-2219.
State
Type of Treatment
- Wilderness Drug Rehab
Adventure and wilderness therapies are both clinical therapies that happen outdoors. The premise behind these therapies is to employ natural consequences within a challenging environment. Programs used licensed therapists and addictions counselors to help clients. Historically, these programs have been extremely effective for young adults and teens. Substance abuse and addiction is an ongoing problem among young adults and teens. According to the 2019 National Survey on Drug Use and Health among adolescents aged 12 to 17 in 2019, 17.2% used illicit drugs in the past year. Also, among young adults aged 18 to 25, 39.1% used illicit drugs in the past year, which was an increase from 2015.
Treatment and rehabilitation is the best option, but not every treatment program works for every addict. It is important to find the right type of help, and usually, families receive an assessment to help narrow down options. However, adventure and wilderness therapies have been effective in helping addicts and their families. Adventure therapy programs tend to be shorter and use obstacles created by the facility that groups must confront and overcome. For example, this may include rope courses, rock climbing, white water rafting, and other activities with a high perceived risk. These programs typically run for one to three weeks, and some are incorporated with other forms of therapy.
Wilderness therapy usually provides lengthier services and programs, and the biggest challenge is living in the wilderness for extended lengths of time. The programs implement individual and group counseling and incorporate adventure therapy during the program. Wilderness therapy programs usually last six to ten weeks, and participants will hike, camp, and undertake different activities in the wilderness. Adventure and wilderness therapies often go hand-in-hand, and both programs employ group activities to help troubled youth and young adults. These programs have proven successful for addiction because of how effective it is for prevention and early intervention.
According to an article titled Wilderness Adventure Therapy Effects on the Mental of Youth Participants, the authors state, “adventure therapy offers prevention, early intervention, and treatment modality for people with behavioral, psychological, and psycho-social issues. It can appeal to youth at risk who are often less responsive to traditional psychotherapeutic interventions” (Abstract). Most treatment options and interventions for teens were based on approaches that were originally developed for adults. Then programs are designed to decrease stigma and promote growth. The growth occurs within a domain of competency and performance, responsibility, judgment, social orientation, motivation, and identity, per the report mentioned above.
Wilderness and Adventure Therapy Is Experiential Therapy
Experiential therapy is not a process of talking with a therapist in an office setting; rather, it could take place outdoors or in an art studio, or with horses. Experiential psychotherapy involves physical, hands-on activity or experience that delivers interactive opportunities for a client to open up to the therapist or counselor. Many people struggling with addiction have trouble expressing deep emotions or talking about painful times in their lives. According to an article in Psychology Today, the author notes that wilderness therapy, for example, is defined as the prescriptive use of adventure experiences provided by qualified professionals.
Studies done on the emotional and behavioral outcomes of clients have found that significant improvements were made during a wilderness program. The average client maintained the positive changes one year after discharge from the program. Interviews done with participants showed that 83% reported being doing better, 58% said they were doing very well or well, and 81% rated treatment as effective, and 17% were still struggling. The article in Psychology Today talks about a meta-analysis reviewing 197 studies related to adventure and wilderness therapy. The study indicated that the short-term effect of adventure therapy is greater than that of alternative and no treatment comparison groups.
Experiential therapy, like wilderness and adventure therapies, causes a shift in a person’s perception of themselves and the world around them. The programs provide a safe place to explore complicated and challenging emotions and helping patients make a connection between these two. When the individual is focused on an activity or task at hand, rather than the therapy, they tend to be less guarded and open up about the issues they are struggling with. Once a client works through negative feelings, they are open to more positive feelings of forgiveness, inner peace, and confidence in their abilities.
Ask a Professional
What is wilderness drug treatment?
Wilderness drug and alcohol treatment is a form of rehabilitation set in the wilderness where patients learn and practice teambuilding and survival skills as a foundation for recovery. The concept is that wilderness programs take people away from all the distractions of technology and society that can make recovery challenging. Instead, the patient is forced to face themselves and learn how to overcome the challenges of living in the wilderness with the cooperation of others. It’s an extremely rigorous and usually lengthy substance abuse treatment intended to help some of the toughest cases find recovery.
How do wilderness drug treatment programs work?
Most wilderness drug treatment programs take anywhere from six to 12 months to complete and are comprised of a group of patients and several counselors. Each day, the patient must complete whatever duties or responsibilities they have within the group, including anything from manual work to preparing food. There’s usually a structure or hierarchy to the group, and as patients progress, they may be given different roles and freedoms. Counseling may take the form of a group session or daily assignments or may evolve naturally as the patient faces different challenges and requires individual attention.
Are wilderness programs a good fit for everyone?
Wilderness programs are not for everyone. Most of the patients who attend them have made previous attempts at traditional treatment and subsequently relapsed. They may be looking for something different or challenging in hopes they find long-term recovery through a new approach. But if a person is seeking treatment for the first time or isn’t battling severe addiction, an approach like wilderness drug treatment could be overkill. Ultimately, it is up to the patient if they feel they need the benefits of wilderness treatment programs.
How do wilderness and adventure therapy programs operate?
According to the article mentioned above, Wilderness Adventure Therapy Effects on the Mental Health of Youth Participants—adventure therapy uses experiential learning activities in outdoor environments. The activities are used for assessment and intervention at an individual and group level. Like any other form of therapy, it causes behavioral and psychological therapeutic change. Wilderness therapy helps drug-addicted individuals assess the issues, helps young people develop coping strategies. In contrast, the individual emerges with a more positive sense of self and hope for the future. These two therapies often go hand in hand to provide well-rounded treatment for the individual.
The first step with any treatment process is the assessment to acknowledge and possibly identify what is going on beneath the surface. The assessment process also offers insight into whether or not adventure or wilderness therapy is beneficial and would apply to the current problem with drugs or alcohol. It is important to discover whether spending weeks or months in the woods or a secluded environment would address core issues. When going through an adventure or wilderness program, the clients develop coping strategies, which is beneficial for young people. While in the moment of facing the many challenges, the counselors or professionals constantly assess how the individual is managing their experience and intervenes when appropriate.
The issues are worked through in real-time, and the individual develops strategies to self-soothe more productively. The purpose is to become more reliant on yourself and your own abilities to face and overcome problems. These programs also operate by improving self-esteem, confidence, and discovering your identity. Wilderness therapy and adventure therapy builds success-oriented identities, per the article written by Psychology Today mentioned above. The author points out that participants increase their self-concept, hope, self-confidence, and improve their interpersonal relationships and social skills.
Through the entirety of the treatment, whether it lats for a couple of weeks or a couple of months, the individual begins to develop goals, creates a plan to reach these goals, and develops insight into their own motivations, feelings, and beliefs. Also, they begin to work with and communicate with others, build self-confidence, and deal with disagreements with others in a positive manner. The key to successful therapy is the therapist’s or counselors ability to help the client reflect on their experiences through the process. Every experience is applicable to life and is applied to their problems with substance abuse and addiction.
Per a Master of Social Work Clinical Research Paper, titled A Systemic Review of Wilderness Therapy: Theory, Practice, and Outcomes, the author says, “There are numerous population as well as client problems that are beginning to be treated through wilderness therapy.” The author goes on to quote a research paper—”Additionally, the therapeutic approach in wilderness therapy does not appear to force change, but instead allows the environment to influence client response through natural consequences (Russel, 2001, p 74)” (Van Hoven, 2014 p 4).
What are the alternatives to adventure and wilderness therapy?
The alternatives to this form of therapy are traditional therapy approaches. Some of these therapies are incorporated into adventure and wilderness therapy programs. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy uses techniques that help people learn to recognize and change their destructive behaviors. This form of therapy helps people with coping skills and identifying risky situations and what to do about them to prevent relapse. CBT is commonly paired with other approaches and other therapy techniques and is one of the most recognized forms of behavioral therapy.
Additionally, there are twelve-step programs and methods, which aim to promote continued abstinence by engaging people in recovery with peer support groups and the 12-steps. Motivational Interviewing is a method of helping those in recovery or a drug-addicted individual embrace treatment or recovery. Those who are in recovery and treatment develop their own motivation and plan for change over the course of several sessions. Contingency Management is also a common approach used and is effective in treating several types of substance abuse problems. The method provides a reward system motivating change for desirable behaviors, such as maintaining sobriety.
Substance abuse treatment centers often use a combination of traditional and non-traditional approaches to treatment. When searching for the right one and when considering wilderness or adventure therapy, an addiction assessment is always a good place to begin. The purpose of an assessment is to determine the extent of addiction and what treatment programs are the best option.
Want to know more?
The questions from Addicted.org’s “Learn from our Experts” are answered by Michael Leach, CCMA. If you need further clarification on any of the questions above or have any other questions you can contact him directly at mike@addicted.org.
