Trina's Story

The most painful decision we made as parents was to send our 16 year old
son to wilderness therapy and then to a residential treatment center.
Entrusting him to the care of unknown others was a scary leap of faith; yet
when the time came for us to face this decision, we were ready. We felt we
had no choice. Our family endured over a year of hardship and suffering
while we watched him withdraw from us and slide further into substance
use, depression, and other self-sabotaging behaviors. Years of therapy,
medication, family therapy, academic support, hospitalizations and ER
visits did nothing to prevent his downward spiral.
When our local school district decided he needed a residential
placement, we looked at the local options. We concluded that none of them
offered what he needed or could provide a healing environment for him.
Working with a highly regarded educational consultant, we identified
programs that provided safety, compassionate care, and evidence based
treatments (including family conferences by phone and in person visits)
along with outstanding physical challenges, such as rafting, rock climbing,
and hiking. These challenges appealed to our son’s athletic prowess, and
also helped anchor the rebuilding of his self confidence. After he entered
the programs and we interacted over time with his therapists and other
staff, we experienced their warmth and expertise first hand. Our trust in
them grew.
At both programs our son made deep connections with his therapists.
He gained control over his impulses, learned how to manage his emotions,
completed over a year of schoolwork, and began to repair his relationship
with us. I have no doubt that these programs saved his life. We were in a
severe crisis, and we thought at the time, and we continue to think, that
this was the best of all possible solutions.