An Intervention: Breaking Denial
"If everyone would leave me alone, I'd be fine!"
"I'm not hurting anyone but myself!"
Students entering treatment are often in denial about the depth of problems they face. Typically, it's everyone's fault but their own.
In the Wilderness Quest setting, students are chemical free and isolated from friends, family, familiar escape patterns and enablers.
Wilderness Quest students are put in difficult circumstances where their perception of being at risk is heightened
(i.e. independent night hike, weather challenges, solo, climbing and rappelling). They discover they are responsible for and capable of; building shelters,
gathering wood, cooking food over a fire made without matches, carving spoons, and hiking in heat, cold, rain or snow to reach a destination.
From the new pride of self-responsibility, Wilderness Quest students have the opportunity to evaluate their past behaviors. Discovering they are responsible breaks through denial and motivates students to want to "recover" and heal wounds within their family. They become willing, active participants.
Therapeutic Advantages
Wilderness Quest's 12-step treatment and family enrichment phase provides several distinct advantages over traditional therapies:
1. Wilderness living demands changes in behavior.
The first 1-2 weeks in the field are spent adjusting to wilderness living. For youth who have always had prepared food, water, and shelter, a primitive lifestyle can be very stressful. Students often see themselves at risk. This perception and their desire to maintain some degree of comfort, motivates them to take care of themselves. Pride and self worth are increased from successful self-responsibility experience. Successful self-responsibility jump starts and increases the level of maturity. Maturity is critical to accepting responsibility for sobriety.
2. The wilderness confronts naturally, without judgement, when responsibilities aren't met.
If wood isn't gathered and a fire not built, students are cold and eat cold, uncooked food. If they don't build a shelter and it rains, they get wet. If they receive a four-day food pack and eat all the "good stuff" in the first three days, there is no one else to blame. Self-responsibility is unavoidable.
3. Staff are with students 24 hours a day.
Day-to-day hiking, adventures, weather challenges, and wilderness living experiences allow staff to bond quickly with students and establish trust. This intimate relationship enables students to hear and accept feedback from caring staff and other students without feeling threatened. It also allows for consistency in day-to-day processing and treatment plans. Research has documented 70% of the power behind successful treatment is the relationship between the counselor and the client. Wilderness living jump starts counselor/client relationship - if the therapeutic approach is with love, concern, support, and honesty.
4. Individual and group processing is done as needed.
Group meetings, called "Circles", are held daily and more often if needed. There are no time limitations. Conditions of day-to-day stressful living trigger many emotions that can be sorted out and processed as they come up. Staff members share their personal stories of recovery, modeling trust and making it safe for students to share. While hiking, students often spend time talking with counselors, sorting out feelings, problems and options. Much disclosure happens this way, and students are encouraged to extend that trust to their group, and finally to their family.
5. Students learn new methods of communication.
Students practice making conscious choices with their peers as they work through real daily living challenges and personality conflicts. Different communication skills are practiced to help sort out how they feel. When tempers flare, students learn that anger is a secondary emotion. They learn to identify primary emotions of hurt, pain and fear, then practice taking risks by sharing their true feelings with the group. Receiving validation from their group, students gain confidence in newfound skills, which enhances their self-esteem.
6. Students naturally learn experientially.
As students become more responsible for their behavior, the focus moves to present behavior concentrating on "what are you doing?" rather than "why are you doing that?" Students learn behavior is a choice. This helps them gain conscious control of their behavior and maximizes their sense of self-control. On a dreary, stormy day, they can choose to be miserable or choose to look at the positives. When confronted in group, they can choose to feel picked on or they can choose to feel supported.
7. In the wilderness, Higher Power and spiritual work come naturally.
When feelings of confusion, anxiety, pain and fear are overwhelming, students are encouraged to experiment with prayer to their personal God. In the wilderness, spiritual distractions are minimized and spiritual confirmation enhanced. For the many who choose this challenge, experimenting with prayer helps them move through difficult circumstances as they receive calming reassurance from their Higher Power.
8. Families are required to attend the "Family Enrichment Phase".
This is one of the most important parts contributing to our high rate of success. All the roadblocks to communication that have built up over the years are put "on the table", and the "slate" is cleaned by all family members. A strong "mirror" of the "family system" and personal responsibilities are held up with "love and concern". A new "honest" foundation is laid, to build relationships and love within the family.
9. Wilderness Quest's #1 Client Objective is Sobriety.
To achieve long term sobriety the client must learn how to make decisions in their own best interest. Wilderness Quest does not take boots, pants, shoe strings at night. or create external controls other than the environment of the wilderness it’s self. That is why Wilderness Quest is in a true wilderness environment. Only if the client is in real and eminent danger to self or others is a therapeutic hold used to keep them safe. The theme of Wilderness Quest processing with the student is: how can you make a decision in your best interest, are you worth the hard work of sobriety, how can you quit giving your power away?How can you turn your life over to your Higher Power and let it go.How can you make amends and take responsibility for your behavior. A Chemical Dependent person will only maintain sobriety if they accept responsibility for their sobriety. The second part of the long term sobriety is re-framing the "addict thought process". Wilderness Quest has a workbook and continual group and individual therapy working towards this goal. Staff, who themselves are in recovery, recognize when the client is in the elements of the addict thought process and help the client become aware.