Showing posts with label wilderness therapy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label wilderness therapy. Show all posts
Thursday, August 27, 2009
Wilderness Therapy Progress
Josh has spent the last few weeks hiking, building fires (without matches), cooking meals, learning survival skills and engaging in therapy. The therapy takes several forms: there are reading and writing assignments, where the boys explore their feelings and motivations; there are structured group therapy sessions and individual therapy sessions; and on an ongoing basis the boys give each other feedback about their behavior. We have weekly conference calls with Josh's therapist where we discuss his progress. Josh is making "slow, incremental progress", according to his therapist...two steps forward, one step back. He has the insights about his issues, but struggles with putting those insights into practice. He seems to acknowledge that WoW is an addiction for him and genuinely regrets his behavior over the last several months, but he misses the game and is not willing to give it up altogether.
Monday, August 3, 2009
We Explore Wilderness Therapy
As soon as we get home from the counselor's office I start investigating the four wilderness therapy programs she has recommended. All have good reputations and I was impressed by the people I later spoke to at each one, so here are the names:
First off, a wilderness therapy program is an entirely different animal than a wilderness boot camp (what I originally looked into and, thankfully, got scared off from). Boot camps are informed by the military model and their objective is to gain control, compliance and obedience from wayward teens. It also relies heavily on negative reinforcement to achieve these objectives; everything from loss of privileges to deprivation to isolation to corporal punishment. It can work in the short term (who wouldn't comply when faced with harsh punishment?) but often results in long term psychological problems. Several of these programs have been shut down and some have moved their operations off of US soil to avoid regulation and investigation.
Wilderness therapy, in contrast, is driven by a philosophy of experiential education and positive self-discovery. These programs are run by highly trained clinical staff who use the challenges of the wilderness environment as a kind of metaphor for life's challenges. Getting kids away from the environment where they had developed maladaptive behaviors and getting back to basics fosters increased self-esteem, confidence and responsibility. The kids spend time not only hiking, building shelters and learning to make fire, but they also do a lot of group and individual therapy and explore their feelings through written assignments. While most kids are initially reluctant to go to this type of program, most report after the fact that it was a positive and formative experience.
I could go on and on but here is a web site worth reading to learn more:
http://www.wildernesstherapy.org/Wilderness/WildernessVsBoot.htm
- Second Nature (Utah): www.snwp.com
- Elements (Utah): www.elementswilderness.com
- Soltreks (Minnesota): www.soltreks.com
- SUWS (Idaho): www.suws.com
First off, a wilderness therapy program is an entirely different animal than a wilderness boot camp (what I originally looked into and, thankfully, got scared off from). Boot camps are informed by the military model and their objective is to gain control, compliance and obedience from wayward teens. It also relies heavily on negative reinforcement to achieve these objectives; everything from loss of privileges to deprivation to isolation to corporal punishment. It can work in the short term (who wouldn't comply when faced with harsh punishment?) but often results in long term psychological problems. Several of these programs have been shut down and some have moved their operations off of US soil to avoid regulation and investigation.
Wilderness therapy, in contrast, is driven by a philosophy of experiential education and positive self-discovery. These programs are run by highly trained clinical staff who use the challenges of the wilderness environment as a kind of metaphor for life's challenges. Getting kids away from the environment where they had developed maladaptive behaviors and getting back to basics fosters increased self-esteem, confidence and responsibility. The kids spend time not only hiking, building shelters and learning to make fire, but they also do a lot of group and individual therapy and explore their feelings through written assignments. While most kids are initially reluctant to go to this type of program, most report after the fact that it was a positive and formative experience.
I could go on and on but here is a web site worth reading to learn more:
http://www.wildernesstherapy.org/Wilderness/WildernessVsBoot.htm
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
