Over the past weekend, July 22-24, 2011 Gatehouse Academy allowed several of the women in the community to attend the 26th annual Prescott Shoestring Roundup. The Shoestring Roundup is a three day event where those in recovery or that have the desire to stop drinking participate in fellowship, marathon meetings, speaker meetings, fun, and much, much more. I was surprised to be chosen as one of the women to go on the weekend getaway being that I am so new at Gatehouse and my sobriety; however, I was more than thrilled to have the opportunity to attend. The Roundup was a new and exciting experience for me. I had never been around so many people in recovery and who had years and years of sobriety, it was an eye-opener to see that I was not alone and I could do this, much like all the attendees. During the Roundup, I was able to chair one of the AA marathon meetings. Our topic was personal spiritual experiences, and although I have yet to have an awakening of sorts, it was enlightening hearing other people’s stories. I learned that these spiritual experiences do not have to happen in your first days of sobriety and that it is not just limited to one experience. These experiences help people understand and awaken to see the “light” in their recovery, it helps them reflect and see others’ points of view. I look forward to the day and/or days that I have my own spiritual experiences. All in all, the Shoestring Roundup was a lot of fun and it was a great step for me in my recovery. I even got the opportunity to be of service and chair one of the marathon meetings. All in all, it was a great experience and I hope that I get the opportunity to go to more roundups in the future.

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“Serenity in the Pines” Prescott, AZ Shoestring Roundup

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Gatehouse Academy Residents Perform @ Commencement, June 2010

Written by: Ethan D

For three weeks out of our year stay in Gatehouse we have family workshops.  All separated by about a 2 month period.  For some it is a very difficult experience but for most all it creates a lot of growth in their lives.  I’m in the middle of my second.  I have a variety of different emotion but am very optimistic because of how well my first went.  The first workshop deals with getting everything out to our family, and letting them know where we have come from and what we are dealing with.

The growth my family experience through this workshop was mind blowing.  I’ve never been able to connect to my family in the way I did this week.  It has created a family atmosphere for us that we can now build on our recovery together, and not have any more questions of the past but only look towards the future.  List work is a large part of the workshops.  The first workshop only the residents have it but as the second and third approach the entire families enjoy this process.  The question differs from what the certain workshop is dealing with but always proves a challenge for all.  The list work is done in front of the rest of the workshop families and residents and is always followed up with feedback as well as advice and affirmations.  These workshops clue into the idea that this is a family disease and that it affect us all.  It is the key to a healthy life with our families and a milestone in our recovery.  Without these workshops some of us may never be able to talk to our families again, but for some of us it is the first time we will every really truly talk to our families.  I cannot thank Gatehouse enough for what they have done for me and my family.

Ethan is currently enrolled as a resident in Gatehouse Academy’s drug rehab program.  He offers his review and testimonial by telling us about a lesson he has learned from our 12-Step curriculum.

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Family Workshop Experience at Gatehouse Academy

Written by Scott E.

There are many positives to Gatehouse.  One of them is having a big support group around you at all times.  There are many good things about this; having a big support group around you at all times means whenever you are struggling, there is always someone around for you to talk to and relate with.  You also have people that can hold you accountable and people who can tell when you are struggling and can reach out and help you.  School is another positive.  Taking school at Gatehouse means I can slowly get back into my education, one class at a time.  The entire accommodations and living aspect is another positive.  We learn how to live a responsible and sober life and how to manage food and keep the house clean.  The life skills block is another great part of Gatehouse Academy.  In life skills we get to learn how to handle all aspects of life that will be helpful to us after we commence.  I have a lot of fun at group sports.  It’s a great opportunity to exercise.  It also brings us closer as a community and allows us to build trust with one another.  The houses are really nice here.  We get to live in several houses and bond as a family.  Work ethic is an important part of the program; we have several different jobs done in the morning to teach us how to handle having a job and going even if we don’t want to.  I’m on car crew right now.  There are many positive aspects of Gatehouse, and I am grateful for all of them.

Scott is currently enrolled as a resident in Gatehouse Academy’s drug rehab program.  He offers his review and testimonial by telling us about a lesson he has learned from our 12-Step curriculum.

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The Positives of Gatehouse Academy

Written by Becca G.

When I became a senior resident I was really surprised.  I think it’s really cool that Gatehouse gives people leadership positions like senior resident or RA.  It really helped me see that the progress I’ve made here was being recognized and that helped motivate me to step up more.  It’s also given me an opportunity to help newcomers more, especially being able to talk to people on newcomer ban.  It’s also nice to be trusted a little more with things such as holding onto the RA phone.  It sounds really small, but to me it felt like a pretty big deal.  Because of how much trust I’ve lost with everyone in my life because of my using, being trusted even the smallest amount is really exciting.

Becca is currently enrolled as a resident in Gatehouse Academy’s addiction treatment program.  She offers her review and testimonial by telling us about a lesson she has learned from our 12-Step curriculum.

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Developing The Leader In Me

Written by: Coleen F.

As a resident at Gatehouse I struggled with not being able to see my parents and sister very much.  I didn’t think that a family workshop could help my relationship with my parents.  I just completed my third and final workshop and I cannot believe the changes that have occurred within my family.  My father and I didn’t have a relationship before I came to Gatehouse, but through the family workshops we have gotten to know each other and have found that we are very much alike.  Today I am able to appreciate my family and respect and love them.  I am also happy to realize that even though I am sober my family as a whole is not perfect.  We are still going to have arguments and disagreements but today we can work through them in a healthy way, when in the past I would have drank over it.  I am so grateful for my families’ work and for the help of Gatehouse during the family workshops.

Coleen is currently enrolled as a resident in Gatehouse Academy’s addiction treatment program.  She offers her review and testimonial by telling us about a lesson she has learned from our 12-Step curriculum.

Families of residents attend 4 Family Workshops during their stay at Gatehouse Academy.

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Family Workshop Experience at Gatehouse Academy

Written by Asia F

During my addiction, my life revolved around using drugs.

Now, while in sobriety at Gatehouse Academy, I am constantly busy. There are a multitude of activities. The physical activities at Gatehouse Academy include: yoga, karate and full body workout. Other activities include: group therapy, art, auto, life skills, school and Literature study.

The community is divided into groups, in which you would have group therapy with twice a week. Each group has school once a day, Monday through Friday.  Literature study is a one hour activity where portions of the Big Book are read and questions are answered. Life skills classes are run by a staff member, and the block covers a large amount of subjects that relate to aspects of healthy and responsible living. There are three, one hour blocks everyday.

The weekend activities include: yoga, peer on peer and literature study. Peer on peer is a block where residents bring up struggles and residents find solutions in the Big Book. The activities help residents grow and learn in recovery.

Needless to say I rarely get bored.

Asia is currently enrolled as a resident in Gatehouse Academy’s addiction treatment program.  She offers her review and testimonial by telling us about activities she has experienced in our 12-Step curriculum.

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Addiction Treatment Activities at Gatehouse Academy

Written by Angela A.

In everyday life, I struggle with letting myself let go of how others live their lives, and letting go of control in mine.  It is definitely easier for me to realize that I am powerless over what people do, how they do it, why they do it, and where they do it.  By reviewing my 1^st step, I realize that my powerlessness over others needs to be given away to my Higher Power in my 3^rd step.

There are many times when I want to shake those I love and tell them that what they want is not what they need.  I have to realize that I cannot change anyone.  An individual can only change him or herself.  I have also been in situations where I do not want to live in the moment; however, I have to realize that my Higher Power puts me in specific moments to learn a particular life lesson that He has set before me.

When I live my life according to God’s will, which is doing the next right thing, I am much more content.  When I let others live their own life, I am more focused and less frustrated.  Thank God I don’t have to play God anymore.

Angela is currently enrolled as a resident in Gatehouse Academy’s addiction treatment program.  She offers her review and testimonial by telling us about a lesson she has learned from our 12-Step curriculum.

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Lessons Learned: Live and Let Live

Written by Kelly E.

Adventures in Recovery (AIR) has just returned from its 11^th major adventure trip and it’s 1st major adventure from our new location at San Cristobal, NM.

Destination – Chaco Culture National Historical Park located in a vast isolated area in Northwestern NM. Several days of hiking in the back-country through massive Aztec ruins and remnants of an ancient advanced civilization, coupled with intensive recovery work produced an outstanding and undeniable result of spiritual and emotional development and change – precisely the purpose of AIR.

Nights in the bivvys dipped to 20 degrees but spirits remained high as the opportunity for such an adventure outweighed the obvious discomfort.  Work ethic and nightly AA meetings in the group remained constant, demonstrating that consistency with recovery disciplines is not limited to a specific treatment setting, but goes with them in their everyday lives no matter where they are.

The fact that they are not the center of the universe was brought home in a big way as they surveyed the vastness around them and contemplated the generations of people who have walked the same path before them, both in a historical cultural sense as well as in a recovery sense. The sense of humility was evident as several residents verbalized a new understanding of being a small part of a great whole and that sobriety in and of itself without any material gain is the reward of this way of life.

Kelly Egan is the Program Manager at Gatehouse Academy’s outdoor adventure wilderness program.  Residents receive a once in a lifetime experience to work with horses surrounded by the majestic mountains of Taos, NM.  On average, 10 to 12 young men and women get to experience a very different form of Drug Rehab – using Nature as a motivator towards Recovey

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Recovery Through Nature

Written by Wes W

In my eight months as a resident at Gatehouse Academy, I have had to face many issues about myself and encounter problems with others. There are many small rules in place to help us work through our issues and build successful relationships with people.

During the week the community as a whole has a meeting each day where we’re given the opportunity to call our peers out on patterns or behaviors we feel are concerning or incidents of rule breaching. As a part of helping us learn from out mistakes and grow emotionally and spiritually Gatehouse Academy enforces a system of bans.

These bans include boy/girl ban, talking ban, newcomer ban, weight room ban, make-up ban, and specific residents can be banned from each other. The main purpose for these bans is to get us to look inside ourselves and be free from outside distractions and validations. It is about stepping out of our comfort zones and really facing ourselves. Obviously these bans are not fun, but the lessons they teach are invaluable.

Not long ago I myself was on talking ban for about two months. It was miserable and uncomfortable for a while but I had to make peace with myself and surrender to the things around me. I had to stop fighting everything and everyone. I can’t think of any other situation where it would be possible to learn so much about myself and I am grateful to be growing at Gatehouse Academy.

Wes is currently enrolled as a resident in Gatehouse Academy’s drug rehab program.  He will have 1 year clean and sober in December, and prepare for the next step in his Recovery.

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Eight Months in… Still Growing Stronger