by Kelly Egan 

AIR got on the horses this weekend and it was superb. New admit Carol L. fits right in and is a perfect addition to our small Outdoor Recovery Group. Lengthy and invested phone conversations with several parents results in some serious phone calls for John Y and Meghan B. Their parents were direct, held them accountable and the result was evident as we processed the rest of the evening on the new stance their parents are taking. The idea is to make the content of the phone calls more productive and less superficial and as these are serious addicts with multiple relapses, the content should be more substantial. This is treatment for Gods sake. Overall, the outcome is more focused work and the parents less enabling. Mark J will be coming back in less than a month for his family WS so the decision needs to be made whether to simply have him stay at Main or transfer back out. A mountain lion spooked the horses last nite and Destry is cleaning up their cuts and injuries from breaking out of the coral. Another day in recovery awaits.

Kelly Egan is Program Manager for the Gatehouse Academy Wilderness Program

Gatehouse Academy operates two Wilderness campuses. One in Central Arizona and another in Northern Canada. The wilderness campus provides 12 step recovery in an outdoor adventure setting. Here is an example of a day in the life of a Wilderness campus participant.

The day is started with work and hiking and an attitude adjustment starts early. The early stages of the camp are supposed to be a session of self-exploration. One of the campers has started to discover his self-pity and self-centeredness.  This is the start of this camper coming to a self-realization, which will be explored again and again in the 12 Step process.  You can read more about our approach here.

Another camper grappling with the same problem of self-centeredness shows signs of maturity and empathy.  He is becoming fun to be around and is now becoming a part of the growth and change of others as he himself does the same thing.

Two campers feel that they are being over-medicated. They don’t seem alert until around noon. This is a problem that they will have to deal with later, with the Med.

Another camper is doing her best to surrender to her emotions. Sometimes a great attitude is a mask we wear to do our best not to solve problems.  This camper will say everything is fine, when it is not and later will cause harm to herself. Everyone at this camp is of course, a work in progress.

Another girl, all but 17 years old is coming to terms with her lost pregnancy, but she is happy to be here. Her previous youth has been stunted by the use of alcohol and heroin. She does her best, but still shows a subtle defiance. She has been sober for 10 months and thinks she knows all there is to know about sobriety. She works well in the group as she continues to work on herself.

All of this can happen in just one day at the Gatehouse Academy Wilderness campuses. Camping has always been hard work, but even more so when you are forced to work on yourself and confront your daily demons.