HORIZON FAMILY SOLUTIONS, LLC

Educational Consulting, Assessment and Adolescent Crisis Intervention

The Power of Wilderness Option Programs

Wilderness adventure therapy uses challenging experiences & being in natural environments to improve psychological dysfunctions in behavior, emotion, and life effectiveness skills.

Nature does not judge, and troubled teens on the run from the crueler aspects of their previous environments will be given a chance to accept themselves and move towards a relationship with life that is both harmonious and truthful.

1. A “COME-TO-LIFE” CALL
   • Letting a student know that life as usual is about to drastically change.
   • Life as you know it won't carry on according to “your” plans.
   • Students also get a sense of thankfulness concerning their relationships with parents, siblings, etc.
2. ACQUIRE SOME EXTRA TIME
   • In a wideness situation, while your child is safe, you achieve important time to more attentively and comprehensively assess and reflect on next step options and build on a long term plan.
   • It slows things down, so that families can make decisions through extensive consideration and planning and not through emotional crisis.
   • At times, students need to get out of unsafe situations and away from risky peer influences.
3. THERAPEUTIC ADVANTAGE
   • Natural consequences to choices and "Wilderness as Therapy" let the student achieve imminent insight into maladaptive behavior and conduct patterns and to start developing communication, leadership and organizational skills. The delight and self pride of achievements that they never even dreamed they could do can be translated into the next step situation.
   • Insights and attitude shifts into behavioral patterns start to happen.
   • We are also given the opportunity to see this student at “their baseline”: answering such questions, "How does this person perform in the world without pressure and stress from family, computers, friends, school, television, video games, etc.?" When a student is a drug user, time at wilderness gives us the opportunity to see how the student interacts in the world when clean and sober.
4. EVALUATIVE FEEDBACK
   • Wilderness programs let students be observed away from everyday distractions and the “life escapes” they have chosen.
   • We learn how the student copes with a variety of mental, emotional and physical challenges.
   • We find out about the readiness, and willingness of the student to make changes in their behavior.
   • We learn what therapeutic approaches are most effective and successful for the student.
   • We get a "natural and pure" outlook of patterns and coping mechanisms, allowing us to improve on our plan for next step options for the student.
5. RESEARCH AND PREPARATION FOR THE NEXT BEST STEP
   • We have used the evaluative feedback, gained valuable time, and are seeing the therapeutic benefits of the wilderness which all assist in developing the options for the next best step. How can the student know how to convert their successes as they take the next step?
6. SOFTENING REALIZATION
   • Most students have a "softening realization" by being in Wilderness. This comes from gaining an imminent insight into their challenges and problems as well as a desire and incentive for change.
   • Because of this, we are usually able to choose from among a softer selection of programs as the next step.
   • This opens up more options from our spectrum of residential programs and specialty boarding schools. It also narrows our options by giving us more detailed and specific areas that the students need to work on, giving us a focal point when looking at other options for next best steps.
7. SOCIALIZATION SKILLS
   • Wilderness programs also assist students in gaining the appropriate and positive social skills which in turn, boost their self-esteem.
8. REALIZATION MIND SET
   • A lot of the students we assist with have a mind-set of being "better than everyone else," and that for whatever reason, they are “entitled” and at liberty to have and do whatever they wants. Wilderness programs put the kids all on the same page: all are dressed the same, they eat the same foods, have the same gear, and no one person is better than the other.
   • This helps the student get past this entitlement feeling that enables some of their unconstructive and negative behavior.

Wilderness programs offer a place outside of the rigors of normal life where nature provides a nurturing space to find oneself.

Wilderness programs can offer invaluable insights to teenagers in trouble. Now is the time to get your teen on a better path so they can be successful.

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