Connecting with nature is widely recognized as a beneficial component of the recovery process due to its numerous healing properties. Engaging in outdoor activities such as walking, hiking, cycling, running, swimming, and seasonal sports offers significant advantages for those in recovery. Being active in natural settings can help combat chronic diseases, alleviate stress and depression, accelerate healing, strengthen the immune system, and more. Emerging research is beginning to uncover the reasons behind these benefits: nature impacts us both mentally and physically, influencing us at a cellular level.

Common questions about 12 step programs Am I Fully Recovered after Treatment? After you finish treatment, it is now time to begin your new life as a sober person in recovery. You may have returned to your home, moved in with a family member or maybe were admitted to a sober living facility. The question you might ask yourself is: ‘Am I recovered?’ Well, according to the medical model of addiction, addicts and alcoholics are never fully recovered from our disease.

One of the first things I heard in recovery rooms is to make your bed. When we wake up in the morning, we’ve done nothing wrong. We wake up with a choice and the first choice we can make is to do something right. It’s a two-minute process to make your bed. The first right thing to do is to make the bed. Whenever my bed is made, I can go back to that room and know I have done something right.

I want to take this post very seriously. To that end, let me put together some disclaimers. This information is not all-inclusive. Do your own research! Putting your family members under the care of other people is something you should always take seriously! Your family situation is unique and you should gather as much information as possible. I have not personally undergone this process. My brother, not my children, and not myself, participated in Wilderness Programs.

Do the research. Take some time to think about how your child has been raised. What type of environment have they been raised with? Could they benefit from outdoor activity? Would eating healthy and removing technology help refocus their choices? Go online and look at wilderness and nature based programs. Do not just admit your child to the first program you find. There are many good and many bad programs and it is best to find out as much information as you can.

Wilderness therapy, adventure therapy, nature-based therapy, or outdoor behavioral healthcare are just a few names for outdoor alternative treatment options. This type of treatment is typically used for adolescents or young-adults who are struggling with substance abuse, addiction, behavioral, mental, or emotional troubles. Wilderness therapy comes in several forms: full-time overnight programs and day programs. Wilderness therapy is meant after other types of home treatment have been tried with no success.

Admitting to a substance use detox program is a crucial first step towards long term recovery. I have been involved in detox both as a client and as a mental health clinician. Here are some tips and insights for the process based on my knowledge and experience. What is detox?- Detox is the first step in the continuum of substance use care. It is a process where you are kept in a facility under the observation of a medical team to ensure that you are safe while detoxing from substances.

30 days. That’s how long my father was in rehab. 60 days. That’s how long he was alcohol free. Another 60 days later, he was lying in a hospital bed surrounded by loved ones drawing his final breath. Addiction is uncharted for every passenger, family and addict alike. Being the child of an addict and growing up around normalized addictive behavior is anything but normal but those who have been close to it will know that it happens more often than most realize.

Addiction is Everywhere I used to think that I was in an unusual situation. I grew up surrounded by addiction. My father was an addict, my step-father is an addict. My mother is an addict (of a different kind). I’m an addict. My grandmother is an addict. My grandfather was an addict. This charity is in my brother’s name because he was an addict. The list just goes on and on.

In honor of April being Alcohol Awareness Month, we at Harlan Serenity Foundation want to say we stand with those affected by alcohol abuse. Individuals still struggling, in recovery, and their loved ones are in our thoughts and we love you. No matter where you are in your journey, you are loved.