Wilderness Programs and Outdoor Therapy and Summer Camps for Troubled Teens and Young Adults
Parents who are struggling with a pre adolescent or teen often find that change is difficult as long as the child remains in the home environment. Influences outside the home impact behavior, often more than the family does. Young adults struggling with substance abuse issues can also find the pressures and influences of their daily environment make it difficult to develop healthy coping skills. For this reason, residential programs can effect profound changes in troubled youth and young adults by removing them from the school and neighborhood and putting them in a healthy and controlled environment where they can focus on behavioral change. Outdoor education, also known as wilderness therapy, is a unique alternative to longer term residential schools and treatment programs. These programs have proven to be highly effective in dealing with issues such as oppositional defiant disorder, ADHD-related behavioral struggles, and substance abuse problems.
When parents and young adults begin to explore such treatment options, they often feel confused and overwhelmed. There are so many types of therapy and programs. How do you know which one is best for your adolescent? The most publicized programs tend to be boot camps. The highly structured boot camp environments emphasize stern discipline that will supposedly get your kid "back in line." While a military school or boot camp might seem like a good idea if you are angry and fed up with your troubled teen, most likely this environment is far from truly therapeutic in nature. How often have you yelled at your child and not seen any result?
Wilderness Programs, also known as Outdoor Therapy Programs, emphasize therapy and positive behavioral change over discipline. While students must follow strict guidelines to ensure the safety of all participants, nature serves as the ultimate teacher. Troubled teens are particularly impacted by the realization that the wilderness cannot be manipulated by them. The group environment teaches them the value of cooperation and joint effort. Through the development of wilderness skills, teens develop healthy self-esteem and learn to respond in positive ways to their peers and to authority. They begin to see that the world is not there to fulfill their every need or whim, and that they are part of a larger community. Young adults who do not want to go to a more clinical environment such as a treatment center, report that the wilderness programs help them develop a sense of the larger world that improves their self-confidence and spiritual development.
Why Wilderness
For decades, wilderness therapists and outdoor educators have been incorporating the healing and restorative powers of nature into programs designed to help troubled adolescents overcome personal challenges, regain control over their lives, and put themselves back on the path to health and happiness. Learn more about the powerful impact of wilderness programs on teens.
Wilderness Camps for Troubled Teens - Wilderness Programs for Defiant Teens - Summer Camps
Information on alternative treatment programs in the Northeast, New York, North Carolina, Texas, Utah, Idaho, and Oregon
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Parents often struggle with the decision to send their child to a wilderness program. A Wilderness Field Supervisor at Adirondack Leadership Expeditions helps parents understand the value of taking this step.
Read Choosing a Wilderness Program: Often a Difficult Decision for Teens and Parents
There is a strong body of research confirming that direct contact with nature increases mental health and psychological and spiritual development. Benefits include stress reduction, a sense of coherence and belonging, improved self-confidence and self-discipline, and a broader sense of community.
The teen years often bring a restless yearning to explore, take risks, and have adventure. That's why there are outdoor programs that cater to those impulses.
Read What I Did During Summer Vacation: I kicked my Drug and Alcohol Habit
Experiences in the wild, whether at summer camp, hiking or biking with a club or scout group, or even traveling and camping with family, provide teenagers with a chance to challenge themselves and become self-reliant and create vividly indelible memories.
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Read Helping Your Teens Become Leaders: The Metaphor of Wilderness as a Model for Leadership
Wilderness Programs are not just for boys. Considering placing your daughter in a wilderness program?
Read Should I Send My Daughter to a Therapeutic Wilderness Program?
Wilderness therapy - the process of removing troubled teens from their "emotional comfort zone" by asking them to live in a wilderness setting - is now recognized as one of the single most effective treatment solutions for struggling adolescents. By teaching teens to care for themselves and to take responsibility for their personal well-being, wilderness therapy helps participants develop the skills they need to think more insightfully, realistically assess their abilities, improve their communication skills and practice healthy behavioral habits.
Read Healthy Chioces: Wilderness Therapy Helps Troubled Teens Build Smart Life Skillls
When a teen is in crisis, a parent’s first instinct may be to keep the child at home – close to the parent. A parent’s desire to keep the teen “safe” may in fact cause him to be more at risk.