Wilderness Therapy

Different South Florida wilderness treatment plans might include contained wilderness programs or continuous programs.

Contained vs. Continuous Florida Wilderness Therapy

Contained programs are those where you go on a type of expedition like a camping trip, and you do it for a specific length of time. This could be a one-week expedition or a three-week expedition. Whatever the length, you stay with the leaders for the duration of the trip, and you typically remain in nature. 

Conversely, continuous programs are those where you might go in and out of nature for regular experiences or adventures, and you might have different leaders each time. This type of therapeutic process can be much longer because you don’t have to remain out in nature, but rather, you can visit periodically.

Stages of Wilderness Therapy: Florida- Based

No matter the length or type of program, it has the same structure. It includes a cleansing face where you might embark on an outdoor pursuit like backpacking and focus on your surroundings, being in nature.

After that, you might transition into a personal and social responsibility, where you focus on learning new skills like building fires and spending a lot of reflective time alone. You can also acquire plenty of skills about self-care and group safety in the wilderness, how to deal with natural disasters or weather changes, and how to create a safe environment when things are difficult.

The educational curricula and the application of real and metaphoric lessons for when you return to your daily life and still struggle proved very helpful.

Wilderness therapy is not the only part of your recovery plan. A Florida wilderness therapy should be one part of your comprehensive therapy program if you are looking for addiction treatment. This type of therapy can include day trips or long-term contained trips with other group members, all of whom are learning important life skills, getting exercise, enjoying leadership training, working to express themselves verbally, and working together as a team.

Day trips like hiking or rock climbing can help you relax much more than you might while sitting in a doctor’s office being asked a series of questions about your feelings. Situations where you are in nature hiking, rock climbing, kayaking, or camping, can help you lower your guard and display behavioral patterns that your therapist might not be able to see in any other setting. This can prove helpful in allowing your therapist a better idea of how to treat you long-term and how well you are progressing with certain life skills and social skills.

Let Prevail Recovery help you find Wilderness Therapy programs in South Florida.