Adventure Therapy May be the Ticket to Recovery

There are all sorts of therapies available for addiction treatment. From identifying negative thinking to holistic practices to building community, addiction treatment includes a wide range of modalities. Not to mention equine therapy, acupuncture, and herbal therapy, the list goes on and on. However, one treatment modality recently added to the list is adventure therapy.

This form of therapy can include activities like ziplining above tall trees and wilderness survival. The point of adventure therapy is to help build a person’s sense of empowerment and inner strength. This is no doubt a more alternative and holistic type of treatment and it’s available in certain parts of the country. It’s a way of helping a person have new experiences of confidence, courage, and cognitive strength. When someone needs to figure out how to live on their own for a few days in the wilderness, new facets of themselves are revealed. A person might feel more confident and a greater sense of self esteem. Also when a person is flying through the air, riding on a single cable high above the ground, the thrill of the experience brings empowerment and excitement. They might also overcome anxiety, move past fears, and move beyond obstacles that might have previously gotten in the way.

One rehab facility in Texas includes adventure therapy as a part of their treatment plan. In addition to psychotherapy, medication (if needed), support groups, and 12-step meetings, residents can also participate in adventure therapy. Participants of the program have reported that they’ve attended other traditional addiction treatment centers with little success. But with adventure therapy recovery has changed for them.

Research shows that adventure therapy can improve one’s self image, reduce compulsive behaviors, increase trust with oneself and others, as well as improve one’s ability to be social. Over the years, adventure therapy has also been referred to as wilderness therapy and outdoor experiential therapy. However, there are some slight differences between these three terms. Professionals in this field refer to adventure therapy when it includes outdoor activities that involve physical or emotional challenges. Wilderness therapy, however, places participants in primitive settings and invites them to adapt and cope using few tools. More recently, adventure therapy has evolved to include traditional methods of therapy in addition to adventure-like activities. And this is precisely the method used at the Texas-based facility mentioned above.

Adventure therapy primarily uses individual thrilling experience and group activities to build trust, improve problem solving skills, and enhance self confidence. Combined with traditional therapy, professionals have found that the combination of the two help with reaching goals such as sobriety, emotional stability, learning new coping skills, and improving behavior. One reason why adventure therapy has been used in recovery from addiction is because experts have noticed that this type of treatment matches the type of client in more effective ways. For instance, commonly recovering addicts need more structure as well as activities that are informal and kinesthetically oriented.

If you’re interested in adventure therapy for yourself, search for adventure therapy online. Keep in mind that adventure therapy alone is not entirely adequate for addiction treatment. Talk to a mental health provider for more information on the types of addiction treatment available in recovery.