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What Are the Benefits of Group Adventure Therapy?

Wandering out into the woods with a group of strangers may seem like an extravagant, unnecessary approach to many of us seeking treatment for trauma or addiction. It does not fall in line with our expectations of what treatment should be.

There should be doctors and couches for sitting and talking about our lives and problems and traumas. Maybe there should be a zen garden or a rippling stream thrown in. But group adventure therapy is for board executives, who need an excuse to take a retreat together, right?

Wrong.

Numerous studies have shown that adventure therapy is an ideal approach for dealing with issues of trauma, addiction, and co-occurring disorders all at the same time. So, although the therapy sessions are definitely a must-have in our recovery, we should allow a lot more room for outdoor adventure than we might have originally thought.

How Does Adventure Therapy Help?

Think about recovery. Whether it be from trauma or substance abuse or an eating disorder, recovery is about regaining a life. To recover our lives, we essentially begin a new one with new habits. What better way to learn what we are capable of than by putting us in an environment to which we are not accustomed? Our life in recovery will be a constantly rotating cycle of new and diverse challenges. What better way to explore that feeling than by accomplishing small challenges in a new and diverse outdoor environment? Exploring what we are capable of in all facets of life is a fantastic way to boost our self-esteem. Small accomplishments give us the strength to pursue greater accomplishments.

Why Do We Need a Group?

Recovery is a long process and a lifelong commitment. Even though it is the most rewarding pursuit we can ever undertake, it is difficult to maintain. It is even more difficult to maintain when we try to do it alone. Learning to forge bonds with others in recovery, allowing ourselves to ask for help, and being open to the fact that other people can be a part of our solution further guarantees our success in maintaining our recovery when we are back in the real world. The group is not just a clever metaphor for relying on others. It is a real practice in needing others to achieve our goal of recovery.

Not all therapy needs to come in the form of private sessions with a therapist. Although that approach is often integral to our recovery, we are creatures who benefit from multiple approaches to our treatment. Group adventure therapy can give us access to aspects of ourselves that we never knew existed. We can achieve in areas we never thought possible, and we can apply those lessons to our lives in recovery after we leave treatment. The Guest House provides a wide variety of treatment options for addiction and trauma. Please call (855) 483-7800 for more information.