Treatment, Recovery, Awareness, Control
SpiritLife’s Outdoor Experiential Program involves the use of challenges found in nature to provide growth experiences that can help people make fundamental changes in their lives. Clients participate in one mandatory outing per week, with the option of signing up for daily afternoon outings. Activities include: Hiking, biking, golf, swimming, gardening, painting, and more. Therapeutic benefits include establishing a deeper connection with the natural world, nurturing the ability to trust one’s community through the experience of teamwork, developing a healthier approach to the issue of control, taking responsibility for one’s
actions and how those actions impact others, and increasing feelings of self-esteem, joy and pleasure. Studies show that time spent active in the outdoors decreases cortisol (stress hormone) and blood pressure levels, while increasing the production of endorphins. The outdoor program implements several therapeutic modalities including adventure, wilderness, and outdoor experiential therapy. The practices and activities implemented push clients to strive for positive outcomes when facing adversity as well as rediscovering inner-peace and self-authenticity.