Therapy doesn’t have to look like the movies. It can be better. Talk therapy is important, but it’s only one aspect of Pure Life’s well-rounded adventure therapy program. Outdoor Adventure Therapy (sometimes incorrectly confused with Wilderness Adventure Therapy) programs have become increasingly prevalent over the past few decades. These outdoor therapeutic programs have gained popularity due to their success in helping adolescents and young adults grappling with various mental health, emotional, behavioral, and developmental issues, and many young adults are choosing to take a gap year or gap semester to attend one of these programs. Adventure therapy is an excellent choice for young adults who are self-medicating to compensate for these issues, and can create success that will last far beyond their time with Pure Life. We share 3 reasons why you should consider taking the opportunity to experience the healing power of adventure therapy activities.
3 Benefits Of Adventure Therapy Activities
Takes Young Adults Out of a Toxic Environment
One of the most influential factors in the success of adventure therapy is taking young people out of the toxic environment in which they live. A toxic living environment can vary greatly, but its negative impact on one’s mental health is the same. Some examples of toxic living environments could be excessive pressure, harsh criticism, unmet essential needs, substance abuse by the individual or people they live with, or an environment where they experience verbal, physical, or emotional abuse.
Whether the toxic environment is influenced by a negative peer group or the difficulties of everyday life, adventure therapy takes young adults away from the stressors and influences that encourage self-medicating. A young adult or adolescent living in a toxic environment could lower self-esteem, cause or increase anxiety, add to depression, and even create conditions such as PTSD.
Stepping away from a negative situation by taking a gap year, especially when the person chooses to enter therapeutic gap year programs, really allows young adults to look at choosing a positive path/environment in the future. Separating themselves from a toxic environment or influence allows young adults to focus on finding themselves and living a healthy, substance-free lifestyle.
Adventure Therapy Activities
Incorporating adventure therapy activities into treatment leads to an increased “buy-in” to therapy with young adults, largely due to the variety of appealing activities. Aside from more actively engaging young adults and teens in treatment, adventure therapy allows them to adapt and thrive in various settings, activities, and adventures. Confronting challenges helps to build on each student’s strengths and aids in identity development, which is where many of these struggling young adults need help. That’s the benefit of enrolling in gap year programs for mental health. They make good use of the break, help individuals progress, and prepare themselves for the next step.
According to Dr. Mark Widmer, a leading researcher in the area of outdoor adventure therapy, adventure therapy activities “provide opportunities for exploration, commitment, interrelatedness, and feedback, all of which serve essential identity development functions.” (Duerden, Widmer, Taniguchi, McCoy) Much of the success of adventure activities in aiding identity development, according to Widmer, can be credited to the fact that adventure activities are “a context outside of the bounds of traditional school and peer group activities and thus may be less encumbered by stereotyped peer group and identity affiliations.” (Duerden, Widmer, Taniguchi, McCoy)
In addition, each new skill learned during gap programs (i.e., surfing, rappelling, rafting) is a new potential hobby. Learning healthy, physical activities that these teens and young adults can continue to participate in long after treatment ends leads to a healthier, more active lifestyle in the long run. Rather than self-medicating, the adventure activities allow young adults to get a “high” doing something totally healthy. By building on each individual’s strengths, adventure therapy, and gap year experiences allow them to learn new, healthy coping strategies, behavioral and emotional regulation skills, leadership skills, and life skills. Field staff and therapists help young adults develop higher self-efficacy by using their strengths to build a strong foundation for the future.
Nature Is a Powerful Healer
While many people know the benefits that getting outside and being more active can bestow, there is more contemporary research being conducted about the benefits of time spent in the outdoors. In the book, Your Brain on Nature, the author discusses the research conducted in Japan. Doctors there are prescribing a walk in the park every day. The sights, smells, and sounds have various physiological benefits, including decreased cortisol levels. The doctors have observed that patients in a hospital rooming on the side of the hospital with a park even heal faster!
Research suggests that mere exposure to the outdoors also has many psychological and emotional benefits, including:
- Improved clarity
- A reduction in ADD/ADHD symptoms
- Improved critical thinking and decision-making
- Enhanced problem-solving abilities
- Better executive functioning
Pure Life’s Adventure Therapy Activities
Pure Life has created an adventure therapy program intended to engage our students mentally and physically while challenging their skills to build self-confidence. The variety of our activities is appealing to potential students, whether they are taking a gap year or not, and can bring a new level of excitement and engagement to therapy.
Pure Life’s adventure therapy activities include:
- Surfing
- White Water Rafting
- Rainforest Backpacking
- Wilderness First Aid Course
- Cultural Homestays
- Equine Therapy
- Rappelling
- Sea Kayaking
- Community Service
- Rock Climbing
- Swift Water Rescue Course
- Technical Rope Course
Pure Life Adventure’s Resources For Young Adults And Self Medication
Pure Life Adventure is committed to bringing health, confidence, self-efficacy, and progress to young adults who are currently struggling. Our adventure therapy activities are done under the care and guidance of trained professionals. Our field staff and therapists work with each student individually to create a customized treatment program that will leave students feeling renewed and refreshed, proud of their accomplishments, and confident to reenter normal life post-treatment and gap year, armed with healthy coping mechanisms.
Trauma, self-medication, depression, anxiety, and lack of motivation can be draining for those amid the trial and family members watching a loved one struggle. We want to help you or your loved one begin the healing process today. Stop the downward spiral and damage that self-medication can cause. Download our free white paper to learn more about self-medication in young adults and adolescents.
Download Your FREE White Paper
If you or your loved one would benefit from taking a therapeutic gap year and the adventure therapy activities that Pure Life Adventure offers, please reach out to us today. We would love to meet you and discuss our services and program in more detail. Your healing adventure can begin today.
Resources:
- “Adventures in identity development: The impact of a two-week adventure program on adolescent identity development” (Taniguchi, Widmer, Duerden, and McCoy)
- Your Brain on Nature, Alan C. Logan, N.D.
