Digging a New Path for Wilderness Therapy

How healing can occur using gardening as a focused activity to help children learn mindfulness, improve executive functioning, and become a part of a community while giving back to the community. By using wilderness therapy concepts in removing young people from society’s distraction and getting back in touch with nature.

The guests on Parent Choices for Struggling Teens, September 17, were Travis Slagle and Dr. Katie Kasenchak hailing from the big island of Hawaii. They shared with Lon the impact of Sustainable Growth™ on their students at Pacific Quest, an outdoor therapy program. Students focus on mindfulness and improve their executive functioning through the activity of organic gardening, in addition to acquiring sustainable life skills and learning to apply these skills to their lives back home.

Unlike wilderness therapy, Sustainable Growth™- horticultural therapy has a greater focus on community, systems and giving back. As Dr. Katie explained “Sustainable Growth™ is working with nature as opposed to battling nature. Wilderness therapy is a more rugged-man survival to the elements and learning to overcome its obstacles, whereas horticultural therapy promotes a greater sense of harmony, looking at the life cycles and creating a deeper sense of connection. By growing plants, we are creating oxygen and promoting the health of the person.”

Travis went on to explain that “gardening is non-judgmental; it is a space with a relationship with another living thing and will respond to your care. By raising vegetables, the students get to see the results of their work, from selling the produce at the local farmers market, to seeing that the proceeds of their work goes to the many charities in the area. It allows them to look at what we give rather than what we take.” Healing the land has identical connections to healing ourselves…the simplicity of ‘because we come from nature we respond to nature’ rings true and taps into something that is timeless. Gardening allows the students to focus outside of themselves, to focus on the plants and where they can learn to nurture, to give back to future generations of students to come, to being responsible within the community and understanding that when they take something from the land, they have to give something back.

To listen to the full interview on Digging a New Path for Wilderness Therapy go to http://www.latalkradio.com/Players/Lon-091712.shtmlon LATalkRadio.

Lon Woodburyis the owner/founder of Woodbury Reports Inc. and www.strugglingteens.com.  He has worked with families and struggling teens since 1984 and is the host of Parent Choices for Struggling Teens on LATalkRadio Mondays at 12:00pm, Pacific Time, Channel One.

Dr. Katie Kasenchak is one of eight therapists at Pacific Quest. Earning her BA in Psychology and Sociology from Pepperdine University and her Doctorate in Psychology from the Wright Institute, Dr. Katie has over 15 years of experience working with high risk youth in outpatient clinics, residential treatment centers, inpatient hospitals and specialized academic settings as well as in the outdoor environment.

Travis Slagle has over ten years of experience working with struggling teens both in wilderness and residential treatment programs. He is a life coach and motivational speaker, a master gardener and an active member of the American Horticultural Therapy Association and the Hawaii Organic Farmers Association. He is a currently the Land Supervisor at Pacific Quest.

This segment was sponsored by Spring Ridge Academy, 928-632-4602, www.springridgeacademy.com, a Therapeutic Boarding School for Girls in Arizona.

Woodbury Reportswas founded in November 1989, by Lon Woodbury, MA, IECA, CEP, as an Independent Educational Consulting firm to help parents of teens making poor decisions select a private, parent choice program that would help return the family to normalcy.  Through interviews with parents, communication with professionals who know your child well, and then thoroughly researching viable options, we can help parents make the right choices that will help your child get back on the right path.  For more information about Woodbury Reports Inc., call 208-267-5550, or email to [email protected].