2020 Journeys Magazine
Stories of Hope
Skyland Trail Family: Mac & Anne
"She was very highly functioning... but mentally she was not well. She desperately needed help... but she seemed just fine on the outside."
Mac & Anne spoke to us a few weeks after taking their daughter, Laura, to the University of Chicago to start school. Laura completed the Skyland Trail adolescent residential treatment program in 2020 as a senior in high school. "Six months ago, we didn't know if she would finish high school," says Anne. "[Now] she has a lot of skills that she acquired to say things that she would have had a hard time saying before..." Says Mac, "Laura learned a lot, and we all learned a lot."
Skyland Trail Graduate: Debbie
"I learned that this is not something I can rely on others to do; it has to come from me."
Debbie, a project engineer and mom of two in Colorado, came to Skyland Trail after two hospitalizations. Debbie says one of the biggest changes she was able to make in her life as a result of treatment is being empowered to set boundaries. "I learned to set boundaries so that I don't stretch myself to the limit."
Debbie says she felt welcomed into the Skyland Trail community from day one. "Now I consider many of the others clients my family, and now I have family across the United States."
Skyland Trail Graduate: Gordon
"I’ve been caught in wave after wave of emotion, but I never learned to surf...
Before my ninety days in treatment I would have typically responded to the question of, 'how do you feel,' with one of those three options — 'Well,' 'alright, and, 'fine.'
Sadly, my usual responses were not permissible. I had to choose a feeling from the Wheel of Emotions."
Read more about learning to use the Wheel of Emotions from Skyland Trail Graduate Gordon C.
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DID YOU KNOW? On average, adult clients admitting to our residential program participate in treatment for about 2 to 4 months, usually stepping down to day treatment as part of their journey.