You know that your addiction has taken over your entire world; that no matter how many beers you drink, lines you snort or pills you rake, you can’t escape your pain or block your emotions. You may not even know why you use. But you’re at a turning point and looking for a way to o get sober and HAVE a life.
This is our mission – to help you realize that you have within yourself the ability to gain control of your life and create something totally new and amazing: a life free of drugs, sorrow and the dangerous lifestyle you’ve adopted. And taking this first step is just the start. Once you’ve established your sobriety, you will gain the opportunity to dream again about a future… a career, a family, a life of sobriety that includes excitement, happiness and even joy. We don’t say this because we’re trying to convince you. We say this because every staff member here at San Cristobal has been in the trenches of addiction and has found his way to a fulfilling, thrilling, happy life.
QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE:
What do you treat?
Most young men who come to San Cristobal have multiple addictions or substance abuse problems and underlying emotional trauma or a contributing psychological condition. What you probably really need to know, though, is this: we’ve seen it all, we’ve probably been through it ourselves, and no matter what you are facing, we have both the willingness and the experience to help you beat it.
How do I know you can help me?
Your success will depend on you. But we can promise you three things: 1) we will always tell you the truth; 2) you have the strength within yourself to live a better life; and 3) when we talk about helping you to build a better life, we mean the life you want for yourself, not the life others may expect of you. We have worked with hundreds of young men in similar situations as yours and we have both the tools and the desire to help you. But you will need to trust us and show a willingness to help yourself. If you will do that, then we can help you.
What do you mean by “treat addiction”?
We start by helping you recognize your addiction in all its complexity and then making a plan for recovery. Your Treatment Team includes medical, therapeutic, psychiatric, addiction and 12-Step support. Your care plan, crafted to specifically address your needs, is an integration of the many programs for change that are available here at San Cristobal. In addition to one-on-one, group and family therapies, we integrate wilderness adventure, physical activities and equine therapies alongside the Principles of 12-Step Recovery. There is a spiritual component to life at the Ranch, as it has been proven to be necessary for recovery and a critical element in any 12-Step program. There are aspects of treatment you’ll find at many recovery centers; however, we think you’ll find that our program is very different from other RTCs you’ve attended in the past, or are currently looking into.
How is San Cristobal different from other treatment centers?
San Cristobal is smaller than many treatment centers and we specialize solely in treating young men. This means you will be part of a small population of other men close to your age who understand where you’re coming from and the challenges you face in trying to stay sober. We also recognize that, as a young man, you have no desire to lead a boring, repetitious life. Our program includes lots of outdoor activities and other opportunities to try new things. You may find yourself on our ropes course, in our woodshop or recording studio, riding horses, playing basketball, hiking, backpacking, snowboarding, whitewater rafting, mountain biking, fly fishing or more. San Cristobal is a great place to explore new ways to have fun and test your limits. Finally, while you will spend time in process groups, recovery education classes, and specialized therapy, you will also develop a one-on-one relationship with a staff member who has been where you once stood and is now in recovery. The things you learn from your mentor will help you with your day-to-day life after you leave San Cristobal.
How long is the program?
We are a 90 to 180 day program, If this seems like a long time to you, consider this: three or four months now is a small price to pay for getting the rest of your life back.
Who will I be in treatment with?
You will join a group of your peers during your stay at San Cristobal. Like a band of brothers, you will live, eat, undergo therapy, hang out and explore new activities with the other men on your team. Your team members have similar backgrounds and challenges as yours and will understand the pressures you were under before you came to San Cristobal and the challenges you’re going to face once you leave us. Many of the young men who come to San Cristobal maintain these friendships once they leave the ranch, finding them invaluable in leading a sober life.
What will my days be like?
Every day at San Cristobal will bring new discoveries about yourself and take you one step closer to leading the kind of life you want to live. You will live in a private community located in the mountains near Taos, New Mexico. This is not a lock-down facility; there are no fences or guards. It’s a ranch, with a main lodge and cabins, surrounded by hundreds of acres of unspoiled forest, all of which are open to you for exploration. You will be required to participate in many outdoor activities while you are here and expected to focus on yourself and your internal challenges during your time at the ranch because that is where your road to recovery begins.
What is the atmosphere at the ranch like?
We will treat you like a man while you are here. In return, we expect you to act like one. You are expected to attend group and individual therapy, recovery education, psychoeducation classes and other clinical sessions as well as participate in activities such as group sports, equine therapy and wilderness therapy. We don’t care so much about your external appearance (though there are some specific rules for hygiene and self-care), but we do care about how hard you look at yourself as well as helping you get sober, teaching you how to live independently and empowering you to make your own decisions.
What can I expect the outcome to be?
The outcome will depend on you. Part of our job is to work with you near the end of your program to determine what next steps are best for you.
A FINAL WORD
It is hard to believe this now, but in the end we hope that you will see your addiction the same way those of us who have been in your shoes now view ours: as a gift. There are hundreds of millions of people who live their lives without question, who accept what life brings them without any attempts to change their destinies. By the time you leave San Cristobal, you will not be one of them. You will have learned to appreciate the time you have in this lifetime and you will have discovered that, with the support of others in recovery and your higher power, you have the strength within yourself to lead an amazing, fully-engaged life — the kind of life you want to live. We cannot promise you that it will be easy to stay sober, but we can promise you that you will have the tools you need to deal with any challenges you face by the time you leave here.