What are Wilderness Therapy Programs for Troubled Teens in Buena Vista, CO?

Like that of all troubled teen treatment facilities, residential treatment centers come in many different forms with varying levels of severity and duration -- depending on the troubled teen's behavioral and mental health-related issues.

While there is a multitude of types of RTC, the main ones include boot camps, lockdown treatment centers, rehabilitation programs, wilderness therapy programs, and therapeutic boarding schools. 

That said, in the last two decades, a rise in multifaceted programs that offer new and cutting edge treatments. These types of residential treatment centers are often an amalgamation of different RTC's, such as ones that combine adventure therapy (wilderness), regular residential treatment, and animal-assisted therapies (namely, equine-assisted therapy. 

Additionally, some behavioral experts suggest that due to its unique environment and usage of contemporary treatment strategies, programs that incorporate wilderness therapy are most effective for those who have been resistant to traditional residential treatments, such as traditional talk therapy, drug, and alcohol outpatient programs, etc. 

The Unfortunate Truth About Some of the Nation's Wilderness Therapy Programs Near Buena Vista, CO

Some Wilderness Therapy Programs are Exceedingly Expensive

According to a 2020 report from All Kinds of Therapy, wilderness therapy programs are among the rarest types of residential treatment centers. According to their findings, there are roughly 30 therapeutically recognized wilderness therapy programs in the U.S. (compare this number to the literal thousands of other types of RTC's. 

One reason these programs are so difficult to come by has to do with the difficulty it takes to become state-recognized thanks to the therapy's inherent dangers and lack of psychiatric professionals who specialize in traversing the wilderness. Consequently, this makes wilderness therapy programs absurdly expensive. According to the most recent numbers, the average wilderness therapy program costs parents roughly $600 per day, not including the exceedingly steep enrollment fees which average to roughly $6,000. 

What's more, the average price of wilderness therapy programs is rising. According to All Kinds of Therapy, the price of wilderness programs has increased 9% since late 2017. Wilderness enrollment fees have skyrocketed an outrageous 28% in that same time. 

One of the reasons for the rise in prices has to do with the fact that many wilderness programs are actually partnered with other RTC's which they send graduating teens (from Buena Vista, CO and beyond) upon finishing their several-week program. This combination of the two RTC's often leaves parents paying for two different programs and transportation services. Parents from Buena Vista, CO typically end up paying several grand just in transportation services.