Like many parents, we hired an educational consultant to help us decide on an aftercare program when our son finished with a stint in the wilderness. We eventually whittled it down to two choices and he settled on Red Mountain Sedona.
He liked the website and he felt that RMS looked like a less structured program than what he had experienced in wilderness. That was important to him.
He found that the environment was very conducive in supporting where he was on an emotional level. He really enjoyed meditation and found it to be one of the most helpful aspects of the program. He also had a great therapist and met with him every week.
As parents, we also had a good experience with Red Mountain. We talked with his therapist and with Josh every month. It is a big help that Josh and Maureen are not only the owners of the program but they are also present in the community most of the time.
Our son did not return home during the year he was there because he wanted to avoid falling back into his old habits. However, we went to see him three different times and that was helpful to us.
He has become more accountable, more responsible, and less of a “blamer” as a result of his time at RMS. He evolved and grew while he was there and he never wavered in his commitment to the program, and to himself. He is a different person today and has enrolled in college. We think he is really a “poster child” for wilderness and aftercare.
We would advise other families to be sure to visit the site before making a final decision. The physical environment is, of course, beautiful, but the community is what makes Red Mountain so successful.