Joint Commission AccreditedBoot Camps Don’t Work. Here’s Why.
Punishment-based programs such as boot camps and Scared Straight programs are not effective in improving troubled teens behavior. Amy Morin, LCSW, succinctly describes the problem with boot camps. “Kids in military-style boot camps learn to do what they’re told when someone is yelling in their face and threatening to make them do push-ups but when…
Read MoreReflective Listening
Reflective Listening If you are a parent having difficulty communicating with your teen, many therapeutic techniques can be useful. One of the simplest and most effective is Reflective Listening. The key points of Reflective Listening are in the name itself. The goal is to sincerely listen and then reflect on what you have heard. At…
Read MoreAnger Management For Teens
Anger Management For Teens Emotions are a natural part of life, and people of all ages experience them. Many teens experience anger for varying reasons, and a lot of them don’t know how to handle it or properly express it. It’s important to understand how to identify, address, and treat their anger. Teen Anger: What’s…
Read MoreManaging Emotionally Intense Interactions
Managing Emotionally Intense Interactions Written by: Steven DeMille, Ph.D. LCMHC For many teens, handling the emotions of growing up and dealing with everyday life can be difficult. Emotions are confusing and often conflicts arise from a lack of understanding and awareness of these emotions. RedCliff Ascent seeks to educate students on the proper recognition and…
Read MoreBoot Camp for Teens: Is There a More Effective Solution?
Boot Camp for Teens: Is There a More Effective Solution? When a child is struggling, there is nothing a parent wouldn’t do to help. And, when parents have exhausted all of their resources and don’t know where to turn, some decide to turn to more extreme treatment methods, such as a boot camp for teens,…
Read MoreCeremonies At RedCliff
RedCliff Ascent believes in ceremony and celebration. From welcomes and goodbyes to celebrations of growth, we work to honor your teens through their process of wilderness therapy. Welcome/Spoon Ceremony When new students arrive at RedCliff Ascent, they are in a vulnerable place. Many students are scared, uncertain, or angry. Within the first two days that…
Read MoreWilderness Therapy in the Winter
Does winter impact the effectiveness of treatment in the wilderness? In the wintertime, the ability to maintain a group on expedition becomes more challenging, but it is possible. Specific research conducted by RedCliff Ascent has shown that clients make just as much clinical progress in the winter as compared to other times of the year.…
Read MoreHolidays At RedCliff
Special Ceremonies For Special Days As a wilderness program for at-risk youth, celebration and ceremony are a big part of life at RedCliff Ascent. Staff members have flexibility in how they make sure that special days are kept special. However, over the more than two decades RedCliff Ascent has been helping troubled youth, RedCliff Ascent…
Read MoreSeparating To Come Together?
Separating to Come to Together It seems counterintuitive. The thing you want most in the world is to bring your family together. Then why on Earth would you send away your troubled teen to the Utah desert? How could being away from your teen for weeks at a time help anything get better? However, sometimes…
Read MoreTechnology Addiction
Learning to Live in the Real World Walk into any restaurant, coffee shop, or anywhere that people gather and you will likely see someone bent over a screen. For most people technology can be a distraction. For other people, technology can be an addiction. In particular, for many troubled teens, screen addiction interferes with their…
Read MoreHow Does RedCliff Ascent Reveal Potential?
By Kaitlyn Jones Because you cannot become acquainted with what you cannot discover, revealing potential is important. Revealing potential opens the door to the possibility of change. At RedCliff Ascent, revealing potential allows troubled teens to find the person inside who they were always meant to be. Sometimes students have never opened that door and…
Read MoreHow RedCliff Ascent Inspires Families to Put Hope into Action
How RedCliff Ascent Inspires Families to Put Hope into Action “We have to put hope into action,” said Clinical Director Jennifer Hedrick. “Hope is just a thought. So unless we put it into action, we aren’t really going to inspire much of anything.” Many parents of troubled teens who come wilderness attitude come with the…
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