Glazedhamss

The main reason I’m making this AMA is to share my experience and enlighten others of the abusive nature of teen wilderness programs. While I did grow and learn for the better, I was also subjected to harsh weather conditions such as a three day long monsoon, as well as being neglected of medical needs. We were forced to hike 4 days a week with 40-50 pound makeshift backpacks. Not to mention the fact the we were hours away from any hospital and had easy access to broken glass and shards of metal. My hope for the future is that the abusive qualities of these programs are eradicated, allowing them to become what they really should be; a place to experience nature and to connect with oneself through overcoming difficult,but not traumatic, things.

Each day was about $600-$700 at Outback

No. The staff there were pretty nice for the most part. A lot of the abusive things came from the program itself. The staff tried to help the best they could with getting fired I think.( in most cases)

(In response to a deleted comment because I spent a long time writing this and I think it is important)

I understand where you are coming from, but you are assuming things about me that are simply not true. Outback was INCREDIBLY difficult financially for my family. I’m glad your program was free for you but it definitely was not for me. I know that I shouldn’t have been treated the way I was. I am so very thankful for the opportunity I had for change I believe that a lot of the methods were wrong and at the least borderline abuse. I came out of wilderness therapy much stronger then I was before. But I did have to sleep in a freezing puddle of mud for three days during a monsoon. I was forced to hike even when I was blacking out and fainting. The nurse (who I only saw maybe 6 times my whole stay) refused to believe any of me when I said something was wrong. There were even a few times where we were told we weren’t getting our food if we didn’t hike even though many of us were injured. There are many more examples that I could list of abusive/ unsafe practices, but that’s not what is entirely important here. What is important is that I highlight the beautiful aspects of this program that saved me. First off, the students; I would have never been able to get out of my social anxiety if it had not been for the chance to bond with the others. A lot of them were very difficult to deal with, but that only made my communication skills better. It has opened my eyes to the way people feel and act. Another major thing is the nature; being outside with absolutely no real distractions allowed me to look inside myself and understand what my root problems were. The whole experience is extremely humbling which I have mixed feelings about. On one hand it really allows you to reinvent yourself, on the other, it really felt dehumanizing. If I could go back and change going there I don’t think I would, but that doesn’t mean that I don’t think Outback is an abuse program.

I can’t deny the fact that I left better then I came in. That’s why I chose to separate the good and the bad. When I say that the program changed me for the better I’m only referring to the positive aspects of it. I can say confidently that no one should have to suffer the way I did because of this program. I do wish that everyone had a chance to experience the good parts about it. It’s like life; not all of it is great, but if I died I would have never lived to see change in myself, or the beauty of the world in general. I still don’t believe in this program, but I believe in building a wilderness program that fosters the growth and change that I saw, in less abusive ways.