Recovery Institute of South Florida

I just googled RISF because I was looking to reach out about my experience. I’m sad to hear it’s no longer in operation. I came to the facility in 2007 as a reluctant and out of control 19 year old. After a week or 2 of just wanting to go home I finally opened myself up to the experience thanks to AMAZING counselors and eye opening group experiences. My stay here changed my life. For what it’s worth now, thank you.

So I actually came here for anxiety and depression ONLY. The first few days were tough but as I started to want to learn I got so much out of it. My brother came here for addiction and relapsed the day he came home but don’t let that shy you away. Everything we did wasn’t bad but I’m sure it could’ve been run a lot better. I would recommend.

It's my understanding that this facility has been shut down by federal agents, thank God. I personally know three people who attended this facility. It's criminal how they ran their facility, trapping people who genuinely wanted help but couldn't leave and try to find an acceptable rehab because RISF held a piece of paper that they needed in order to go back to work over their heads. The y are disgusting people who didn't care about their clients with poorly run groups and long waits on a bus to attend their next NA meeting, even if they never touched a drug in their lives

I got the help I needed and was treated with respect..Thanks R.I.S.F

This place is a nightmare. Not because it's a rehab or whatever, it's because it's the worst possible place to go for recovery. The place is dirty and falling apart - any picture you see online is actually not a picture of the facility, I don't know where those pictures are from. The beds are disgusting. The carpet is ripped up and stained everywhere and people trip over it. It gets much worse. There are no actual therapists or psychiatrists; staff may have taken an online course somewhere along the way. They are absolutely awful. You can tell they read some exercises in a book or online, but they don't really understand the point of them or why they're doing them. What makes it very, very disheartening, is that although the counselors have no idea what they're doing, they are extremely confident in themselves and they think they're the greatest thing since sliced bread, and that makes them cold and uninterested. DEFINITELY, DO NOT GO TO THIS PLACE IF YOU HAVE ANY KIND OF MENTAL STRUGGLE - i.e., depression, anxiety, and definitely nothing any more serious than either of those, because not only do they not know how to handle it, but they flat out don't believe in it and they will not help you - they will ignore you and tell you to go away. Here's the kicker - when I have depression or anxiety attacks at home, I try to go for a run - you are NOT ALLOWED TO EXERCISE at this place, at least for a couple months - they claim it is because they are afraid you have a heart condition, but I think they don't want to feed people much. There was only one female counselor when I was there, she was the worst human being I've ever met. She will make you feel terrible about yourself and lie right to your face. If you're forced to go here, please, do whatever you can to avoid being assigned to the lady counselor. So after the counselors' hours, which is basically always - then it's just the nurses. Some of the nurses are okay, but the best one was leaving as I was about finished there. He was a good guy, but yeah he's gone. You're not allowed to contact your family. They drag you to AA and NA meetings with the SHADIEST people in the world down there in the weird ghetto that is DAVIE, FL. I came out much much worse than when I went in, but I was able to go somewhere else and start over. This was not only a waste of time, but a gigantic leap backward in which I lost a lot of faith in recovery and health professionals and it took me a long time to convince myself that this place really was just THAT bad, THAT much worse than anywhere else on the planet. Do not go. Please.