Friday Harbor, WA Alcohol Rehab Centers

The Clearing

My name is Grace. I am just about to be 72 years old. This past September and October I attended The Clearing, a 28-day in-patient rehab center in Friday Harbor, WA. I am a renowned cynic and a practiced critical thinker. I have read nearly every self-help book published in the past 35 years. (A slight exaggeration), I have attended various churches, studied and practiced Buddhism, and tried and tried to make the 12-Step program work for me. Yes, my cynicism and my attempts at finding help for alcohol addiction, anxiety, and depression really do clash, but I was desperate. I had been desperate for years. And I had bouts of not drinking, but I always found my way back to relieving my anxiety with help from the bottle. I was a teacher/administrator/consultant for 47 years—success was my game. I never missed a day of work or embarrassed myself. I just secretly kicked my own ass and pretended that I was “fine.” My wife, of course, knew about my struggles, because I woke her up as I headed out for 7 AM meetings many times. Then I slipped into a deep depression along with the drinking and got to the point of the “either or question.” Get help or die. I began to search for something different than a 12-step program. After 30 years of trying that path without lasting success, it was time for something else. I found information on THE CLEARING and zeroed in. I talked with Betsy, one of the directors and Claire, a counselor. Of course, I had my hyper-cynical and critical radar on, but no alarm bells or whistles went off. I found them both extremely warm, helpful and down-to-earth. I had an intuitive understanding that The Clearing was the place for me. But wait, it cost what? I am on Medicare and have supplemental insurance but neither would help with the cost. So I thought about it like this: if I died, our family’s income would be cut in half. If I got the help I needed, it would only be a year or two before the program would pay for itself. I signed up and, with a lot of fear, headed to The Clearing for four weeks of rehab. As you might guess, I was the oldest person there. Our cohort of 9 ranged in age from 28 to 71. But it felt like the first year of college all over again. We were thrown together into a cozy setting where we shared, laughed, cried, played and eat together. That group of 8 strangers helped save my life. The official daily work counselling, exercising, meditating, reading and writing is the core of the program. At first, I looked for the cracks in the program, but as hard as I tried, I did not, could not find them. Betsy and Joe, the directors, were real, honest and knowledgeable. There was not even a whisper of hypocrisy. The counselors were insightful and caring. The chefs were skilled and never failed to present a wonderful meal. The office staff were efficient and warm. The farm helpers were hardworking and friendly. I was then and am now even more impressed with the skill that Betsy and Joe have in hiring and keeping just the right people who make a wonderful place for people to heal and learn to heal themselves. I loved the daily routine; it was just right, and it was mandatory. We started with yoga and Tai chi then we had a full breakfast, or whatever you chose. The real work began at 9 AM, when we started class for the next four hours. It was in these sessions, led by Joe mostly and the help of Tom and Claire that we got to the heart of the matter. We learned counselling skills, emotional and intellectual skills, as well ideas about spiritual psychology. We learned and then we practiced. Learning to listen to others deeply and listening to ourselves. I was renowned for using the most Kleenex in these sessions as I unearthed hurt and pain so that I could heal. We spent the afternoons doing meditation, individual counselling, book discussion, art sessions, or walking the path on the property. I tried to fit in a session on the stationary bike each day too. Dinner was at 6 PM . . . another exquisite meal. From 7 PM until bedtime the cohort usually gathered in the living room to talk, play games, laugh like crazy or attempt to read our homework for the next day. After 26 days of our routine family members came to be with us and learn what we had been learning. My family came. And our time at The Clearing separately and together has changed us all. Now, nearly six months later, I see clearly and practice what I learned each day. I did not get a final cure . . . I got tools to practice each day and the insight to accept that there is only that. My name is Grace. I am just about to be 72 years old. This past September and October I attended The Clearing, a 28-day in-patient rehab center in Friday Harbor, WA. I am a renowned cynic and a practiced critical thinker. I have read nearly every self-help book published in the past 35 years. (A slight exaggeration), I have attended various churches, studied and practiced Buddhism, and tried and tried to make the 12-Step program work for me. Yes, my cynicism and my attempts at finding help for alcohol addiction, anxiety, and depression really do clash, but I was desperate. I had been desperate for years. And I had bouts of not drinking, but I always found my way back to relieving my anxiety with help from the bottle. I was a teacher/administrator/consultant for 47 years—success was my game. I never missed a day of work or embarrassed myself. I just secretly kicked my own ass and pretended that I was “fine.” My wife, of course, knew about my struggles, because I woke her up as I headed out for 7 AM meetings many times. Then I slipped into a deep depression along with the drinking and got to the point of the “either or question.” Get help or die. I began to search for something different than a 12-step program. After 30 years of trying that path without lasting success, it was time for something else. I found information on THE CLEARING and zeroed in. I talked with one of the directors and a counselor. Of course, I had my hyper-cynical and critical radar on, but no alarm bells or whistles went off. I found them both extremely warm, helpful and down-to-earth. I had an intuitive understanding that The Clearing was the place for me. But wait, it cost what? I am on Medicare and have supplemental insurance but neither would help with the cost. So I thought about it like this: if I died, our family’s income would be cut in half. If I got the help I needed, it would only be a year or two before the program would pay for itself. I signed up and, with a lot of fear, headed to The Clearing for four weeks of rehab. As you might guess, I was the oldest person there. Our cohort of 9 ranged in age from 28 to 71. But it felt like the first year of college all over again. We were thrown together into a cozy setting where we shared, laughed, cried, played and eat together. That group of 8 strangers helped save my life. The official daily work counselling, exercising, meditating, reading and writing is the core of the program. At first, I looked for the cracks in the program, but as hard as I tried, I did not, could not find them. The directors were real, honest and knowledgeable. There was not even a whisper of hypocrisy. The counselors were insightful and caring. The chefs were skilled and never failed to present a wonderful meal. The office staff were efficient and warm. The farm helpers were hardworking and friendly. I was then and am now even more impressed with the skill that the directors have in hiring and keeping just the right people who make a wonderful place for people to heal and learn to heal themselves. I loved the daily routine; it was just right, and it was mandatory. We started with yoga and Tai chi then we had a full breakfast, or whatever you chose. The real work began at 9 AM, when we started class for the next four hours. It was in these sessions that we got to the heart of the matter. We learned counselling skills, emotional and intellectual skills, as well ideas about spiritual psychology. We learned and then we practiced. Learning to listen to others deeply and listening to ourselves. I was renowned for using the most Kleenex in these sessions as I unearthed hurt and pain so that I could heal. We spent the afternoons doing meditation, individual counselling, book discussion, art sessions, or walking the path on the property. I tried to fit in a session on the stationary bike each day too. Dinner was at 6 PM . . . another exquisite meal. From 7 PM until bedtime the cohort usually gathered in the living room to talk, play games, laugh like crazy or attempt to read our homework for the next day. After 26 days of our routine family members came to be with us and learn what we had been learning. My family came. And our time at The Clearing separately and together has changed us all. Now, nearly six months later, I see clearly and practice what I learned each day. I did not get a final cure . . . I got tools to practice each day and the insight to accept that there is only that.