Category: Programs

Open post Kristi-Feature-1a

‘Giving Extra’ by Breathing Life Back into Others: Kristi’s Recovery Story

Kristi knows how debilitating addiction can be.

“Living with addiction is like living a walking death,” she said.

Kristi Martarano BS, CADC, CCPG, is Clinical Director at The GateHouse. Like many of her colleagues, she was also once a client at The GateHouse working toward her own recovery. She’s been in the same shoes as each client she serves and knows exactly how it feels to battle addiction.

Her journey brought her back to The GateHouse to support men and women just like her. Today, she’s restoring our clients’ spirits by breathing life back into each one of them.

Even Before Addiction Treatment, Kristi Knew She Wanted to Help Others Like Her

Kristi spent years in and out of addiction treatment before finding her way to The GateHouse in 2004. When she arrived, she went through each phase of the treatment program, found a sponsor, and got a job. Suddenly, she was held accountable for doing the hard work necessary for success in recovery.

“While in recovery at The GateHouse, more was expected of me than in just about any other time in my life,” Kristi said. “I discovered that I was capable of much more than I realized.”

Before treatment, Kristi had a desire to someday be a counselor. Working with her counselors and other clients in the program during her time in addiction treatment reignited her passion to help others on their own journey towards recovery.

“Spending time with counselors was a very powerful part of my journey,” she said. “And, going through the program with other strong recovering people, like my now-colleagues Cyndi and Kendrick, helped me get through. I had this recurring feeling that I could help other people find recovery, too.”

She Didn’t Realize Then That She was Learning the Life Skills She Would Eventually Use to Help Others

When Kristi left The GateHouse after treatment, she knew helping others in recovery was meant to be her life’s work. So, she went to school – studying alongside our Clinical Director of Outpatient Services, Kendrick Westmoreland.

“After school, I found my way back to The GateHouse,” she said. “They hired me, and I began working my way up. They gave me several opportunities to grow within the organization, including the chance to be a counselor.”

Breathing Life Back into Each Client by Giving Them a Voice

Addiction Treatment Clinical Director Kristi MartaranoToday, Kristi is the Clinical Director who oversees the programs at The GateHouse Mountville and The GateHouse Marietta. She’s still involved with counseling, running the Seeking Safety group meetings, and working with clients to get feedback on the programs offered by The GateHouse.

“I’m always looking for ways to better support our clients,” she said. “I give them a chance to provide input on the programs, suggest different activities, and listen to any other ideas they have about how we can best provide support.”

Intentionally listening to every one of her clients at The GateHouse is what’s allowed Kristi to make such a big impact in their recovery and their lives.

“When you’re struggling with addiction, you don’t have a voice,” she said. “There’s a stigma attached to addiction and no one cares what you have to say. In a lot of cases, our counselors are giving our clients a voice for the first time.”

She explained that when you have a voice, you feel alive and have hope.

“Whether you’re feeling scared, sad, happy, or experiencing any other emotion, the fact that you’re feeling an emotion means you’re alive,” she said. “I’m a part of a program that gave me life. And, now I get to breathe life back into others.”

During this year’s Extraordinary Give, please join us in ‘Giving Extra’ to our community members as they embark on their journey to recovery and to living healthy, meaningful lives.

 

GIVE EXTRA
Open post From recovery house to The GateHouse, this isKendrick's recovery journey

‘Giving Extra’ by Creating Recovery Support for Others: Kendrick’s Recovery Story

Kendrick spent years living in a vicious cycle of addiction.

“I’d use and lose everything,” he said. “Then, I’d get my life back on track for a few months only to lose it all again.”

Today, Kendrick Westmoreland is the Clinical Director of Outpatient Services at The GateHouse. He also knows what it’s like to be a client at The GateHouse and at the beginning stages of the recovery journey.

His journey is as much a story of his dedication to rebuilding his life as it is his passion for helping others do the same.

From Living the Dream to Surviving a Relapse

When Kendrick moved to Atlanta, Georgia, he was ready to start fresh and break his addiction cycle. He found a great job, bought a house with his girlfriend, and started a family.

“I was living the dream,” he said.

Then, everything changed. One day while filling up at a gas station, Kendrick saw a man along the side of the building looking around.

“I knew that look,” he said. “He came over and asked how much I wanted. My life spiraled down from there.”

Kendrick lost his relationship, his home, and his children. He went from living his dream life to living in a pay-by-the-week micro-motel.

“I started getting high all day, every day,” he said. “I ran out of money and was terrified.”

He called home to ask for money. His mother said, ”no.” Instead, she bought him a bus ticket to return home.

“She told me I had two choices: either get on that bus and get help or stay in Atlanta and get what I get,” Kendrick said. “I got on the bus and within two weeks I was in an inpatient drug addiction treatment facility.”

Building a Foundation for Recovery

Kendrick spent 30 days in inpatient treatment. Then, he came to The GateHouse. The transition wasn’t easy.

“I’ll admit that I wasn’t the easiest client at The GateHouse. I was defiant,” he said. “I thought I knew more than I did and thought I was superior to my counselors.”

When he arrived, his counselors at The GateHouse gave him his welcome packet. He couldn’t bring himself to open it and do the work. It took him over a month to finally complete the packet, but once he did, he started to make progress. He started learning things about himself and his addiction.

“I couldn’t see it then, but The GateHouse helped me build the foundation for my ongoing recovery,” Kendrick said. “I learned the fundamentals. And, I met lifelong advocates, including my mentor and my now-colleagues at The GateHouse, Kristi and Cyndi. Once I left, everything started to fall into place.”

Kendrick Began the Long Trek Toward Recovery & Found Ways to Help Others

He spent the next year in a recovery house going to three meetings a day. He later found a job and life began to improve. He began to blossom.

Life at the recovery house, however, was rough. Rules seemed to apply to different people differently and the house lacked structure. Kendrick believed that had there been more structure, more people would be successful.

“My mentor at the time held me accountable and gave me the mental structure I needed to be successful,” he said. “I thought that if having structure helped me figure this all out, then maybe I could do the same for others.”

Eventually, he did.

Kendrick Went on to Open his Own Recovery House, Providing Structure to the Addiction Recovery Process

“I began looking for a building for my recovery house,” he said. “As chance would have it, I was living in an apartment below the recovery house I attended. During that time, the existing owner announced she was closing the facility. The recovery house would be empty, so I jumped on it. Suddenly, I had my house.”

Kendrick’s former mentor from The GateHouse found him after learning about his recovery house and began referring clients to him. The recovery house grew and things took off for Kendrick. He began working full time and started going to school, eventually graduating with a bachelor’s degree in behavioral and addiction services.

He ran his recovery house until getting a job at a treatment center in York as a counselor’s assistant under his mentor.

“I was constantly looking for opportunities for promotion,” Kendrick said. “I worked hard and ended up as the Director of Outpatient Services. I did that job for three years. Then, one day, I received a call from The GateHouse.”

Kendrick’s Journey Brought Him Back to The GateHouse to Help Even More Clients on Their Recovery Journey

Kendrick ended up returning to The GateHouse, this time as a member of the team helping clients establish the same foundation that he once received.

Today, as Clinical Director of Outpatient Services, he pulls lessons from his time in treatment and from running his recovery house to help guide clients at The GateHouse toward their recovery.

“I came to The GateHouse focused on growing our outpatient services and making sure our programs were sustainable,” he said. “This meant creating procedures and policies. It also meant making sure we were using evidence-based programs, interventions and practices.”

When he reflects on his journey from addiction to this point in his recovery journey, Kendrick points to The GateHouse as a turning point.

“The GateHouse helped save my life,” he said. “They gave me the skills and abilities to navigate the recovery process and the life skills and tools to help me grow up. And now, as a member of the team, The GateHouse has given me a chance to give back and help others like me.”

Our incredible team at The GateHouse gives everything they have to support our mission and put our clients on a path toward lifelong recovery.

During this year’s Extraordinary Give, please join us in ‘Giving Extra’ to our community members as they embark on their journey to recovery and to living healthy, meaningful lives.

 

GIVE EXTRA
Open post Cyndi's Story

‘Giving Extra’ By Helping Others Heal: Cyndi’s Recovery Story

Cyndi was 18 years into her recovery journey when she relapsed. She had a beautiful home, a teenage son and had built a wonderful life for herself.

“Your addiction is always doing push-ups, even when you’re not using,” she said.

Today, Cyndi is our Intake Supervisor at The GateHouse. But, before working with us, she was a client in our Residential Extended Care program. She’s one of the many members of our team who has seen the recovery journey from both sides and knows exactly where our clients are when they take that first step into treatment and towards recovery.

Her journey to get here, however, has been anything but easy.

From Relapse to Rehab to The GateHouse

After her relapse, Cyndi went from living in her suburban home to the streets of Philadelphia. She was victimized and experienced unimaginable traumas. Miraculously, she made it back alive.

At that point, she went in and out of multiple detox programs but couldn’t get clean. After trying over and over again, she knew she needed more support.

Cyndi set out to get clean for good and enrolled herself into an addiction rehabilitation program. At the end of the program, she knew she couldn’t go back home.

“There’s no shame like the shame of using after you’ve gotten clean,” she said. “I was so broken. I broke my parent’s and my son’s hearts in unthinkable ways.”

After leaving rehab, Cyndi knew she couldn’t go home and, needing longer-term support, she made the decision to apply to the Residential Extended Care program at The Gatehouse.

“When I found out I was accepted to the treatment program at The GateHouse, I gave my parents power-of-attorney and they sold my home,” she said. “I owned that home for 20 years, but when I left for treatment, I knew I could never go back.”

The GateHouse Gave Cyndi the Time She Needed to Heal

Cyndi describes her time at The GateHouse as both challenging and healing.

“Being at The GateHouse gave me time to heal,” she said. “It wasn’t easy. But, it forced me to take responsibility for my life. I also met some incredibly strong and supportive people, including two of my now-coworkers, Kristi and Kendrick. The three of us went through treatment together and provided a support system for one another.”

Cyndi said her counselor at The GateHouse was wonderful, as well.

“She was patient, understanding and she listened,” Cyndi said. “At that point, my son wasn’t speaking to me. I was still broken in so many ways. It was in her office one day that I called my son and he picked up. He spoke to me. I just collapsed in tears and she stayed with me through it.”

After her time in The GateHouse’s Residential Extended Care program, she transitioned to an intensive outpatient treatment program. She found a job, moved into an apartment, and began to rebuild her life.

“After treatment at The GateHouse, I went from owning a 4-bedroom home to living in a small apartment and riding the bus to work,” Cyndi said. “It was humbling. And, it ultimately saved me.”

Cyndi’s Recovery Journey Brought Her Back to The GateHouse – this Time, to Help Others Heal.

Today, Cyndi oversees all Residential Extended Care and GateHouse Transitional Living intakes. She makes sure that the right candidates are placed in the right level of care for that individual.

“I know how much courage it takes to live in Residential Extend Care and transitional living – how much courage it takes to commit to getting clean,” she said. “I want to make sure I’m placing our clients into the right treatment and living environments and giving them the best chance to be successful.”

Getting clean takes everything you have, Cyndi said.

“When I first speak with a potential client, I do something called ‘motivational interviewing,’” she said. “I talk to them to see how stable they are and gauge their willingness to put in the work that recovery takes. Are they willing to ride the bus every day? Are they willing to share their emotional pains? Are they willing to start over?”

Most of the time, when people relapse after a long period of being clean, it’s very difficult for them to return to recovery, much less treatment.

“I like to think I inspire people like me to find the courage they need to come back to life and live again.”

Our incredibly strong team at The GateHouse gives everything they have to support our mission and put our clients on a path toward lifelong recovery.

During this year’s Extraordinary Give, please join us in ‘Giving Extra’ to our community members as they embark on their journey to recovery and to living healthy, purposeful lives.

Open post outpatient services

Outpatient Services That Care for Clients Through Life-Long Recovery

“At The GateHouse, we’re treating the whole person, and that means helping them gain access to all of the resources they need to maintain recovery.”

– Kendrick Westmoreland

 

When a client leaves one of our Residential Extended Care facilities and returns to their community, life in recovery begins. That transition can be overwhelming and is often a time when a client needs our support more than ever.

Kendrick Westmoreland

Kendrick Westmoreland was one such client.

Kendrick walked through the doors of The GateHouse as a client years ago. Today, he’s paying it forward through his work as our Clinical Director of Outpatient Services. Kendrick supervises the implementation of each of the outpatient services, making sure that each outpatient client has what they need as they continue on their recovery journey.

Outpatient Services at The GateHouse

At The GateHouse, our outpatient services are one more way we help clients successfully transition back into their communities. Our outpatient programs provide client-centered services, which means services can look different for different patients.

So, to better understand the various types of outpatient services at The GateHouse, we sat down with Kendrick to discuss the ins and outs. He shared not only a wealth of information with us about outpatient services, but also the story of one outpatient client affectionately nicknamed the ‘pink unicorn.’

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TGH: The GateHouse provides multiple levels of care under the umbrella of ‘Outpatient Services.’ Can you break down each level for us?

KW: Definitely. Outpatient clients come to us after they finish treatment at one of our residential treatment centers. At The GateHouse, we have three levels of treatment that fall under Outpatient Services; Partial Hospitalization Treatment, Intensive Outpatient Treatment and General Outpatient Treatment.

Our clients who need the most support in recovery after they leave our treatment center transition into our Partial Hospitalization Treatment. Our partial hospitalization treatment clients usually need short-term housing as they determine the next steps they’ll take in recovery. They also typically need additional education and relapse intervention support.

Outpatient clients receiving partial hospitalization treatment meet four times a week. Each session is five hours. There they’re given access to further life skills education. For one treatment session, we hosted Penn State and its extension program. We had a guest from the University give clients a 6-week nutrition education course, teaching them how to eat healthy on a limited budget. We provided food that the clients cooked and prepared in class. They loved it.

One level down from partial hospitalization treatment is Intensive Outpatient Treatment. Under the outpatient services umbrella, this is the level of care that clients enter if they still need some support but are employed and living in the community in housing they’ve secured on their own – not in one of our transitional living residences. Usually, these clients are also in an Alcoholics Anonymous program or some other outside recovery service beyond The GateHouse.

Intensive outpatient clients participate in group sessions three days a week for three hours each session. These sessions are led by our matrix model, an evidence-based curriculum where we match the needs of each client in the group and then base each session’s topic around those needs. They also attend a one-on-one weekly session with one of our counselors.

General Outpatient Treatment is the final level of care within our outpatient services. General outpatient is for a client who is well-established in the community, employed, and able to care for themselves, but just need periodic reinforcement of the skills they learned during treatment.

Our general outpatient treatment includes relapse prevention, identifying the warning signs or triggers of relapse, navigating the recovery process, and much more.

The depth of skill development and the time commitment to general outpatient treatment is based fully on the client’s needs. One client may need one group session per week, while another may need a bi-weekly group session with weekly individual sessions. General outpatient is completely tailored to the client.

TGH: Your outpatient services sound like they take place over the course of several months, even years. How long do most clients stay in outpatient treatment? And, especially for those who need longer-term care, does The GateHouse work with clients who need financial assistance?

KW: We don’t put a limit on how long a client is with us. They participate in our outpatient services for as long as they need to while working towards the ability to live a healthy life on their own. We’re with them through recovery. So, for as long as they need us, we’re not going anywhere.

As far as finances go, The GateHouse is wonderful about helping our clients navigate the financial barriers that may exist when they’re working to access our services. We’ll help them apply for medical assistance or find other sources of funding. We’re also fortunate to have a pool of supportive donors who give us the ability to offer some funding. The bottom line is that we don’t let a lack of income or insurance coverage get in the way of our clients receiving the care they need.

TGH: Can you tell us about one of your clients and how these outpatient services really made an impact on their recovery?

KW: Absolutely. The client who immediately comes to mind is a 70-year-old gentleman we affectionately nicknamed the Pink Unicorn. He was a heroin addict with serious health issues that required him to see several specialists. He didn’t have any family or support system. So, we set him up in one of our recovery houses to take care of his immediate housing needs. Next, we connected him with Penn Medicine and a team of specialists.

From there, his outpatient treatment focused on providing him the tools to maintain recovery and live independently. So, beyond his addiction treatment, we connected him with a 6-month money management plan that we run here at The GateHouse. The plan helped him save enough money to eventually rent an apartment.

TGH: Wow, so you and your team are often supporting clients beyond the outpatient services that you provide directly.

KW: Yes, we go to where the need is. In the case of this client, he needed long-term recovery treatment, housing and medical care. So, we found those for him.

It’s important to remember that many of our clients live in communities that aren’t healthy. If we had only focused on this client’s addiction recovery and sent him back out into his community after treatment, we’d be sending him back into an unhealthy community without the resources he needs – in his case, proper housing and health care. It’s hard to maintain recovery in a community that’s isn’t well.

At The GateHouse, we’re treating the whole person, and that means helping them gain access to all of the resources they need to maintain recovery.

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The GateHouse offers outpatient services for long-term addiction recovery to clients throughout Lancaster County, PA. We help our clients access the services and resources they need to return and contribute to their communities. Kendrick and our entire team at The GateHouse would love to help you with your next step in recovery. Reach out to us today!

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Open post Family Support Programs

Helping Families Support Their Loved Ones Through Long-Term Addiction Recovery

 

“We see a family’s eyes open when they realize what their loved one is going through and that they can have an impact in their recovery.”

– Verlina Velazquez-Millings

 

Family Support Programs Director Verlina Velazquez-Millings
Verlina Velazquez-Millings

Verlina Velazquez-Millings, Director of Programs at The GateHouse, has been in the long-term addiction recovery field for the last 20 years. She’s spent three of those years with The GateHouse, overseeing our residential program and facilitating family education within our Family Support Program.

We sat down with Verlina to get an understanding of why family support is so important to the long-term recovery of our clients.

TGH: Can you start by telling us why support for clients’ families is a central piece of The GateHouse’s recovery program?

VVM: Absolutely. Many clients have other family members at home, and they often rely on those family members for support. So, we need to bring the family into the treatment setting and teach them how to contribute to their loved one’s overall long-term recovery.

Families who get involved come into the process from various perspectives. Sometimes we find that a father or mother with a child suffering from substance abuse has very little understanding of addiction or how it feels to be an addict. We have other families who enable the behaviors that fuel a client’s addiction.

Addiction is a disease that doesn’t happen in a vacuum. People suffering from addiction are impacted by their home environment. When our clients make enough progress that they can return to life and their community, that same (potentially harmful) home dynamic is waiting for them if we don’t also work with the family to improve that environment.

When we educate the family about addiction and give them the tools to best support their loved one, long-term recovery is much more likely.

TGH: What types of tools are you providing to families? What does Family Support look like for families who go through the program?

VVM: Our Family Support Program has two components: Family Education and Family Sessions.

Family Education helps families better understand addiction, what their loved one is experiencing on a physical, emotional, and mental level, and the role they play in long-term recovery.

The education portion of the program is broken down into three modules that we teach over the course of our client’s treatment. The three modules are:

  • Module #1: Family Roles & How Families Impact Addiction
  • Module #2: Co-dependency & Self-care
  • Module #3: Families and Recovery from Addiction

The Family Education portion of our support program is a service we only offer when our clients are in treatment in one of our Residential Extended Care residences, not those in any of our outpatient treatment centers. Family Education is meant for those clients just starting treatment and who need the highest level of support we offer.

A big incentive for our families to participate in Family Education is that the completion of all three modules is required before we give our clients in treatment a family pass. A family pass is a day pass allowing the client to leave the Residential Extended Care residence to visit with family members. To earn their pass, the client has to be in good standing and up-to-date on their treatment work.

The other component of the Family Support Program is a series of Family Sessions. Unlike the education modules, family sessions are client-facing counseling sessions where we bring our client and their family together once a month.

Each family session is client-centric, meaning the discussion is framed around the needs of the client at that time. And, sessions only take place if and when the client is ready. The goal is to get the client and the family talking through issues they have, which many times are the issues hindering the client’s recovery.

TGH: What are some examples of the discussions that take place in a family session? And what are some common issues clients and families work through?

 VVM: Addiction is a challenging topic for families to discuss, so a lot of what we do centers around the encouragement of constructive communication and understanding.

Each family session is led by one of our counselors. Counselors know each client’s history and whether any childhood trauma or family issues exist, or if there’s a family history of substance abuse. So, before the initial session, our counselors understand the family’s needs. This lets them suggest topics to address.

As an example, we’ve worked with clients who’ve experienced issues with their mother and worked through underlying anger about the mother’s history of substance abuse. We may also conduct a session that allows our client to share his or her feelings about their addiction with family members for the first time.

The topics and lengths of the discussions depend on what the client needs. But they all aim to provide a safe opportunity for clients and families to find understanding. These sessions are often the first time clients have addressed these bigger issues with their family members.

Ultimately, we’re supporting everyone involved as they grow and rebuild their family relationships.

TGH: Is this level of family support unique to The GateHouse?

VVM: While other treatment centers offer some level of family support, at The GateHouse, we’re providing a higher level of care by offering treatment as well as programs that create structure and stability for each client. Our Family Support Program is one very important piece of the full approach we take to empower our clients and teach them how to be successful in early recovery.

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The GateHouse offers its Family Support Program to families supporting our clients through long-term addiction recovery.

Verlina and our entire team would love to share more about how The GateHouse can help you find the addiction treatment your family member needs and support them in their next step in recovery. Reach out to us today!

Open post Centralized Intake to Speed the Recovery Process

Centralized Intake to Speed the Recovery Process

A Centralized Intake Process Lets Us Provide Faster Addiction Recovery Support to Our Clients in Need

 

Every client we work with has a unique set of needs that requires a personalized recovery plan. For many, this means continued support beyond one of our treatment centers where they can create a foundation for long-term recovery. Our safe, caring transitional recovery housing program is set up to do just that.

One of the biggest indicators of successful life-long addiction recovery is how quickly a client begins receiving the support they need to transition back to daily life. The longer it takes for a client to go through the application process, be approved, and then be assigned to a home, the harder it is for that client to transition. And, not coincidentally, the greater their chance of a relapse.

For all of these reasons, The GateHouse recently moved to a centralized intake model. Streamlining our intake process will let us get clients in the door of their transitional recovery homes faster so they can quickly get the support they need.

Cyndi Reinhold is the Centralized Intake Coordinator at The GateHouse. We spoke with her to learn more about the importance of a centralized intake approach and how she’s helping clients quickly get the care they need to successfully transition back to their lives. Here’s what Cyndi had to say.

TGH: First, tell us what transitional recovery housing is at The GateHouse and where in the addiction recovery process someone lives in transitional housing?

CR: Transitional recovery housing at The GateHouse, which we call GateHouse Transitional Living, is one piece of the larger program we’ve created to help people transition back into daily life and do so successfully. After a client’s addiction treatment program is complete, most need additional support to make the transition back to their lives. At this stage, a client can apply to move into a transitional recovery house.

Transitional housing can mean a lot of things in terms of the type of support a client receives. Most go through our 12-step program which includes things like attending group meetings and events with other residents, getting a sponsor, as well as getting the ongoing treatment support they need.

Our goal with transitional recovery housing is to determine what each client needs to transition back and give them the skills and support to do so successfully.

TGH: How does the shift to centralized intake make it easier for a client to get into a transitional recovery house and get the support they need?

CR: The faster we can get a client in our transitional housing program, the better it is for their health and long-term recovery. By moving to a centralized intake model, we’re minimizing the steps they need to take to apply and get into the program.

Each transitional residence has a coordinator. These are clients who have done particularly well in the program and serve as a bridge between The GateHouse and other residents. Previously, the intake process would involve each GTL coordinator. It took a fair amount of time for me and each individual coordinator to meet and determine the best house for each client.

Now, with our centralized approach, I’m able to put each new client in the home that’s best for their particular needs. This frees up the coordinator to focus solely on the house and the clients they’re working alongside. So, not only are clients getting into the transitional house they need faster, they’re getting more attention and support from the coordinator while they’re there.

Another example is our application process. Applicants used to have to come to our administrative building in downtown Lancaster and physically fill out the application. We’re now moving to an online application which is much easier and takes much less time. This should greatly reduce the time it takes us to get a client into transitional recovery housing and get them the support they need.

TGH: How is transitional living at The GateHouse different from other programs?

CR: Someone working to overcome addiction usually lives in a traditional halfway house for about three months. These residences tend to provide a place for someone to live as they transition back to their life, but don’t always focus on community building or other emotional and social aspects of recovery.

At The GateHouse, our residents typically stay with us for longer than three months – most live with us from six months to a year. There’s no shortage of evidence showing the benefits of support for long-term recovery. We want our clients to stay with us until they’re ready to move on, and a longer stay gives them more time to transition at their own pace.

We also recognize, though, that there’s a much greater likelihood of a client successfully living in recovery on their own if they make the transition within 12 months. We don’t push them out before they’re ready, but we also set them up to be ready to transition within their first year.

TGH: Why is community building an important aspect of The GateHouse’s transitional recovery housing program?

CR: We put a large emphasis on community-building at The GateHouse – throughout all of our programs and treatment facilities, not only within our transitional recovery houses.

The support system residents build together is extremely empowering as they work toward beginning a new chapter in their lives. We believe that our clients are more successful when they have a strong community of peers behind them helping them down the path to long-term recovery.

The GateHouse offers transitional recovery housing services through GateHouse Transitional Living for long-term addiction recovery with locations throughout Lancaster County, PA. Cyndi and our entire team would love to help you with your next step in recovery. Reach out to us today!

Open post Case Managers

Case Managers Play a Special Role in Client Recovery and Reintegration

When a client arrives at The GateHouse and enters our residential treatment center, they instantly become a part of a community of advocates who want nothing more than to see them succeed. Our clients receive an incredible amount of support from our staff members and specialists, as well as other residents. And, while everyone contributes to each other’s success, our GateHouse case managers have a special role to play in the wellbeing of our clients.

Case Managers Guide Our Clients Step-by-Step Towards Recovery and Reintegration

Case managers are essential to the recovery process and reintegration of each of our clients. They serve as the liaison between our clients and all the types of support or service they may need. Determining what that level of support looks like is step one.

Quickly after a new client arrives at one of our residential treatment centers, we complete an assessment. From this, the case manager gets a clear picture of what challenges the client faces and the types of services they may benefit from the most.

Then, our case managers work alongside each client as they create their own series of goals for their treatment, recovery and reintegration back into the broader community. Once those goals are set, case managers pull in the right resources and the right support to set their clients up for success.

Case Managers Do Whatever It Takes to Provide Clients with the Support They Need

The types of support our case managers give to our clients take many forms. They truly do whatever it takes for the client to be successful. While it’s by no means a comprehensive list, here’s just a surface-level look at the areas in which our case managers help each client.

Case managers help their clients secure:

  • Employment
  • Housing
  • Psychiatric Treatment
  • Legal Counsel
  • Childcare
  • Spiritual Guidance
  • Financial Support

This level of involvement in a client’s recovery means that no two days are the same. Case managers may go with a client to find an apartment or to a doctor’s appointment. They may teach a life skills class on any number of topics like budgeting or parenting and then spend the rest of that day on the phone connecting clients to other recovery support services.

At any moment, our case managers may need to switch from working directly with a client on their goals to working with an entire family that’s supporting a loved one through treatment.

Other times, case managers have to stop everything and quickly turn to a client in crisis. They need to have incredible de-escalation skills, listening skills and be professional jugglers of multiple clients with varying needs every day.

Their job has no description – they do whatever needs to be done.

Every Client Has Unique Needs, but Employment Almost Always Tops the List

For most clients, finding employment and maintaining a job are two of the biggest goals in their recovery plan. And, two of the most intimidating. Getting and keeping a stable job is a major goal, and a case manager goes to work to provide access to life skills programs and services that can make that goal more achievable.

For employment support, the case manager brings in an employment specialist. Together they help teach the client how to write a resume and how to dress for an interview. They’ll also conduct mock interviews to help with preparation. In many cases, the client is entering the workforce for the first time and these basic interview skills are their first exposure to the hiring process.

Case managers see clients suffer through immense stress as they prepare for employment while still working through their recovery process. This is where a case manager’s ability to listen and serve as a sounding board becomes incredibly valuable in the recovery process.

Once the client does secure employment, the case manager shifts their effort to accountability, making sure the client is reporting to work on time and maintaining the job they worked so hard to find.

Case Managers Hold a Special Place in the Recovery Process

More than most roles that make up The GateHouse’s recovery treatment team, case managers must have a unique skill set. They need to be experts at making connections and finding the best possible resources and services for each client. What most people don’t realize, however, is that case managers must also be compassionate caretakers, attentive listeners, and advocates. Case managers end up going above and beyond the logistics, taking care of a client’s emotional needs and working hard to create an environment where they can be the most successful.

This “do-it-all” ability to completely dedicate themselves to the wellbeing of our clients is why our case managers hold such a special place in the recovery process.

Accountability and Support Through Aftercare

The work that’s done at The GateHouse is just as much about recovery from substance abuse disorder as it is about teaching the life skills necessary for our clients to care for themselves and live a happy, meaningful, and healthy life. The GateHouse’s case managers are critical to the success of each client, not only during their stay but long after they’ve integrated back into their community.

Recovery is a continuous journey, not a destination. Case managers continue to work with clients for several months after they leave our residential treatment care program, and well afterward if the clients choose. The work that our case managers do is never truly done – they, like our entire team, remain advocates for all of the clients who have ever stepped foot inside our center and who are forever a part of our GateHouse community.

The GateHouse also offers transitional recovery programs for men and women at separate locations, as well as the residential treatment centers and outpatient treatment services for substance use disorder. Our helpful case managers and our entire team would love to help you with the next step in your recovery. Reach out to us today!

Open post Employment Specialist James Ivery

Helping Clients Establish Careers for Long-Term Recovery

Long-term recovery from substance use disorder is deeply intertwined with sustained employment.

Substance use disorder is a disease that slowly erodes a person’s ability to go to work every day, hold a job, and become financially independent. Substance abuse ultimately creates a domino effect of negative consequences that can consume a person’s life, and recovery takes much more than simply removing the substance.

When our clients enter one of our treatment facilities, they undergo an assessment with a case manager and create a series of goals to achieve during treatment. Finding employment is a top goal on nearly every list. Just as much as treatment for their substance use disorder, our clients need us to teach them the skills necessary to find stable employment so they can rebuild their lives.

That’s where James comes in.

Meet James, Our New Employment Specialist

 

Employment Specialist James Ivery
James Ivery

James Ivery is the newest addition to The GateHouse serving in our newly formed role of Employment Specialist. He spent the past five years working with other recovery programs in Central Pennsylvania in a number of roles. Not only does he bring a great deal of experience to The GateHouse, but he also brings empathy and understanding to the clients he supports.

“I came out to this area in 2013 from western Pennsylvania with nothing but a trash bag with some clothes in it and without a dollar to my name,” James said. “I’ve experienced what it’s like to be unemployed, to be at the bottom. I found an addiction recovery treatment center in York, and they helped me find a job. It literally saved my life.”

He was most recently employed as the lead coordinator of medication-assisted recovery services for a Central Pennsylvania treatment center. He’s created connections throughout the addiction services community, partnered with businesses and other organizations dedicated to addiction recovery support, and helped countless people live healthy, productive, purposeful lives free of addiction.

Employment Provides a Sense of Purpose, a Key Element of Long-Term Recovery

When a client’s goal after treatment is to enter the workforce, James goes in and surrounds them with support. Sometimes they need writing skills, computer skills, or to develop a strong work ethic. Whatever skills or support they need to land a job and maintain employment, he finds it for them.

At The GateHouse, our employment support is client-driven. James isn’t finding them just any job. He’s working with each client to understand what it is they want to do so they can go out and build a career. This leads some clients to enter the job market immediately following treatment, while others get training through a trade school to prepare for the career they want.

James is Creating Connections Between Clients and Employers Where Everyone Benefits

Our employment services are focused on creating stronger connections between our clients and employers across our community. Our clients need employers who believe in second chances. They also need flexible employers willing to schedule work around their treatment schedule.

“We have some great partnerships with employers right now who are working with us to help our clients find a career path,” James said. “What we also see is how much employers benefit from this program. Our clients want to work and they want to succeed. These businesses are hiring dedicated, reliable employees which is good for everyone.”

The Road to Life-Long Recovery

During his time in treatment, James saw a lot of people get discouraged when they couldn’t find employment. The fear of leaving treatment without a job or any way to support yourself afterward can be terrifying for clients; a feeling he’s experienced firsthand.

“After going through treatment, having a job is what gave me a sense of purpose. It lifted a weight off my shoulders,” he said. “I had been homeless for a long time. Getting a job boosted my confidence which boosted my recovery.”

Employment is directly linked to long-term recovery, which is why our employment service is so important for our clients during and after treatment. By helping our clients reenter the workforce and sustain employment with our new employment specialist, we’re teaching them how to take back control of their lives.

“Learning to live life without drugs, positively cope, to go work every day, be committed, take responsibility – this is what we’re here to help our clients achieve,” James said.

The GateHouse also offers gender-specific transitional recovery facilities at separate locations, as well as gender-specific residential community-based treatment services. This is in addition to our general and intensive outpatient treatment services and Partial Hospitalization program that includes a housing component if needed Our amazing team would love to help you with the next step in your recovery. Reach out to us today!

Open post Mike Sturla weighs in on Opioid Crisis

Fighting the Opioid Crisis and a Pandemic: State Rep. Mike Sturla Weighs In

The state of Pennsylvania, along with the entire country, is actively and very visibly fighting the COVID-19 pandemic on a variety of fronts—medically, politically, and economically.

While the effects of the coronavirus have consumed the news cycle and are consistently top-of-mind for Pennsylvanians, the state is still in the thick of a deadly battle against another deadly threat—the opioid crisis.

Just recently, the American Medical Association cited reports suggesting increases in opioid-related mortality due to COVID-19 across the country, urging governors and state legislators to take action.

Here in Pennsylvania, we spoke with state Representative and House Democratic Policy Chairman Mike Sturla to discuss how COVID-19 has exacerbated the effects of the opioid epidemic in our state and what he believes could be done legislatively to provide much-needed support for addiction treatment services across the Commonwealth.

 

COVID-19 Makes Messy Fights Against Addiction Even Messier

It’s impossible to effectively address the opioid crisis without first having a legislative reckoning on how we fund the resources to combat it, Sturla said. Like all other state-subsidized programs, combating the opioid epidemic relies on state funds to provide life-saving treatments. And in the wake of the pandemic, budget gaps are plentiful and forecasts are grim.

With so much uncertainty around the budget—not only for the rest of this fiscal year but for the next two years and potentially beyond—the dollars that addiction treatment centers can count on is up in the air, Sturla said.

“At the state level, there are several things that could happen,” he said. “For one, the Fed could come to bail out the states and municipalities, and we would all have enough money to say, ‘We’re OK.’”

If a federal bailout of states doesn’t happen, there are only a few options left for Pennsylvania, Sturla said.

“For one, we could cut spending until we can pass another budget next year,” he said. “But I don’t know what kind of businesses or organizations that depend on the state funding could exist like that.”

For addiction treatment centers across the Commonwealth, waiting until next year’s budget is ironed out isn’t really feasible, and Sturla said he understands that. After all, they need to staff their facilities and provide services now, not later, he said.

“That’s the equivalent of telling someone that if they want to seek treatment for opioid addiction, they only have a small window during the year to do so,” Sturla said. “That’s one option, but I don’t think that’s actually an option.”

Even if cutting funding for businesses and organizations in the addiction treatment industry is the path the Legislature chooses to follow, it still wouldn’t be enough to fill the budget gaps, he said.

“There’s a lot of tough choices that are going to need to be made,” Sturla said. “I can’t imagine that we do this with cuts, because you just can’t cut enough.”

Another option would be to raise taxes and only use them to fill in the budget deficit, he said.

“As soon as the numbers get back to where they were in 2019, then the taxes would go back down,” Sturla said. “Everyone is just going to have to pay.”

The only other option, he said, would be to borrow the money the state needs for the next two years, which he said could be as much as $10 billion.

“Assuming someone will lend us that money, that’s going to cost $600 million or $700 million a year [in debt service] for the next 10 or 20 years,” he said. “And that’s how you’d get through something like this. Because Pennsylvania just doesn’t have a rainy-day fund that’s got $10 billion in it.”

 

Investing in New Ways to Deliver Care

For the same reason that businesses are looking to make investments in remote technology to tackle their COVID-19 financial challenges—to cut costs—addiction treatment centers are trying to find new ways to find savings without sacrificing the quality of care and treatment. One idea, for example, is by providing telehealth and telemedicine services, Sturla said.

Unfortunately, ideas like that present significant challenges for treatment centers dealing with bare-bones budgets, because new technology requires new investments. Many of these new ideas are also untested and unproven, as well.

“We’re just not there yet,” Sturla said. And even if we were, he said there are also logistical challenges, such as infrastructure, that would need to be addressed.

“Right now, are people going to go to their local library to conduct a therapy appointment?” Sturla asked. “Because that’s where they’d have access to a free computer. There’s the potential for some savings, but no one knows yet.”

 

Treatment Centers Face Significant Fiscal Challenges

To maintain their level of care, many nonprofits funded through the state must increase their budget requests just to maintain their current level of service, due to the inevitable rise in costs for these organizations. As lawmakers look ahead to the realities of the 2021 fiscal year budget, Sturla said it’s clear many are going to be forced to do more with less.

In the case of The GateHouse and other addiction treatment centers across the State, Sturla said it’s not feasible to ask them to simply reduce the number of treatment specialists who support patient recovery. Nor is it productive to truncate the duration of a treatment program to save money. The results won’t be the same.

“It just doesn’t work that way,” he said.

Despite some differing opinions between lawmakers and both parties about to how to address the opioid crisis prior to COVID, Sturla said both sides continue to agree that more needs to be done to combat the opioid crisis. That’s somewhat comforting, he said, because bipartisan consensus is rare in Harrisburg.

And while new Republican leadership in both legislative chambers might be a cause for optimism, old divisions and party rivalries continue to create barriers and stalemates. When it comes to the opioid crisis or even addiction treatment in general, Sturla said he doubts the new leadership will result in any short-term policy changes.

“I hope I’m wrong,” he said.

This fall’s presidential election will likely have a significant impact on state policy, Sturla said. Until then, he’s taking a “wait and see” approach. The November 3 general election will likely have a major impact on legislative priorities both here in Pennsylvania and across the country, he said.

“The Affordable Care Act expanded drug treatment services to thousands, if not millions of people,” Sturla said. “If the current administration gets a second term, I think we may see the end of Obamacare. But, if the Democrats take over the Senate, maybe we get Medicare for All.”

The bottom line, he said, is that addiction treatment centers probably won’t see any increases in funding until after the election at the earliest. The State is treading water right now, Sturla said, but he is prepared to jump on opportunities to increase funding for treatment centers and the opioid crisis if and when a new occupant takes possession of the White House.

“I tell people, ‘Think about what could be,’ because if we get the opportunity [to increase funding for treatment centers] and we’re not ready because we’re still playing defense, we’ll end up wasting the first few years of a new administration just trying to catch up,” Sturla said. “I want to be ready on day one.”

For more information about The GateHouse or our programs and services, please visit our Services page, or call 717-393-3215.

Open post life in quarantine

GateHouse Transitional Living: Life in Quarantine

It would be nearly impossible to get through the unprecedented COVID-19 pandemic without the help of others. Those fighting through the early stages of recovery need that support more than ever.

Residents at The GateHouse know this firsthand. While leaning on each other has always been part of the program, it’s been a godsend for seven women participating in the Marietta Transitional Recovery program during the quarantine.

For women in the final phases of onsite recovery treatment at GateHouse Transitional Living (GTL), the transition program is the last step before they return to their families and homes or start a new life. It provides positive influence, structure, and access to resources, such as 12-step meetings, clinical support, and life-skills coaching from professional team members.

 

The Typical Transitional Living Routine

 

Typically, the program houses women in addiction recovery for up to one year.

During that time, they make meals and share in household chores. They attend weekly outpatient group therapy and bi-weekly individual meetings with counselors. Sunday evenings the women gather together for house meetings.

They often see one another in passing as they go about their daily lives at The GateHouse. In preparing to transition to independent living, the women enjoy several overnight visits a month with family and friends. They work, run errands, go to doctor’s appointments.

 

Life in Quarantine: A New Wrinkle in Recovery

 

Under quarantine, life for everyone at The GateHouse has changed.

Several women with essential jobs continue to work while the others have been laid off until the quarantine is lifted.

Like many facilities that have remained operational during the pandemic, The GateHouse implemented extra safety precautions. But along with temperature checks and face masks, the women struggle to deal with one of the most difficult aspects of addiction recovery—seclusion.

“The quarantine adds a whole new level of isolation,” said Shanon, the women’s house manager and fellow recovery resident. “We all have to sit with our thoughts and feelings and confront our realities.”

The quarantine could have been an easy excuse to give up or return to old habits.

Yet, Shanon said the women she’s with are emerging stronger than ever.

 

The Separation Struggle

 

Initially, the pandemic created anger and fear, she said. The residents couldn’t leave for overnight visits with their kids or meet up with friends.

“There was a lot of depression,” Shanon, a mother of three, said. “Going through treatment is physically and emotionally isolating. Having to deal with your feelings is hard enough without being quarantined.”

As time went on, Shanon said the women came to grips with their emotions.

“We realized that once we’ve gotten this far in recovery, we can get through anything,” she said.

The women heavily rely on one another, she added.

“We’ve been there for each other,” she said. “An ear to listen, a hand to hold. Overcoming addiction is all about the support you receive.”

 

One Day at a Time

 

“Not every day is perfect,” Shanon said. “If you can get through those hard days without using, it makes you stronger.”

The quarantine has also given the women a new perspective.

“We’re really grateful for our jobs now, whereas before it was easy to complain,” Shanon said. “When this is over, we all want to make a conscious effort to appreciate things more.”

The women can reach out to family, friends, and their sponsors, but they aren’t able to visit them during the quarantine. They have the option to meet in person for group sessions, but most have opted to attend via Zoom until the quarantine has lifted.

Sometimes, the best people to lean on are others going through recovery because friends and family may be in active addiction or simply don’t get it.

“People who don’t have an addiction don’t understand the physical and mental part of it,” Shanon said. “They think you can just get over it.”

But anyone who’s ever suffered from addiction knows it is way more complicated than that.

“It takes time to get back everything you destroyed—relationships with your children and family, losing homes and jobs,” Shanon said.

Oftentimes, patients must make the difficult decision to cut ties with family or friends because they can’t support them in their recovery.

“It’s hard cutting people off, especially when it’s a family member,” Shanon said. “You have to grieve the loss of that person in your life.”

That’s where the recovery community comes in.

 

Finding Connection and Building New Bonds

 

“It’s very important to have support,” Shanon said. “You need people to talk to who understand what you’re going through and what you have to deal with just to stay clean every day.”

“The quarantine has brought us closer together,” she said. “Having someone to vent to when you’re having a bad day is so important.”

As much as they’ve come to rely on each other, the women do look forward to the quarantine being lifted so they can reunite with loved ones and get back to work. They’re extremely grateful for the support they’ve been able to give and receive while they’ve dealt with two incredibly difficult situations at once—recovery and quarantine, but this was certainly an experience these women will always remember.

The  GateHouse also offers a transitional recovery program for men at a separate location, as well as inpatient and outpatient treatment services for addiction. We would love to help you with the next step in your recovery. Reach out to us today!

Note: The GateHouse transitional housing residents, whose work schedule ranges from part-time to 50 hours per week, pay for their own food and rent. Insurance typically covers the rest.

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