News and Events Archives - Colorado Recovery

Backpacking For Mental Health

Getting out into nature can mean walking, hiking, biking, kayaking, or other similar activities. Stepping outside can help people keep a healthy weight or even lose weight by increasing activity levels.

Being in nature can also boost your mood and improve your mental health. Spending quality time in the great outdoors reduces stress, calms anxiety, and can lead to a lower risk of depression, according to a 2015 study by researchers at Stanford University. Many other studies have confirmed that spending time in a natural environment can reduce stress, improve mood, and enhance overall mental well-being.

With a campus only a short distance away from the spectacular landscape of the Rocky Mountains, the treatment team at Colorado Recovery understands these benefits well and utilizes the great outdoors as part of the treatment programs for schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and other mental illnesses. Exposure to the healing power of nature is part of the treatment philosophy.

Colorado Recovery held its second annual backpacking trip in July. Led by executive director Terry Stiven and community organizer Peter Kamback, the three-day excursion up and around the Buchanan Pass area in Colorado created an attitude of team spirit as everybody felt they were all together in this challenge.

*I observed that some of our clients who struggle with social interaction seemed to feel comfortable talking and sharing their challenges and experiences,” Stiven recalls. “This is not an easy hike and our clients came home with a sense of confidence that they achieved some really hard hikes, braved cold weather, and got by on basic necessities.”

Like last year’s outing, everybody felt this year’s trip was a big success. “We had five clients join us this year including two new clients and three returning clients,” says Kamback. “Preparation was similar to last year’s trip. We encouraged everyone going on the trip to join us for our hiking group each week to condition themselves physically.”

They also learned what to expect on the trip in terms of weather conditions, temperatures (day and night), food, gear, safety, wildlife, and proper leave-no-trace waste disposal practices.

“We also asked them to consider what to do with their time away from technology and the modern conveniences of their daily lives,” says Kamback. “As last year, this was the biggest adjustment for most clients on the trip. I think it was incredibly valuable to have them removed from their phones, social media, and the countless other digital distractions they have grown accustomed to.”

All hikers agreed that even though giving up the smartphone was difficult at first, they all developed an appreciation for the peace, quiet, and beauty the natural world provides.

“Another great benefit of the trip is that it allows our clients to learn something about themselves,” explains Kamback. “They had the opportunity to discover that when faced with a challenge they can handle and overcome it.”

Hiking on the trip was no easy task. “As much as we tried to keep weight in our packs to a minimum, the strain of the packs became burdensome after a few miles on the trail,” Kamback remembers. “Everyone faced fatigue and frustration—inevitable aspects of any backpacking excursion. The physical and mental challenges were real and the clients had to discover—individually and as a group—how to face these challenges.”

Nighttime also offered difficult situations the clients were not used to in their daily lives. “Some of them experienced less than comfortable sleeping conditions including cold temperatures and primitive bedding,” recalls Kamback. “Again, these are all normal experiences of a backpacking trip. These expectations were clearly expressed in preparation for the trip. However, the reality is usually not fully understood until experienced. But at the end of the day—or night—our clients became aware of their ability to endure and grow as a result of hardship.”

The excursion wasn’t all hardships, either. “We had plenty of time to enjoy the tranquility of nature as well as each other’s company,” Kamback remembers. “We experienced ideal weather conditions on a day hike to a beautiful lake only a couple of miles from camp. We welcomed each morning together by making warm beverages on a stove. We also enjoyed cooking our meals as a group and spending some time around a campfire in the evenings. Many clients found it pleasant to simply sit by the creek or explore the surrounding woods during their free time.”

“Having a sense of accomplishment on the trail significantly boosts our clients’ self-esteem,” says Kamback. The self-confidence necessary for clients to succeed in the wider community can be strengthened on a wilderness trail. At Colorado Recovery it is our mission to help adults with serious mental health issues stabilize their illness, minimize symptoms, improve functioning, and enhance each person’s social inclusion, quality of life, and sense of meaning in life.

Colorado Recovery transitioned to a non-profit organization in June. This pivotal change underscores our commitment to providing exceptional care and support to our clients while ensuring greater accessibility through scholarships and donations.

If you have questions about our recovery model or our services to treat schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and similar mental illnesses, call us at 720-218-4068 to discuss treatment options for you or the person you would like to help.

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Colorado Recovery is Now Non-profit.

People With Schizophrenia Have A Higher Risk of Suicide Study Confirms

The suicide risk for people with schizophrenia between the ages of 18 to 34 years is ten times higher than that for the general US population, according to a new study published in May.

The study from the Columbia University Department of Psychiatry looked at a large population of adults diagnosed with schizophrenia and found that the youngest group (18-34) had the highest suicide risk and those aged 65 and older the lowest. By comparison, in the general US population, the reverse is true: younger adults have a smaller risk and older age groups have a greater risk.

The Columbia study, published online in the journal JAMA Psychiatry also showed that people with schizophrenia, overall, have a 4.5-fold increased risk of dying from suicide, the 10th leading cause of death in the United States.

“When a person with schizophrenia is becoming suicidal, an attempt can happen with little warning,” said Mark Olfson, Elizabeth K. Dollard professor of psychiatry at Columbia and lead author of the study. “Often, suicidal behavior in schizophrenia is driven by psychotic processes. This aspect can make it difficult to anticipate and prevent.”

The study, which provides a significant amount of data on age and suicide risk, could help suicide prevention efforts for people with schizophrenia. “Knowing more about which age groups and what personal characteristics are linked to higher risk could increase attention and support for the most vulnerable patients,” Olfson said.

Colorado Recovery founder Richard Warner believed that recovery rates for schizophrenia and suicidal thoughts are also linked to the social and economic environment.

In his classic Recovery from Schizophrenia, Dr. Warner pointed out a strong statistical correlation between lack of employment and suicidal ideation. “Work problems, economic stress, and unemployment appear to be important in precipitating suicide.” (2nd edition, 1994)

Unfortunately, discrimination and stigma prevent many people with a mental illness such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder from finding purposeful employment. Too many of their fellow citizens believe people with such mental disorders are unable to work.

In a more recent book, The Environment of Schizophrenia, Warner wrote that “the mentally ill are among the most alienated people in our society, daily confronting the key elements of alienation—meaninglessness, powerlessness, normlessness, and estrangement from society and from work.” This induces an “existential neurosis” which in turn drives a significantly higher risk of suicide. “Many people with mental illness face lives of aimlessness and boredom,” wrote Warner.

Work can help overcome that sense of aimlessness and provide a better chance of recovery. “Productive activity is basic to a person’s sense of identity and worth. Given training and support, most people with schizophrenia can work,” Warner wrote. A productive life in recovery can also shield from suicidal ideation.

Colorado Recovery approaches care for mental health based on a path of self-reliance through developed practiced skills. This non-institutionalized philosophy offers comprehensive levels of care supported by an expert medical and clinical team, engaging patients in increasing community participation.

Our treatment facility provides the services needed to address schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and other serious mental illnesses which are specific to each individual. Call us at 720-218-4068 to discuss treatment options for you or the person you would like to help.

Is It Schizophrenia? Is It Substance Use?

Around ten million adults in the United States currently experience both mental illness and a substance use disorder (SUD). It’s a well-established correlation, often complicating the treatment of both conditions. One such co-occurring disorder is schizophrenia

In a recent webinar for Harmony Foundation, Colorado Recovery’s medical director Alan Fine, M.D., talked about the symptoms of schizophrenia and substance use disorder and why it is frequently difficult to tell the two conditions apart.

First off, Dr. Fine presented a diagnostic flowchart to illustrate where SUD and schizophrenia can be found in the mental healthcare realm. If the symptoms are acute and were caused by taking drugs or drinking alcohol then we’re looking at substance misuse and a possible addiction scenario. If the diagnosis is psychosis without a physical cause, the condition is often diagnosed as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder.

The diagnosis of schizophrenia itself is complicated and based on the work of three trailblazers in the field whose impact can still be felt today: Emil Kraepelin (1856–1926), Eugen Bleuler (1857–1939), and Kurt Schneider (1887–1967).

Kraepelin is considered one of the founders of modern scientific psychiatry. His views dominated the field at the start of the 20th century. Bleuler renamed Kraepelin’s “dementia praecox” schizophrenia and established the classic four As of the condition: ambivalence, affect, alogia, and autism (preoccupation with self). Schneider in turn formulated the first-rank symptoms of schizophrenia: auditory hallucinations, feelings of external control, thoughts connected to others, and other delusions.

In his book, The Environment of Schizophrenia, Colorado Recovery founder Richard Warner wrote that “schizophrenia is a psychosis. That is to say, it is a severe mental disorder in which the person’s emotions, thinking, judgment, and grasp of reality are so disturbed that his or her functioning is seriously impaired.”

What about substance use then?

By definition, schizophrenia is not caused by the effects of a substance or another medical condition. That, however, is not quite all.

Mental health conditions and SUDs frequently co-occur because many people with addiction are primarily misusing addictive substances to self-medicate emotional pain caused by serious mental health disorders.

“The proportion of schizophrenic patients of comorbidity of substance abuse varies in published studies from 10–70 percent, depending on how patients are diagnosed with schizophrenia, the types of populations studied, and the different ways of defining drug and alcohol disorders,” said Dr. Fine. “There’s a remarkable overlap in both directions.”

People with schizophrenia are at a higher risk of engaging in substance misuse because many of them will be tempted to self-medicate the severe symptoms of their mental illness as well as some of the side effects of their antipsychotic medications. At the same time, substance misuse may cause syndromes that are similar or even identical to schizophrenia.

In the short term (acute intoxication), schizophrenia-like symptoms may include delusions (stimulants and inhalants), loose associations (stimulants, alcohol, sedatives, and inhalants), and hallucinations (stimulants, alcohol, and inhalants). Both alcohol and sedative withdrawal symptoms include hallucinations and paranoia.

In the long term (prolonged misuse), “amphetamine use is associated with long-term psychosis—thirty percent of all amphetamine-induced psychoses become chronic,” Dr. Fine explained. Chronic alcohol misuse may cause persistent dementias such as Korsakoff syndrome and delirium tremens.

People with schizophrenia also engage in substance misuse to cope with the deterioration of their social environment, an area that Dr. Warner explored extensively.

So, the answer to the question “Is It schizophrenia or is it substance misuse?” is often: both! That means, should both conditions be present, both need to be treated because they may reinforce each other. An important element in this regard is empowerment.

Empowering people with schizophrenia reduces the need to self-medicate and often improves symptoms. Believing in their ability to take charge of their lives and manage the complex challenges of their illness is crucial for people with schizophrenia.

Over the course of his long professional career, the late Dr. Warner realized that social inclusion empowers people with mental illnesses and improves outcomes. “Work helps people recover from schizophrenia,” Warner concluded. “Productive activity is basic to a person’s sense of identity and worth.”

Colorado Recovery has been utilizing the Warner method to empower adults with mental illness for many years now. Our treatment facility provides the services needed to address schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and other serious mental illnesses. Call us at 720-218-4068 to discuss treatment options for you or the person you would like to help.

Schizophrenia Outcomes Analysis Uses Dr. Warner’s Methods

Upcoming Training with Expert in Communicating with Someone Experiencing a Mental Health Challenge

Do you ever struggle to connect and communicate with a loved one who is experiencing a mental health challenge? Dr. Xavier Amador is an internationally renowned clinical psychologist, expert, and author specializing in communication tools to help support people with mental health disorders like schizophrenia or bipolar disorder. Dr. Amador developed his evidence-based techniques to help him develop a better relationship with his brother, who was diagnosed with schizophrenia. He founded the LEAP® (Listen-Empathize-Agree-Partner) method. Many family members and caregivers have found his techniques very helpful.

Colorado Recovery encourages families and caregivers to read his book, I Am Not Sick and I Don’t Need Help, or attend an upcoming training listed below.

Dr. Xavier Amador will be presenting an online training session—live with Q&A!

Wednesday, January 13, 2021, @12:00pm-3:00 pm Eastern Time (the US and Canada)

This session is for Family Caregivers and Professionals who want to help someone with serious mental Illness and anosognosia—the neurological symptom that leaves a person unable to understand s/he is ill, resulting in conflict, isolation, and treatment refusal.

Participants will be introduced to LEAP® (Listen-Empathize-Agree-Partner), an evidence-based approach that teaches you how to create relationships that lead to treatment and recovery. Learning objectives include:

Identify Anosognosia vs. “Denial”
Lower Anger, Resistance & Defensiveness
Re-establish Trust & Broken Relationships

Cost

$130 Early Bird (ends Dec 11), $150 Regular

LEAP Foundation is a small nonprofit and 100% of proceeds from this session are used to fulfill the organization’s mission.

More info: https://lfrp.org/online-trainings

A Heartfelt Farewell to Ruth Arnold, CEO

With a heavy heart Colorado Recovery announces that Ruth Arnold, CEO will be retiring this month. She has served as CEO for Colorado Recovery for four years and she will be missed. She has been a compassionate leader and brought a vast amount of knowledge about mental health to our organization.

While at Colorado Recovery she helped support and develop the Bridge to You program, she helped create a marketing position, oversaw the transition of our website platform, spearheaded Colorado Recovery’s membership with the American Residential Treatment Association, supported the expansion of wilderness therapy programming, and much more!

Ruth began her career at Mental Health Partners(MHP) in 1974 and she left MHP in 2016 to join Colorado Recovery. During her years of service, she worked closely with Colorado Recovery’s founder, Dr. Richard Warner and she was able to maintain his vision while serving as CEO at Colorado Recovery.

She held many positions during her career at MHP; she was the Team Leader for the vocational rehabilitation program, a Therapist at MHP’s intensive residential program, and a Team Leader for the assertive community treatment team. She was well-liked and respected in all of her roles.

She can take credit for many accomplishments that have had a great impact on the mental health community. She started WATBusiness Services, a thriving workplace that employed many people with serious mental illness for many years. She was instrumental in starting MHP’s very successful Chinook Clubhouse which helped people with major mental illness find a sense of belonging to a social community, develop job skills, secure supported employment, and succeed in independent employment.

Ruth is a founding Board Member for The Center for People with Disabilities where she is still an active Board Member and she will continue to serve on the board during her retirement.

The entire community of staff, clients, and families at Colorado Recovery wishes Ruth a heartfelt farewell. We feel lucky to have had the opportunity to work with Ruth. She has shown us how to create and leave a lasting legacy.

June Bianchi, Transitional Housing Program Manager says, “The Colorado Recovery community is very grateful for the effort that Ruth put forth to make our agency thrive. We have been very grateful for her determination, passion, and unrelenting optimism for those struggling with mental health and the unrelenting support of the staff that serves this community. The experience that Ruth held regarding mental health, budgets, and developing programs will strengthen Colorado Recovery for years to come. We will always be grateful for her and the immense change and improvements she made. Ruth has a quiet strength, intelligence, wisdom, flexibility, openness, and a great sense of humor. She made so many difficult, important, and lasting decisions for our community. For this, she will always be remembered and we will always be grateful for her guidance and leadership.”