Adventure Therapy for Teenagers and Adolescents

Adventure Therapy uses safe and exciting physical challenges in outdoor settings to elicit personal transformation. At Newport Academy, Adventure Therapy activities include rock climbing, paddle boarding, surfing, hiking, ropes course, and kayaking (depending on treatment location). Trained professionals facilitate all activities. In addition to developing new skills, teens are required to stretch their limits and achieve goals they never thought they could. As a result, they gain confidence and learn to have fun while in recovery.

What is Adventure Therapy?

This form of care take many forms. However, it generally takes place outdoors and involves a variety of fun—and often challenging—physical activities. Working with others is an important element of Adventure Therapy. Excursions typically include cooperative activities that help participants learn to better trust and solve problems with their peers and guides. While Adventure-Based Therapy takes place outside the confines of a traditional therapy setting, it has its roots in several psychological concepts. These include systems theory, experiential learning, and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.

Benefits of Adventure Therapy

Spending time in nature through outdoor therapy can improve mental health in a number of ways. For one, time outdoors has been shown to decrease levels of stress, depression, and anxiety. Moreover, being outside in nature is proven to reduce stress by lowering the stress-associated chemical cortisol.

Furthermore, unplugged time in nature helps regulate mood disturbance and nervous system arousal caused by too much time in front of screens.

Skill Building

Adventure Therapy includes time for journal reflections, community building, and relationship exploration. During Adventure Therapy sessions, adolescents face challenges as they work to move outside of their comfort zones. In addition, we encourage them to practice skills, work as a group, and build self-esteem.

Adventure Therapy provides teens with a safe setting in which to practice decision-making and problem solving as well as collaboration—while discovering new strengths, building peer relationships, and finding a new, stronger sense of self.

A study exploring the efficacy of wilderness therapy showed that 95% of participants found it enormously beneficial. Six weeks after the program, parents reported significant improvements in the behavior and mindset of the teenagers who had participated.

— Journal of Child and Family Studies

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