Jaywalker Lodge™ Step One Focus

Jaywalker Lodge is a truly unique recovery program for men. At Jaywalker Lodge, we embrace a design for living and a “practical program of action” which has been laid out for us in the 12 Steps of Alcoholics Anonymous.

TIME TO HEAL
The extended care treatment program at Jaywalker Lodge provides above all else time… time away from the chemical, the triggers, and the stressors; a time to heal. The minimum length of stay is 90 days, and some patients can and do stay as long as six months. Following completion of our intensive treatment and transitional residential programs, clients may opt to enroll in 6 – 9 month aftercare programs at no charge, and to remain in Carbondale for a year or longer at one of two local sober living homes in the local community. Ours is a comprehensive continuum of care with a focus on transitioning from structured, individualized clinical care to a financial self-sufficiency in a tightly-knit recovering community learning to live sober in the real world one day at a time.

STEP ONE
Step One of The 12 Steps is an ongoing process for clients at Jaywalker. A firm foundation in this step is not just a good idea - it is essential. My experience as a treatment professional and as an addict in recovery is that most of us don’t return to rehabs again and again because we did not earnestly try to stay sober; or we didn't do a Fourth Step; or we didn’t have a sponsor… We wind up back in trouble again because we never fully grasped, nor fully personalized Step One!

PERSONAL IMPACT
The impact of drugs and alcohol in all areas of our clients’ lives is personalized daily through written “Step One Sections;” an emphasis on the basic texts of Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous; as well as dedicated groups and didactic lectures. Our clients examine closely the effect chemical dependency has had on family, social life and friends, work and school, legal, financial, spiritual, character, health, sex and relationships, and feelings and emotions. Our goal is that no Jaywalker client will have any reservations or "lurking notions" about the extent to which their relationship with drugs and alcohol has impacted his life.

RELATIONSHIPS
Relationships with self, others and a higher power are examined in terms of recognizing and beginning to challenge “obstacles” to relationship building or, if you will, a relationship with a higher power. (Step Two) Obstacles include (but are not limited to) shame, resentment, anger, self-pity, grandiosity, arrogance, grief and loneliness. Dual diagnoses and mental health issues, are medically managed by our consulting psychiatrist – and these too are addressed as “obstacles” via hands-on application to The 12 Steps principals. Our peer-directed culture creates an environment in which clients come to embrace “common solution” to our “common problem.”

TYPICAL WEEK
A typical week at Jaywalker Lodge includes group therapy, lectures, individual meetings with chemical dependency professionals, spiritual care staff, fitness/wellness specialists and, if indicated, mental health professionals and health care professionals. Step work, educational video and film, work on individual recovery goals (Master Treatment Plan) and mandatory AA/NA/CA Meetings off and on the Jaywalker premises are all ongoing. A robust experiential and clinically individualized four-day family program is offered every six weeks at no charge to guide and support clients’ family members and loved ones.

ALTERNATIVE THERAPIES
Alternative therapies including yoga, martial arts, acupuncture, guided meditation, and an unmatched mountain-based expedition program are all essential components of the Jaywalker treatment process. Each week the men routinely are engaged in rigorous mountain challenges including mountain biking, hiking, rafting, skiing, snowboarding, ropes challenge courses, team sports and much, much more. The men and staff at Jaywalker are committed to community service both locally and across the country – service projects and service trips are conducted both in the Carbondale area as well as in the form of week-long excursions to support communities from Arizona to Iowa to South Dakota.

SOLUTIONS PROGRAM
After 90 days in the highly structured, clinically intensive “Lodge” program, clients are provided an opportunity to enroll in the Jaywalker Solutions program, a 90-day “step-down” transitional living program, also located in downtown Carbondale. Here, men focus on making a safe and sober transition from the structure of residential treatment to life on life’s terms in our local recovery community. In Solutions, men engage in full or part time local employment, attend local 12 Step meetings independently, and participate in 11 hours each week of structured individual and group therapy.

AFTERCARE
Finally, a comprehensive, individualized continuing care plan is essential for a long-term sober outcome following our client’s graduation from the program. Graduates of both the Lodge and Solutions program at Jaywalker are eligible and enrolled in weekly aftercare groups at the facility at no charge for a minimum of 6 to 9 months. Two independent sober living homes in Carbondale offer graduates the chance to live with their peers in sobriety and to establish themselves as financially self-supporting members of the local recovery community.

Bob Ferguson
Founder, Director
Jaywalker Lodge