Utilizing the healing power of nature.
Shunda Creek Recovery Centre
The Shunda Creek Recovery Centre is a part of Enviros, a non-profit social services agency based in Calgary, Alberta. To get started on your recovery, please fill out an application form and forward it to our Intake Coordinator at Shundaintakecoordinator@enviros.org
Fees:
There is no fee to go to Shunda Creek.
The program is funded by Alberta Health Services and Alberta Health. The program is available to all Alberta residents who meet the program’s criteria.
There are no extra fees for wilderness therapy activities. All transportation, equipment and outdoor clothing are provided.
Provincially Licensed
Enviros Shunda Creek is licensed under the provisions of Part 1 of the Mental Health Services Protection Act of the Province of Alberta as indicated by the license below.
We are pleased to announce that the new site for Shunda Creek Recovery Centre is now open. Thank you to Alberta Health Services, Shunda Creek Alumni, the Enviros Board of Directors, Enviros employees and all of the individuals and companies who contributed to the Shunda Creek Recovery Centre Grand Opening. Because of you, we have a beautiful operating site that will allow us to continue services and impact more young men ages 18-26 who are on their recovery journey.
Wilderness Therapy Meets Addiction Treatment
The Shunda Creek Recovery Centre is an addiction treatment program for 18 to 26 year-old men. Located west of Rocky Mountain House, situated at the base of the Brazeau and Shunda mountain ranges, one of the things that sets Shunda Creek apart from other treatment programs is the incorporation of adventure-based activities in the wilderness.
Why choose Shunda Creek? The program is different from traditional treatment centres in a number of ways. It was developed specifically to meet the unique needs of 18 to 26 year-old men. It’s the only Alberta Health Services-funded treatment program that incorporates wilderness therapy as a core component; staff work with leading researchers in the area of adventure and wilderness therapy to set standards that other facilities now follow. Shunda Creek also has an Alumni program so you can continue your recovery journey with peers who have gone through the same program you went through.
Adventure-based wilderness programming isn’t for everyone, though. Hiking, canoeing, rock climbing, year-round back-country overnight trips and other activities are a lot of fun, but they can be hard work. They’re also incredibly effective ways to get out of your comfort zone and into your recovery zone so you can start moving towards the life you want.
The Location
The Enviros Shunda Creek program is located in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains west of Rocky Mountain House, Alberta. Shunda Creek offers separate room accommodations for 18 clients, a commercial kitchen, a workout room, various meeting spaces and other amenities. Past clients have told us the remote location and natural setting allowed them to focus on their recovery in a way that urban programs did not.
Although remote, the location has ready access to emergency services and medical, dental and other health services are available. When on a wilderness trip in the nearby mountains, our staff also carry satellite communication devices and SOS beacons.
The program is located on Treaty 6 land, the traditional territories of Blackfoot, Cree, Saulteaux, Stoney Nakoda and Metis peoples, all of whom still live there.
Alberta’s Only Publicly-Funded Wilderness Addiction Treatment Program
The addiction treatment program at Enviros Shunda Creek was designed for the unique needs of 18 to 26 year-old men that want help with substance use issues. You’ll be with others your own age who are walking in similar shoes to yours. Whether in group sessions or on the trail, the person next to you won’t be a middle-age man or a suburban soccer mom. You will be with someone your age who is having similar challenges and wants to build a different future for himself, just like you.
When you arrive at the Shunda Creek facility, addiction support workers and therapists will take the time to get to know you and understand your strengths and challenges. Based on this, they will work with you in the development of recovery goals. This will include:
- One-on-one counselling
- Group work
- Indigenous land-based teachings
- Adventure-based wilderness activities
- Planning your recovery program for when you go home
- Meeting with staff and Shunda Creek alumni who participate in the aftercare program
What does life at Shunda Creek look like?
Group sessions occur daily. At the Shunda Creek facility, they happen in the group room. Out in the wilderness, they happen on the trail, at the end of a canoe trip or on the summit of a mountain. The actual wilderness activities are spread throughout the week and range from half-day hikes and rock climbing to multi-day backpacking and canoe trips. You will be involved in everything from the trip planning to drying gear when you get back. And in partnership with local Nations, you will have the opportunity to participate in Indigenous land-based teachings such as sweat lodges and smudging. In between all of this, you’ll also meet one-to-one on a regular basis with a counsellor who specializes in addictions. No week, no day is the same.
You’ll also have opportunities to attend local 12-step meetings. We recognize that 12-step meetings can be effective for recovery, but Shunda Creek does not include 12-step work in the program itself. The intention is to give you exposure to the most widely available recovery resource you can incorporate into your personal recovery program when you return home.
Aftercare
Research, along with our experience, shows that this type of peer support can decrease the likelihood of slipping back into past behaviors and relapse. For those that do relapse, it can also lead to shorter relapses and quicker returns to stability
Into the Wilderness and Out of Your Comfort Zone
Each activity—whether a half-day hike or a multi-day backpacking trip—is intentionally planned with your recovery in the mind. The aim is to provide you with experiences that take you out of your comfort zone in a safe manner. After each activity, the full benefit comes through unpacking your experience, what you were thinking and feeling, and why.
Having said all that, deep down, it’s a lot of fun.
Indigenous Teachings
The Enviros Shunda Creek program and the areas in which our wilderness activities take place are on Territory 6 land that is the traditional territories of Blackfoot, Cree, Saulteaux, Stoney Nakoda and Metis peoples. Recognizing that we are all treaty people, we are proactive in building and tending respectful, meaningful relationships with the people who were on the land long before us and recognize the historical and ongoing impacts of colonization.
One result of the relationships with the people who were here long before us is that they graciously share some of their knowledge, teachings and healing ceremonies with us. Since we originally developed the Shunda Creek program, we’ve intentionally incorporated Cree and Metis ceremony and practices, with a Sweat Lodge Holder on site to lead us in ceremony and other practices. Woven throughout the program, including our wilderness activities, Indigenous values and practices strengthen the journey of recovery through a deepening of the connection with ourselves, each other and the land through traditional healing and rights of passage. Whether or not to participate in these practices is up to you; they are entirely voluntary.
Service to others is an important aspect of recovery in our program. When possible, we assist the Indigenous people in the area by splitting firewood, helping at ceremonies and other acts of service. We also learn the oral history and practices of the people in this territory so that we can engage as respectfully and as knowledgeably as possible in a spirit of reconciliation.
Additional Resources
For a complete list of live in and detox centers across Alberta, please visit https://www.abaddictiontx.ca/