A Great Experience After many years of battling my addiction, depression and unhappiness; St. Jude Retreat was the solution I had been searching for. I had tried many different 12 step programs over many year, and never felt like it was right for me, or I really fit in. The program, staff, environment and activities over my six week stay at St. Jude, brought a clarity and understanding of myself, the "addiction" thought process and how it can be easily replace with happiness, enjoyment and a feeling of satisfaction. I made many friends that I will be in touch with for the rest of my life, between staff members and other guests. I highly recommend St Jude Retreats to anyone, even if you don't think you have a "problem" or "addiction"; but simply feel like things may not be quite right in your life. Life is meant to be great. Your days should be filled with happiness. St Jude Retreats will open your eyes as to how to consistently make it happen. And...it's easier than you think!

St. Jude Retreat Amsterdam, NY I had the fortunate privilege of being a guest at St. Jude Retreat in January of 2014. I had tried multiple times in a 12 step program and it just didn't click. Conceding to the mentality as a victim of a disease in which I had no control just didn't make sense to me. I was in a weakened place in my life and I really didn't think trashing my past was going to be what it took to turn my life around. I went to St. Jude and found that the program was very empowering. The program allowed me to figure out where my standards were and where I wanted them to be. Getting clean was going to mean changing my attitudes and my focus, finding things of value in my life and focusing on them. The program at SJR was valuable in showing me that my personal choices affect my life. Being aware of that allows me to be an active participant in the direction my life takes.

I am NOT Powerless I had believed that I was an alcoholic for 29 years and would always be an alcoholic. I believed that I had an incurable disease called alcoholism and that my anxiety caused me to drink. Once I took a drink I was powerless over alcohol and unable to stop. I thought only God could “restore me to sanity”. What I learned at St. Judes is that is simply not true. Learning about the true scientifically proven facts of human behavior I have been able to change my way of thinking. My drinking was a behavior that I could change. Once free of being a victim of alcoholism I was able to focus on the true issues that troubled me and impeded me from living my life in true happiness. I have found ways to direct my thoughts and actions towards long term life changes that will support me throughout the rest of my life. Everyone has the power within them to make these changes. One simply has to want to make these changes and then do the work to define and reach long term sustainable goals that support this happiness. The staff at St. Judes provided the environment, information and guidance to make this shift in my thinking. The St. Judes Executive Retreat was a comfortable and safe environment for me to "retreat to" so I could work on myself without the interruptions of daily living (unless I chose to). The environment, the house and the staff were all friendly, caring and supportive of helping me to help myself. St Judes is like no other program available that I am aware of. I experienced a paradigm shift that has changed my life forever. Maybe I would have eventually stumbled upon this change but going to St. Judes sure made it easier.

My time at St Jude Mountain Retreat I cannot say enough about my time at St Jude. When I arrived there, I had made a complete mess of my life... I was doing coke and pills like crazy, stolen from my parents, lied, you name it. This was the first place I had ever gone away to get help from. I got the opportunity to step back, evaluate my life, my choices, my mistakes. Working first with Joe and then with Holly made me take responsibility for things that were going on with me, and figure out what I wanted to do going forward as well as what I didn't. As for the program, I can only give my opinion/observations as like I said, I had never been to a rehab, etc so I have nothing to compare it to- I thought the food was decent, not a hugely great selection for a vegetarian (at the time) there was always a salad bar, but because it didn't get used as much, the stock wasn't circulated, I got bad cheese one time, etc. I enjoyed the interaction with the other guests immensely, but I did not agree with the fact that people could just show up to class when they wanted. Perhaps its the rule-follower deep down inside of me, but I felt it took away from my experience to see others sleeping in and coming to class and being disruptive and asking questions when they missed things they shouldn't have because they were sleeping. Also, I felt there was favoritism amongst the staff, and it killed me to see some of them be manipulated the way they were!!! You would think staff members who are used to dealing with guests who are master manipulators and liars would not be so easily played for a fool. For example, I became close friends with another girl while there, and was only so-so with my roommate. when she and I asked to live together, she was made to live in my room (the smallest double in the house) while my former roommate got to move into one of the largest doubles by herself. I was then asked to move again to accommodate other guests coming in, with less than a week to go in my stay, while my former roommate still got to live by herself, in a huge room, all because she had buddied-up with staff and was going to stay on additional weeks (and continue to pay). I know many factors are involved with the way the program is set up- when you arrive, who arrives when you do, etc- but I know I was in a group that had 4 other people because we all arrived at the same time, while one person that came in by themselves ended up getting individual attention and classes simply because she was the only one that arrived in that particular few days- I feel I could have really benefitted from one-on-one counseling, and I paid the same amount of money as that girl or my former roommate who got a huge double room to herself for 5 of the 6 weeks. On the other hand, both of those individuals are still lost with their lives not together, so maybe in the long run it didn't matter. I loved the outings, the shopping trips, the "beach" being so close by...and some of the people I was there with I still talk to on a nearly daily basis. When I got home, I stayed clean for about a month, then started doing drugs again.... I never really got to the point I had been, but I got pretty bad off. Honestly the biggest change to my life was getting pregnant with my daughter- I got pregnant 9 months after I left St Jude and it completely changed my outlook, my life. I am gainfully employed, pay my bills, and am present with my child... I also really, really like the person I have become, and I have no problem looking at myself in the mirror every morning. Even though I know that becoming a Mommy and responsible for another human was the biggest factor in my life changes, I cant help but know that the education and self awareness I got at St Jude gave me the foundation- not trying to blame my issues on addiction, becoming aware of my own decision making (good and bad) and having to face the consequences of those decisions. I had some amazing conversations with Holly about my childhood and my father and my issues with him and she really helped me to see things in a different light. Overall, my experience was incredibly positive and I hope that St Jude continues to do great work with others.

A refreshing alternative to the 12 Step Treadmill! In an arena that is dominated by the methodologies of AA/NA and their faith healing approach for overcoming drug and alcohol dependencies, it's nice to know that there are resources available that forward the notion that one can effect positive changes in their lives through education, cognitive changes and a lot of hard work and determination. While I have not personally been a client of St. Jude Retreats, I've had the pleasure of speaking with several members of their executive staff as a result of having published my book on the subject of addiction, "The Freedom to Recover". While our views on what works and what doesn't may not be 100% in alignment, they are pretty close. I've read over all of their course materials and have yet to come across a "program" or in-patient setting that offers anywhere near as comprehensive a game plan based on logic, self empowering ideas and real life approaches to addiction. Drug and alcohol addiction, or as I prefer to refer to it, dependency, is NOT a disease that requires lifetime "recovering" but rather, is a condition that one can overcome and put in their past. At least that is my view and one that St Jude Retreats embraces as well. Regards, Rolf Ankermann.