I AM NOT DISEASED My name is Shawn, I am an ..... Wait wait wait. Let me start over. My name is Shawn I am not diseased. I am not powerless, I am not out of control, nor have I ever been. Now just to let you know before I got here I would not have said these things because I totally fed into the diseased mentality. Completely believed I was powerless. I prayed and prayed everyday for God to remove my obsessiveness and defects to no avail. Now if you're one of those closed minded people like I was you may be thinking, well if you really worked the program you would stay sober. To those I will say I went to 180 meetings in 90 days. Three and four meetings a day. I worked the steps to the best of my ability more than once. I still had the desire, and believed it was up to God alone to relieve me of the obsession. Now I know the truth. Now I know I and I alone am responsible for my decisions. I chose to drink and drug and until I faced this fact nothing or no entity was gonna save me from myself. realizing the power is mine, that my success is in my hands, is so freeing and empowering. I can change myself from the inside out. I can control myself and my thinking, How depressing it was to think one little can of cold beer would make me drink thirty more. I am not weak. I am powerful but had been brainwashed otherwise. My happiness and my life are mine to make whatever I want to out of. I have total confidence in myself thanks to Saint Jude Retreats. The best most productive years of my life lie in front of me. I cant wait to show people that I can succeed on my own.

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.

Great program This program was a live saver and life giver for me. It validated my beliefs that were contrary to AA and gave me a new way to live my life to the fullest. It is not an easy fix, you have to accept responsibility for you life and the choices you make, and this can be hard for some who need a scapegoat. I was as the Executive Retreat although I am a retired senior woman. Holly and the staff are fantastic. The facility is very comfortable and everyone makes your visit calming and productive. And there were plenty of opportunities to practice what you learn and grow from the experience. I heartily recommend it to anyone who is serious about improving their life. It is not a place to be sent by someone else.

Saved my life! I first have go thank my brother for loving me enough to find St. Jude Retreats. And I thank St. Jude Retreats for giving me a life! Forever indebted!

Great place I loved my stay here it changed my life. They have great amenities an truly caring people.