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.

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.

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.

An eye opener I can honestly tell you that St. Judes not only saved my life, but made my life a whole lot better. I attended St. Judes in 2011 and to this day I speak with the counselors on a regular basis. They continue to share experiences that I can use in my everyday life. I can proudly say that many of them have become my friends. St. Judes to me is more of an education than anything else. It taught me to discover the reasons "why" I wanted to use drugs and alcohol. Once I knew why, I could really focus on how to make it better. I would and have highly recommended St. Judes. For anyone that really wants to live a better life... Oh and the food..... AMAZING!!!! 😜

Positive Transformation Go here first! The Freedom Model should be taught in grade school! This is a truly positive program that can transform your life! I look forward to it's continued expansion. For me this has been the beginning of a whole new way of life without fear and dread. There is also no longer any need to rearrange external circumstances to try and make me feel in control. Life can flow and I can flow with it and still accomplish everything that I need or want to do.