Blog

By Denise Westman, Outreach Director After spending many years working in this industry in a variety of treatment settings, meeting and working with some incredibly talented and gifted people, I am filled with gratitude to be at Pacific Quest.  PQ’s approach to embracing change and sustainable growth not only applies to our students and families, …

If you are like many parents you were warned when your darling toddler was starting into some adorable defiance: “Just wait ‘til they’re teenagers!” You may have thought a problem teenager would never happen to you because you’re such an attentive, caring, thoughtful, amazing parent. You made your child good food, drove them to all …

If you have struggled with how to manage and raise your troubled teenager, you may have had the discussion about where to get help outside your family circle and the community around you. Fortunately, there are specialized programs targeted at varying degrees of outcomes depending on the ultimate needs of your particular child. Whether you …

By Mike Sullivan, Therapist This is fascinating – and you will likely be able to relate to this.  Mihály Csíkszentmihályi and colleagues in Italy pondered the mental state of artists while in the act of creating art.  Through phenomenological studies, Csíkszentmihályi, maintains that people can basically become absorbed into an activity and reach a particular …

Do you have a teen that has bouts of irritability, angry outbursts or occasional mood swings? If yes, then you have a very typical teen moving through the transition from childhood to adulthood with a healthy dose of emotional growing pains. These types of benign behaviors are not depression. Depression is a clinical diagnosis that …

Dr. Kimo Alameda, Director of the Hawaii Department of Health interviewed three key professionals from Pacific Quest wilderness therapy program in a weekly wellness talk show on the Big Island of Hawaii.  The television program “Rise Above” invites speakers to share information on issues of importance related to health and wellness.  This week’s show focused …

By Travis Slagle, Horticulture Therapy Director To love the land is the oldest and most essential way of life in Hawaii.  The people who care deeply for the land know what it means to be “pono” (to have integrity); they respect the ancestors by continuing their work, by planting the seeds, cultivating the “kalo” (taro), …

By Kelly Weld, Therapist Being a counselor at an intervention program is a challenging and rewarding task. When students arrive they are lost and desperate, their families are in crisis, and it is our job to help re-align the system in a relatively short period of time. The process feels first like a roller-coaster (with …

By Kelly Egan, Young Adult Program Director Aloha! Or in Thai it would be Sawadhee Ka! It’s so true that Pacific Quest wilderness therapy program is about adventure and journey – both the interior and exterior kind. Every day I’m part of someone’s journey here: our staff, a young adult student, and certainly my own. …

By Martha Bouchard, Program Director What feeds a community? There are the rote answers: food, water, shelter. But let’s assume your basic needs are being met. What comes next? For me, it is being part of a community that allows space for people to learn, grow and change. One of my greatest joys in working …