Blog

By: Mike McGee, BS Family Program Manager For anyone who has participated in a Rites of Passage experience, structured or otherwise, one of the toughest tasks is explaining the significance to loved ones. The feeling of transformation or the significance of a falling leaf or animal encounter can be easily lost in translation. For students …

By: Sharon Findlay, Admissions & Communication Manager Pacific Quest is excited to announce enhanced clinical services in our young adult program! Based on the need and intensity during the Kuleana Phase, PQ has added another therapist to support students through this critical stage of the program. Students will continue to meet with their primary therapist …

Dr. Lorraine Freedle, Clinical Director at Pacific Quest Wilderness Program, was asked to contribute her original work to The Routledge International Handbook of Sandplay Therapy.  Dr. Freedle’s chapter, “Healing Trauma through Sandplay Therapy:  A Neuropsychological Perspective” explores the underlying mechanisms of Jungian sandplay therapy that promote neural integration and wholeness of personality.  It also chronicles …

By: Teresa Bertoncin, LPCC, LMFT Two Pacific Quest team members recently co-presented at the 2017 Independent Educational Consultant Association conference in Denver.  Teresa Bertoncin, Primary Therapist, and Dr. Robert Voloshin, Integrative Psychiatrist, presented “Breaking through Trauma: EMDR in Outdoor Behavioral Health”. It began by engaging the audience in an experiential sensory integration resourcing exercise using elements of sight, sound …

By: Clementine Wilson, Adolescent Field Manager **A note on the word Queer: “We recognize and honor that the word “queer” has been used in the past as a derogatory term and is still very hurtful for some in the LGBTQIA+ community. Many LGBTQIA+ organizations and communities have reclaimed the word “queer” and this has been …

By: Lynne Mollo, LCSW Primary Therapist I was honored to begin the celebration of Autism Awareness month with a group of Educational Consultants, Wilderness therapists, Social Workers, Psychologists, Doctors, Parents and many other professionals working with children and adults on the Spectrum. On April 2nd and 3rd Asheville North Carolina was host to the 4th …

By Brian Konik, Ph.D. and Kristen McFee, MA, LPCC I am always inspired and impressed when I watch a student complete his or her legacy garden project: they are beaming with pride, smiling, wiping sweat off their soil-covered faces. And I know how many steps it took them to get here. Managing their schedule to …

By: Kristen Sutton, Therapist, & Lauren Meyer, Field Coordinator Over 80 people attended a recent continuing education (CE) event offered by Pacific Quest (PQ). Community service and the ability to “give back” are essential cornerstones of the program, therefore, PQ offered this CE event free of charge to Big Island mental health professionals.  Attendees included …

“Pacific quest changed my life; I realize now that nothing is impossible. With just some water and a seed I can create a whole ecosystem of life. Life at Pacific Quest helped me express my emotions in a positive way. Pacific Quest will change your life, too, if you just let it.” – Pacific Quest …

By: Tom Jameson, Therapist, & Maureen Sullivan, Therapist Last week, Pacific Quest (PQ) presented a breakout session at the National Association for Therapeutic Schools and Programs (NATSAP) Conference. Tom Jameson and Maureen Sullivan, both PQ therapists, teamed up to showcase the unique ways in which PQ addresses grief and loss in the context of our …