Blog

Viewing entries posted in 2020

Social Graces

Posted by Judith Sadora on August 12, 2020 | 1 comment(s)

08F1B561 08F5 4C62 A245 C1C7F138320B 1 201 aI’ve been fortunate enough to have had some great experiences working with families, especially parents. As a parent educator and my experiences as someone’s child, I have seen different important factors that affect a parent and child relationship. In my graduate studies, I learned of a culturally diverse concept that helped clinical therapists consider contextual factors that make up an individual.

Read the full post

On Hiking

Posted by Brea Holland on August 05, 2020 | 1 comment(s)

764F06F2 CC92 4C2F 85A3 61CF0CC8CE5D 1 201 aFor me, hiking is hard, yet simple. And it’s a lot like life. Let me explain what I mean. I was recently on a big hike with some friends to an alpine lake, which was supposedly a beautiful and fun way to spend a day.

Read the full post

Words for the Wise: Evokian Wildy-slang

Posted by Lindsey Bosse on July 29, 2020 | 2 comment(s)

9C03C951 FC16 4C22 85DB 01C4434467ACMost folks who have worked in wilderness have become familiar with strange languages borne from years of living in the wild. To this day I find myself saying things like, “Did you bring your wig?” when asking my partner if they have their sleeping bag for a camping trip, or “Do we have torts for taco night?” to my roommate at the grocery store in reference to the tortilla rack. Even staff who have been gone for years and are now working in non-wilderness realms will throw Evokian lingo into our daily conversations, “I could just really use some p-time right now,” when rain-checking plans in order to have some personal/alone time.

Read the full post

Symbiosis

Posted by Jordan Machtelinckx on July 09, 2020 | 1 comment(s)

Jordan Machtelinckx 148Evoke wouldn’t be what it is today if it weren’t founded on symbiotic relationships at every level. Students and field instructors live together and support each other every week in the wilderness. Parents, students, and therapists work together constantly to achieve therapeutic outcomes. And our Cascades and Entrada offices partner with local companies and organizations as much as possible to help everyone in the community thrive. My career-development experience has been no exception.

Read the full post

Expressing Yourself: Creativity in the Field

Posted by Kate on July 01, 2020 | 2 comment(s)

488776E7 1660 4F59 A126 00717FBAAE25Living in the wilderness provides many opportunities for creativity. Absent the items and distractions we can come to depend upon in the front country, we are required to find new ways to do things. The field is an environment in which students practice creativity as not only a way to be resourceful, but also to have fun! I’ll cover some of the ways we find creativity in the back country.

Read the full post

Extinction Bursts: It’s Going to Get Worse Before It Gets Better

Posted by Phil Bryan on June 24, 2020 | 2 comment(s)

977E4C6A D238 4BF2 ABED 012CCFC4FB44Extinction burst is a term used to describe a fairly common phenomena in therapeutic treatment. Namely, when the therapist, program, or even individual tries to stop an unwanted behavior by no longer reinforcing it, that behavior will reassert itself for a time, and can increase in intensity before it goes away. I believe many Evoke parents will be able to relate to this, and have potentially experienced it without knowing it at the time.

Read the full post

When a Fire Is More Than a Fire

Posted by Jakob Gowell on June 15, 2020 | 0 comment(s)

fireMuch has been written on the Evoke blog about bow-drill fires—one of the three pillars of Evoke's program—and for good reason. Part metaphor, part diagnostic tool, part rite of passage, they already possess depth of purpose. I wish, however, to dig deeper and offer one more perspective on their potential as a therapeutic intervention, stemming from my ongoing exploration of Self-Determination Theory (SDT), a branch of psychology that explores human motivation, development, and wellness through the lens of basic psychological needs for autonomy, competence, and relatedness. Used with care, I believe friction-firemaking can support all three. Here's how.

Read the full post

Heroic Parent Work: Writing Your Letter of Awareness

Posted by Dr. Matt Hoag on June 03, 2020 | 0 comment(s)

1matt resizedWilderness treatment began as an intervention where the identified patient, typically an adolescent or young adult, left their home to go and receive therapy in an outdoor setting. Yet, the patient’s challenges occurred within a family setting and dynamic, so wilderness therapy has evolved to include the parents in the treatment process, rather than just their child. Evoke has taken the lead in involving parents in Wilderness Treatment, as family systems and dynamics have increasingly become emphasized and explored. We offer the following interventions:

Read the full post