Adventure therapy: 6 reasons to consider this therapeutic practice

A hike through the mountains, a kayak on a river, a ropes course or a ramble through the woods: These aren’t the settings one might usually associate with psychological treatment. Yet that’s exactly what you’re in for with adventure therapy, a form of mental health care that combines physical outdoor challenges with professional therapeutic counseling.

What is adventure therapy?

In a traditional therapeutic setting, client and counselor would most likely spend their session sitting in a quiet room, using conversation to unpack complex emotions and life experiences. Adventure therapy shakes up that dynamic. It’s an active experience, presenting participants with hands-on experiences designed to gently nudge them out of their comfort zones in a dynamic, refreshing environment.

Reasons to consider adventure therapy

Here are six reasons why adventure therapy might be the right fit for those seeking a slightly more non-traditional mental health treatment experience.

1. Clients learn through experience

It’s a lesson parents, teachers and students all discover first-hand: Not everyone learns the same way. Expecting traditional talk therapy to produce the same therapeutic results in everyone is a surefire way to leave some people behind. 

2. Metaphors become medicine

Sometimes the experience of falling down and getting back up again can be powerful all on its own. But with a licensed therapist providing a framework for the experience (and subsequent discussion), that experience becomes even more potent. 

Clients who deal with trust issues may find themselves rock-climbing with a partner who has to belay them on a cliff face. Those who struggle to communicate with others might climb into a tandem kayak and navigate rapid waters with a partner. These experiences are followed by conversations with a therapist who helps translate the metaphor into practical insights linked to personal mental health challenges.

3. It can bypass roadblocks in traditional therapy

Talk therapy alone isn’t enough for some clients. A person might be wary of delving too deep with a stranger or professional. Another may have reached an impasse in their therapy journey, feeling stuck and frustrated by a lack of progress. And others may simply find themselves fatigued – even the most self-aware person might run out of things to say, even with healing still to do. 

Adventure therapy quite literally removes the walls that box participants in, pushing them in new directions, encouraging them to drop their defenses, and bringing the natural world into the conversation, rather than narrowing the focus to a room and two voices. 

4. It can help clients manage stress in real time

In talk therapy, help typically arrives after stress has retreated. But with adventure therapy, positive stressors are navigated in real time. A client may find themselves frustrated, uneasy, or even panicked by the challenges they face – but these are safe stresses, and a therapist is on hand to help the client in the moment, by talking them through regulating their breathing, practicing emotional self-regulation, or using problem-solving skills to navigate whatever they’re facing.

5. Teamwork is a vital piece of the equation

Many outdoor challenges are team-based experiences, requiring communication and joint effort to complete. Among the skills participants may learn or strengthen: boundary-setting, asking for help, developing trust, practicing healthy communication, and such tools that may prove useful, even vital. 

6. Broad and specific benefits

Adventure therapy is not one size fits all. According to Newport Healthcare, each activity is tied to an objective aligned to the patient’s therapeutic goals. These can include improving self-esteem, increasing self-advocacy skills, developing rapport and authentic connections between peers, encouraging healthy social activities and behaviors, building trust in one’s peers and in yourself, and increasing mental resilience and the confidence that life’s obstacles can be overcome. Licensed therapists dovetail the experiences to the client’s individual needs and goals.

Does that mean the practice will not benefit someone without a specific goal? Not by any means. Gary Fedoroff, National Director of Experiential Learning for Newport Healthcare, notes that not every activity needs to have a specific clinical focus. Patients seek help in times of strife, and the experiences themselves allow for fresh air and fun. 

"There’s therapeutic value in that," Fedoroff explains.

About Newport Healthcare

If you are a parent or referring care provider who knows a child, teen, or young adult who could benefit from treatment, Newport is here to help. With 70+ residential programs and 20+ outpatient programs in a dozen states across the country, and in- and out-of-network partnerships with a large array of insurance providers, Newport makes mental healthcare more accessible and affordable to families.

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