Alcohol Addiction

San Cristobal Academy is a 12-step based program for young adult men ages 17 to 26 who are often dually diagnosed or have co-occurring conditions. Often they come to SCA from other primary programs.

The primary focus for San Cristobal Academy is the process that comes after detoxification, often referred to as Post Acute Withdrawal or PAWS. Post Acute Withdrawal means symptoms that occur as a result of abstinence from addictive chemicals and normally start after the first two to four weeks of sobriety. The symptoms in some form are common and the types may include:

1. Inability to think clearly
2. Memory problems
3. Emotional overreactions or numbness
4. Sleep disorders
5. Physical coordination problems and
6. Stress sensitivity

Research has found that alcohol addiction and substance abuse disorders are chronic and to some extent the PAWS symptoms will come and go for the rest of an addict’s life. What’s critical for the addict is to fully understand their symptoms and learn how to manage them successfully to prevent destructive relapse patterns. Also critical for recovering addicts is the need for treatment staff to understand the disease and personally relate to the ongoing recovery needs of someone dealing with Post Acute Withdrawal Syndrome. Today, 80% of San Cristobal Academy staff members are in recovery themselves.

Chemical dependency is a disease that causes a person to lose control over use of alcohol and/or other chemical substances. It is classified by the AMA as an addiction. Unfortunately, unlike other diseases it affects the total person and in that sense it often causes serious physical, psychological, social, and spiritual problems. Shorter-term programs for addiction recovery are designed to intervene and break the cycle of addiction. Their primary objective is to help the addict or abuser to detoxify, assess overall health, stabilize personal health, and begin the process of addiction recovery through educating the addict on the field of addiction and what next steps he/she should building into their aftercare program or continuing care program. San Cristobal Academy is classified as a continuing care program, with the majority of our students coming from shorter-term wilderness or primary care treatment centers.

What’s special and unique about San Cristobal is our holistic approach to treating young adult men dealing with the complex and stubborn nature of alcohol addiction and chemical dependency addiction. Given the bio, psycho, social nature of this disease, it’s often hard to determine what came first. Did a psychologically related condition drive the abuser or addict to use? Or did the use of chemicals damage the brain, which in turn damaged the user’s ability to think clearly, solve problems, and relate successfully with others? Doctors, psychiatrists, and treatment professionals universally agree that an addict’s best hope is to participate in long-term, integrated treatment that deals with the “whole person”. Finding the exact cause is less important than full engagement in a program that builds on sobriety with a comprehensive and integrated treatment approach dealing with physical health, psychological wellbeing, academic and/or vocational training, combined with a comprehensive curriculum of transitional living skills.

Please call the San Cristobal Academy Admissions Office at (866) 918-8383 for immediate help or assistance in locating an Educational Consultant or a primary program referral.