Why and How did Bali become such a popular and great choice for Treatment Centers and drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers? The obvious answers are much cheaper costs for better luxury facilities, better bespoke treatment center programs, individualized treatment plans and spending time away from the hustle and bustle of home and going to treatment in a beautiful and exotic, spiritual place. The Reserve Luxury Rehab in Bali has the answers and solutions to all your questions, concerns and life challenges.
Even if you live under a rock in the hinterlands, you know that Bali has a serious drug problem. On a daily basis police and the drug squad (BNNP- National Narcotics Agency) make multiple arrests. Dealers, sub dealers, couriers, smugglers and users get scooped up into an ever widening dragnet. Drugs like ecstasy, ice, meth, cocaine, heroin and other subversive substances are confiscated by the truckloads. Balaclava-clad perps are paraded before the weary eyes of the public and the media.
The consequences of these arrests are often dire. Last year the Indonesian government executed 8 people for drug smuggling, including two of the Bali Nine group. Others are waiting their turn. At last count, the next list of victims is already drawn up and preparations are under way for the 2nd batch of state-sanctioned executions
.By international standards, sanctions for drug related crimes in Indonesia are draconian. Long prison sentences have long been imposed and more and more perpetrators are now receiving death sentences, all due to Indonesia’s new president who has zero tolerance for drugs. Draconian or not, the fact remains that Indonesia is very clear on the consequences of drug smuggling. Every point of entry into the country has clear warnings in the style of “Death to drug smugglers”. It’s obvious, in-your-face, and yet, these warnings do not seem to have much impact or function as a deterrent.
Drug use and addiction is the bane of all modern societies. It has a long history and a very high attraction rate. Wars have been fought over drugs and drugs have fueled many conflicts in turn. The opium trade is probably the oldest of the drug trade and even in Bali the opium trade was thriving in old times. The drug was used to pacify Balinese slaves and fighters.
Modern day Bali has seen an avalanche of drugs. Just about every drug is traded here; many are even manufactured here. Drug use is very pervasive and the addiction rate among the people of this island is staggering. Not just in Bali. Indonesia ranks 3rd in worldwide drug use statistics.
What is so attractive about drugs? Drug addiction, as many experts will tell you, is a disease just like alcoholism. The reason why some people are predisposed to become hard-core addicts has to do with many factors like genetics, environment, psychological make-up, anxiety disorders, etc. It takes little time for the body to crave an opiate once it is being consumed regularly, even recreationally. The craving leads to addiction and the only cure at this point is complete withdrawal. Like an ex-alcoholic who has to foreswear ever having a social drink again, the drug junkie also must totally abstain lest he or she relapses into the previous nasty habit.
Drug rehabilitation is totally possible and many drug treatment programs boast about good success rates. It is a long and tenuous road as exemplified by Danu, whose story was told in an earlier article. It is not easy but there are a respectable number of treatment centers on Bali that offer the necessary support to successfully kick the habit. They cater to both inpatient and outpatient clients and treatment costs range from the very affordable to the up-market luxurious. They offer a choice of treatment programs – traditional, holistic and spiritual – but most all make use of the famous 12-step program, a most effective course of action for recovery from addiction, compulsion and other behavioral problems.
Seasons is a private, fee-for-service enterprise with more than18 years experience in addiction treatment and so far has established residential rehabilitation program centers in Australia, Bali and Portugal. Thailand and Oman centers are in progress. Seasons Bali boasts two residential addiction treatment centers. There is an exclusive boutique style rehab in Pererenan that ensures absolute privacy and anonymity and takes only a small number of clients at a time. The other is Yayasan
Musim Indonesia (Seasons Indonesia Foundation), a charity in Kerobokan which is an affordable rehab for westerners and free for local Indonesians. Both operate separately with the same model and a program that provides a range of specialist treatment services to individuals suffering from drug and alcohol related problems.
Seasons’ philosophy is to treat addiction and its underlying causes on the basis of the physical, psychological, emotional, social and spiritual aspects of this disease. It incorporates a very comprehensive recovery program that includes a range of clinical therapies and therapeutic activities in order to provide individuals with the best possible chance of becoming and staying clean. It recognizes that recovery is an ongoing and long-term process and, to maximize the chances of success, the Seasons program is tailored to the specific needs of each individual.
To minimize relapse the residential treatment program, ranging from 28 to 90 days, is followed by a re-integration program in transitional housing and a robust aftercare program that offers ongoing counseling and continuing outpatient support, as the recovering addict moves back into normal life and stays clean.
Seasons boasts a success rate of 83% on its 90 day program, meaning that clients are still clean after 1 year. The 28-day program has a 40% success rate which indicates that longer-term stays are definitely better. This compares very favorably with a 5 to 15% success rate in Australian government institutions and a 35% rate in private hospitals.
The Seasons treatment plan starts with a 7-day detoxification program to ease withdrawal symptoms. This is followed by a bespoke program for each individual, administered by competent and qualified staff members who are themselves recovering addicts. Seasons employs some 40 staffers, therapeutic practitioners and consulting medical doctors besides massage therapists, yoga instructors and art teachers.
“I live my truth” says Seasons founder & program director Richard Smith. “I am a recovering addict myself and went through detox and withdrawal programs three times. I saw the gaps and decided to design a better program for which I was the proverbial test rabbit. I also incorporated the transitional housing plan to follow the addiction treatment program.” Considering Richard has been clean for 30 years, one could say his approach is clearly working.
As a community service, Seasons reserves 10% of its patient capacity to treat Indonesian nationals for free. Typically these are addicts who are poor and have been unsuccessfully treated at other withdrawal centers. Richard proudly refers to it as a Robin Hood model, where revenue from paying customers is earmarked to help the very poor on their own road to recovery. Over the course of his career he has treated many people for free in the Seasons program.
The Lighthouse, located in Sanur, is a private outpatient program which deals with individual recovering addicts on a one to one basis in a structured clinical program supported by intensive recovery coaching by experienced AOD (alcohol and other drug) counselors, certified educators and 24/7 backup and support. The Lighthouse has designed a holistic program, rooted in the Balinese philosophy of Tri Hita Karana with its focus on the interrelationship between man, spirit and nature. As such, the program seeks to create self-awareness in the individual’s reality, engender empowerment to overcome the challenges of withdrawal and bolster the self-esteem that comes with the realization that addiction and self-sabotage can be overcome. Intensive coaching by a team, who has itself overcome a variety of addictions, and the implementation of practical survival tools, engender a sense of security, motivation and trust. The approach to heal body, mind and spirit as an entity creates a balanced program of recovery from any drug or alcohol addiction.
Danu Prasetyoko, director of The Lighthouse, explains that not everyone is a candidate for the “traditional lockdown rehab”, and, more often than not, frequent relapsers need a different experience. The Lighthouse is able to address the specific needs of each client and tailor a unique program of recovery that focuses on those needs.
Typically upon admission, clients undergo a complete medical assessment and/or treatment by a consultant physician who is a Specialist in Psychiatry and Medicine. Where indicated, a detoxification program for alcohol and chemical dependency is administered under the supervision of health care professionals. Severe detox cases are referred to BIMC hospital prior to admission in The Lighthouse. When the client starts the recovery program at The Lighthouse, a primary wellness coach is assigned who will accompany the client throughout his or her voyage of recovery. The recovery program is totally client-centered and predicated upon his/her particular strengths and weaknesses. It is designed by experienced program managers and includes individual counseling sessions, immersion into a tailored education and wellness program, bolstered by wholesome physical and recreational activities.
Given the intensity of this holistic approach, the program is limited to serve no more than 2 to 3 clients at the same time. Though this program serves clients on an outpatient basis, guests are accommodated in a private and safe environment close to the beach in Sanur where their treatment plan is monitored by their assigned wellness coach, under medical supervision if necessary.
Change Rehab in Ubud is a holistic wellness center founded and directed by Linda Buller, a famous Ubud artist, holistic healer, Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and Samaritan founder of B.A.R.C., an adoption and rehabilitation center for Bali’s abandoned and mistreated animals. Linda has a soft spot for people and animals in need. She has firsthand knowledge and understanding of the misery and difficulties encountered by people addicted to alcohol and/or drugs as she is herself a recovering addict, now clean for 17 years
.Linda started the Change inpatient rehab center as a way to provide a safe and healing environment for her son, also a substance abuser. She developed a unique rehabilitation and wellness program that combines proven and effective Western practices like a 12-step program and a good dose of eastern holistic healing techniques such as reiki, acupuncture, herbal therapy, massage and yoga. A full gym membership with personal trainer and frequent swimming sessions are part of the recovery plan. To balance it all, the treatment program also uses art, plant and animal therapy. Linda considers it a learning program for future achievements, teaching us to deal with life without addictions in a positive way, living life on life’s terms, with grace and surrender.
The wellness center is housed in a private and homey villa close to Ubud where clients can enjoy total anonymity, seclusion and privacy. It functions as a sanctuary, far away from the stressful environments the clients left behind. A maximum of 5 inpatients are treated at one time to ensure the personal, one-on-one attention of the bespoke program that can last from 14 to 28 days. Due to the extensive medical care involved, detoxification is not part of the recovery treatment. Clients must be clean before they can enroll in the after-care wellness program.
The center employs a consultant staff of diverse practitioners and therapists who work with the clients. They are all recovering addicts themselves. A unique part of the program is the dog therapy, an innovative treatment technique that puts humans and animals, both in recovery from traumatic experiences, in an environment where they can love and comfort one another and speed up recovery. As Linda says, “all the dogs are also in recovery and as we give love and care, we also recover because we are caring for ourselves; if you have the philosophy that we are all connected to a higher consciousness, then we are healing the planet too.
”Linda is very involved with both Change and B.A.R.C. and she intends that the proceeds from the Change program will partially fund the adoption, treatment and homing of mistreated animals. She is also in the process of writing her memoirs, a book she hopes will reach out to people in need of addiction treatment by describing her own path from addiction to .“The only way out is in”, says Scott Bauer who is founder and director of Bali Addiction Treatment & Healing, a health and wellness retreat program in the Ubud area that is specifically designed to treat all manner of addictions, obsessive/compulsive behaviors, depression, grief and anxiety. This is a recovery program which differs from the western rehabilitation model and is steeped in holistic and spiritual principles, based on the proven wisdom of ancient eastern philosophies. Typically the clients enroll in Scott’s program after they have undergone a medically supervised detoxification program elsewhere and are ready to continue their healing process in a natural, stress-free environment by immersing themselves in a day to day process of undoing the damage they inflicted upon themselves.
The treatment plan is predicated upon understanding and treating the root causes of the individual’s addiction, rather than just treating the symptoms. Therefore it is designed for each individual client and specifically tailored to his or her specific needs. It is holistic in the sense that it treats all aspects of the individual: the physical, mental, spiritual and emotional make-up. It is composed of an artful mélange of spiritual practices, ayurvedic principles and physical & mental wellbeing activities. The program actively incorporates the 12-step program which Scott considers an essential component of the healing process. The spiritual practices may include yoga, pranayama, meditation, Balinese purification; ayurvedic diet, reiki, acupuncture, massage, cranio-sacral therapy; the physical & mental activities comprise music, art, dance, hiking. The Ashtanga yoga practiced is an 8-step path, seeking the calming of thoughts in the mind. The 8 steps involve Yama (restraints), Niyama (observances), Asana (position), Pranayama (breath regulation), Pratyahara (sense withdrawal), Dharana (concentration), Dhyana (meditation), and Samadhi (liberation).The Bali Addiction Treatment & Healing program is administered at several sites in and around Ubud commensurate with the type of treatment required. Guest accommodations are in private villas or 5-star luxury properties such as the Purist Villas & Spas. Treatments can last anywhere from 14 to 60 days depending on the type of addiction or emotional dysfunction. Each day the client is guided by one or many of the therapeutic practitioners on call.
Scott himself has been clean for 12 years and adamantly believes that only an ex-addict can truly understand, empathize and support the difficult process of recovery and reintegration of the recovering addict into society. It is an intensive but very effective program which has an average success rate of 60% for the 60-day program. Clients typically come from high stress environments like Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, the US; by immersion into a natural setting and the healing practices of the program, they start their transformation and recovery in a safe, comforting and supportive space. Meditation, not medication is the leitmotiv of this healing center.
A quick Google search will turn up more rehabilitation and drug treatment programs in Bali which more or less follow the same pattern and employ similar modalities. Their websites contain specific information about their individual programs. On the Indonesian side, there are a few non-profit organizations and some government sponsored programs to treat addicts.
Yakita (Yayasan Kasih Kita) is an NGO specializing in intervention, treatment and aftercare programs. Yakita makes use of proven recovery methods and techniques for treatment and healing from addiction. More than just a drug recovery program, it is a community working with addicts including those with HIV and Hepatitis C. Yakita’s main programs are drug treatment & recovery, prevention education, peer counseling, harm reduction, prison PALS, education and training. They are a nation-wide and international NGO with a chapter in Renon.
Yakeba (Yayasan Kesehatan Bali). The Bali Health Foundation is not an addiction treatment center but functions mainly as a support organization and as a center of information on referrals, prevention, care, and support of HIV-AIDS patients and drug abusers. Yakeba has initiated several programs for drug users including Harm Reduction among injecting drug users, a community based addiction recovery program, a peer-driven support program, voluntary counseling and testing (VCT), prison program, Vocational skills for former drug users (KUBE). Yakeba also runs several programs for high-risk communities like male homosexuals, TB sufferers, and people infected with HIV.
The ARK Bal is a private, individual treatment center in Sanur with a no-frills residential program that packs a lot of punch. They are also one of the most affordable.
GERASA (Generasi Bisa Indonesia) in Denpasar is another NGO doing a lot of work with drug addicts in outreach, prevention and mitigation programs. They also have programs for AIDS/HIV infected people, and work with victims of human trafficking and youthful offenders
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