OUR PROGRAM OUTLINE

Hope Hill Centre 12-step-recovery

Hope Hill Rehabilitation centre is a 12 step based centre. We believe in a holistic approach to recovery. Our program is based on the bio-psychosocial model and we believe in focusing on all aspects of the human being and not just the drug / alcohol abuse. Our program is formulated to give maximum exposure to a wealth of knowledge and experience on not only overcoming a crippling addiction but also on how to live a life free from substance use. The program is based on an extensive knowledge of the subject matter and years of experience as recovering addicts are involved and pivotal to quality support and guidance provided throughout the program. These experienced counsellors have been through the same process enhancing their understanding of what is required for each individual patient to find the strength and hope needed to live a life in recovery. Having been down the same path our counsellors understand the importance of an effectively structured and closely monitored journey into understanding the behaviour deficiencies which cause the individual to feel the need to turn to drug / alcohol use.

Simply abstaining from drugs / alcohol through sheer will power is not a sustainable state of being. The decision to stop using or drinking has to be accompanied with action to change the individual’s behaviour, reaction to life on life’s terms, image of self, and outlook on life. These changes have to be focused and sustained by working a strong program of recovery throughout the individual patient’s life. Our program is structured in such a way as to help every patient work on their own defects of character with gentle guidance and to lay the foundation for a lifetime of recovery and sustainable change trough making use of structured group therapy, individual one on one counselling sessions, activities group sessions and an introduction to the 12 step recovery programs used by outside organisations (AA, NA) of which the patient is encouraged to join after their stay at Hope Hill. The program is set out as follows.

DUTIES & ACTIVITIES EXPLAINED

Detox

Patients will undergo a medical assessment by a doctor upon admission in to the Centre and the doctor will decide the method and requirements for each patient`s individual detox. The doctor will prescribe medication if needed and this medication will be administered by a qualified person in accordance with the instructions of the doctor. Patients will be monitored during detox 24 hours a day by professional nurses and any medication needed during this period will be provided and administered by the nurse on duty.

Hope Hill Centre mind-body-soul

Grace Period

The initial 28 days of treatment is considered as the primary phase. Upon admission a medical assessment will be done by the Doctor and a bio-psychosocial assessment done by the social worker during which the duration of each patient’s grace period will be determined. The grace period may be utilised to settle in, become familiar with the facility, detox and sort out any medical emergencies. During the grace period it is not expected of the patient to take part in the daily routine, times and program of Hope Hill although the patient is allowed to take part if he/she should desire to do so. During the grace period the patient may be required to consult with the nurse, a doctor and a counselor. The standard grace period is approximately 3 days but is subject to the needs of each individual patient and will be extended if the need be.

Buddy System

After the admission process is complete, the patient will be assigned a ‘Buddy’; a patient dedicated to facilitate a smooth integration into the house.

The buddy will assist the new patient in understanding the every day processes of the facility. The new patient will be assigned a person who has been in the house for some time and knows just how the house functions and will pass their knowledge on to the new patient. Entering rehabilitation is a fearful prospect for a patient new to recovery and having someone to help with the small things helps to ease the initial frustrations upon entering the facility.

Hope Hill Centre Just-say-yes

Life Story

The patient will be required to write a life story in one week max (time allocation is subject to the counsellor`s discretion and length of stay). The length of the life story should equal a half of a page for each year of your life e.g. 13 pages if you are 26 years old. When writing the life story focus is not placed on basic facts but on significant events relating to addiction and substance abuse. Recovery is an emotional journey and the patient is encouraged to be as honest as possible during the writing of the story and to write about significant events, trauma, abuse, beliefs and influences of the beliefs, relationship dynamics, events that result in guilt and shame etc. The life story will be reviewed by the counselling team in order for them to best help and understand the patient and to structure the best care possible for the individual.

Wake Up Time

Wake up time in the mornings will be at 6h00, in order to ensure maximum productivity is achieved during a patient’s stay at Hope Hill. Wake up time is also set at a general wake up time of a productive member of a community or society at large.

Hope Hill Centre New-Opportunities

Duties

Duties are utilized to give the patient a sense of a positive routine and to prepare the patients for the responsibilities they will have as clean and sober individuals after their stay at Hope Hill. Duties are design to be completed within a 15 minute time frame once in the morning before breakfast and again in the afternoon after supper.

Behaviour Modification Group

Behaviour Modification Group is a mandatory group session in which patients have the opportunity to raise any concerns they may have with regards to any behaviour from themselves or others, any situations in the house, any concerns they may have over the program, any concerns they may have for others or any aspect of the daily goings on at Hope Hill Rehabilitation Centre. Patients are encouraged to bring any negative behaviour or rule breaking to light in order for the counsellors and supporting staff to take appropriate action and mitigate any borders to recovery in the Centre. Any rule breaking will be addressed and punished according to the set ‘House Rules’ and ‘Consequents list’. The House Rules and the Consequence List will be made readily available to all to ensure that all patients are treated fairly.  Behaviour Modification Group will be held every week day for 30 minutes after checking of duties is complete.

Hope Hill Centre Healing-Begins

Structured Group Therapy Sessions

Structured group sessions are led by counsellors on particular recovery related topics which the recovery team will decide on based on the current recovery atmosphere focusing on what education is best suited and most needed in the Centre at the given time. These therapy sessions are started with a brief lecture on the chosen topic that is followed by discussion or various activities to enhance understanding of the subject matter. These sessions are interactive and the patients are encouraged to participate and to share their experience. The patients are all at different stages of recovery and sharing their experience can give the newcomers the sense of security and confidence they need to participate and benefit from the therapy sessions.

Recovery deals with emotion and self-expression and having group therapy sessions gives the patient time to get used to the sharing of emotion, and ultimately start gaining experience in expressing their own emotions in front of others in the group. The skills in identifying and expressing emotion learned in these group sessions are an essential part of living clean in the emotionally challenging the world we live in.

Group therapy sessions have been proven to work in the recovery program setting and are used in recovery centres all over the world. Various factors are accredited with contributing to the success of this form of therapy. Some of these are the feeling of universality (“I am not alone nor have unique problems”), altruism (unselfish giving), instillation of hope, interpersonal learning, and development of social skills.

Topics that will be addressed include but are not limited to the following:

  • Denial
  • Honesty
  • Sponsorship
  • Powerlessness
  • Craving
  • Anger
  • Cross addiction
  • The Disease Models
  • Guilt and Shame
  • Emotional Self-expression
  • A.L.T
  • The 12 Steps of Recovery
  • Self-acceptance
  • Service
  • Self-will
  • Spiritual Awakening
  • Trust
  • Unmanageability
  • Using Dreams
  • Spiritual Principles
  • Open-mindedness
  • Willingness
  • Surrender
  • Tolerance
  • Just for Today
  • Gratitude
  • Meetings
  • Resentment
  • Secrets
  • Insanity
  • Hope
  • Higher Power
  • Prayer
  • Relapse
  • Rationalising
  • Patience
  • Freedom
  • Change
  • Empathy
  • Faith
  • Acceptance
  • Reservations

One-on-One Counselling Sessions

Every patient will have a counsellor assign to manage their program as their head counsellor. The head counsellor will have one-on-one sessions with their patients guiding them through the recovery program of Hope Hill Rehabilitation Centre, providing emotional support and helping patients receive the most possible educational value out of what they are experiencing. Recovery is a process of emotional growth that our experienced counsellors have been through themselves and it is that experience that provides the effectiveness to these sessions.

We believe there is no person better qualified to help and understand an addict / alcoholic than another addict / alcoholic. Our counsellors who are living clean, sober and successful lives prove to the patients that there is a life after drugs / alcohol and the example they set is a great source of hope to patients. During one-on-one session time counsellors will also focus on behaviour deficiencies of the individual patients and work through subject matter specific to the behaviour like anger management, self-esteem, false belief systems, the effects of fear etc. One-on-one counselling will be done during the ‘Step Work’ session times on the daily program, counsellors will take the individual patients to tranquil, private spots on the grounds at Hope Hill for their one-on-one counselling sessions.

The program at Hope Hill Recovery Centre is largely based on the sharing of experience from one addict / alcoholic to the person new to the program and to living clean. This was the first form of counselling and support system that has been proven to work as a program of recovery and was first used by Alcoholics Anonymous in the 1930`s. The success of the program of recovery used led to the printing of “The Big Book of Alcoholics Anonymous” in 1939 which has become know as the basic text for a proven, sustainable program of recovery.

Step Work

Step working sessions are where patients are introduced to the 12 steps worked in the 12 step recovery programs. Step work sessions are sessions where patients go through subject matter on the 12 steps starting with step one, and physically answer questions dealing with their addiction / alcoholism by writing in books that will be provided. The step work done at Hope Hill is closely based on the step work done in Narcotics Anonymous and Alcoholics Anonymous and provides a solid groundwork for when the patient leaves the care and safety of the Centre and is encouraged to join one of these unaffiliated organisations.

Step work is an all-important part of the recovery process as it deals directly with the behaviour that results in drug / alcohol use and the resulting unmanageability. During their stay at Hope Hill Recovery Centre patients will have a set goal of finishing Step 1, 2 and 3 while still in the safety of the facility. Our counsellors are experienced in doing step work and are able to identify key recovery concepts that need to be present in the step work of a patient seeking to recover. The counsellors will mark the step work done the previous day every morning and coach patients on how to answer the questions to get the most value in recovery from the time spent doing the work. Before the patient starts with their step work, they will have a one-on-one counselling session with their head counsellor who will explain to the patient exactly how and why step work is such an effective tool of recovery used by all 12 step programs .

Activities Group

Activities group is a session that will be held as a group every day focusing on the development of various skills needed in everyday life. When addicts / alcoholics are admitted into institutions many of them have lost any knowledge of normal living and have lost touch with how society functions and what is socially acceptable behaviour. Activities group is where patients are taught about self-care, job seeking and interview etiquette, role play every day life situations, are divided into smaller groups and play board games in order to develop social skills and learn how to interact with others in a controlled, safe environment. These structured sessions are led by counsellors and aim to addressing the fear of interaction and of conflict, stress and life situations outside of the safe-zone created by the Centre.

Activities group also focuses on finding things patients enjoy in life. An important factor of recovery is finding a satisfactory life without using and drinking. Many addicts / alcoholics have been living only in their routine of using/drinking for many years and have forgotten how to find joy in life in any other way. Life after addiction / alcoholism has to be enjoyable and has to reach a point where being sober is clearly more exciting and enjoyable than active addiction / alcoholism ever was. In order to reach this point Hope Hill will attempt to introduce or reintroduce the patient to activities or hobbies they may enjoy and may have enjoyed in the past.

These skills and activities may include but are not limited to the following:

  • Setting relationship boundaries
  • Damage letters
  • Dealing with conflict role play
  • Job application and interview
  • Self-care
  • Personal hygiene
  • Relationships
  • Honesty
  • Work situations
  • Dealing with disappointment
  • Depression and recovery
  • Life stories
  • Walks in nature
  • Meditation
  • Guided meditation
  • Yoga
  • Painting
  • Board games
  • Arts & crafts
  • Listening to shares
  • Sports
  • Special motivational speakers

Step 10 Daily Diary

Patients will receive a diary upon admission and will be expected to write about how they are feeling, how the recovery process is affecting them emotionally and describe any extreme feelings they may have experienced during the day. Taking an inventory of the patient’s feelings and reactions during the day helps the counsellors identify patterns of behaviour and how the patient reacts to their emotions. Drug / alcohol abuse is how the addict attempts to deal with strong emotions and being able to identify the patient’s emotional triggers is key to structuring an effective program of recovery for every individual patient. These step 10 diaries will be completed daily and handed in every night at 22:00 and will be viewed by the counselling team in the morning before the daily program starts, this will enable the counselling team to get a better idea of what support, guidance, counselling and activities will best help the patient to grow in recovery.

The step 10 diary is also a way for any patient to communicate directly to his / her counsellor. The diary gives the patient an opportunity to say things to the counsellor that the patient may find hard to talk about. The diary gives the patient a chance to talk about past abuse, sexual abuse, shameful actions, or any undesirable events in their own time and without the fear and pressure of having to discuss these painful experiences face to face.

Professional Psychiatrist

The primary care at Hope Hill will be provided by counsellors but access to a professional Psychiatrist will be provided for patients who need or request to see the psychiatrist. Hope Hill is an affiliate of a well-respected Psychiatrist in the field of addiction. Upon admission into the in-patient program an initial bio-psychosocial assessment will be done by the Social Worker. In this assessment or upon the request of the counselling team the Social Worker will review the case and make the necessary recommendations based on the information available.

Hope Hill Centre Hope-Hill-section

Social Worker

Hope Hill works closely with Marllet Els who is a well-respected Social Worker with 25 years’ experience in the field of addiction. Every patient entering treatment at Hope Hill Recovery Centre will have their initial bio-psychosocial assessment done by Marllet. The counselling team will work with the patient teaching them the skills they need to live a clean and sober life, and the Social Worker will be responsible for the re-integration into family and community. The Social worker will research and provide information on 12 step meetings and other forms of support for the patient in their direct area providing them with alternatives to their usual people, places and things. The Social Worker is also able to facilitate family counselling sessions and will assess and assist in this regard when deemed necessary. By recruiting the professional help from the relevant experts in their fields Hope Hill truly does provide comprehensive service facilitated by a multi-professional team.

Hope Hill Centre enough

Medical Educational Sessions

One session a week is reserved for a medical professional to come in from the outside and provide the patients with information on the medical effects of substance use disorder on the mind and the body.

Physical Exercise

Every Friday there will be a guided walk up the mountain situated on the grounds of Hope Hill Rehabilitation Centre. The walk will provide the patients with exercise and also introduce them to a possible healthy lifestyle activity. The experience of being in nature will also aid in the spiritual aspect of the program giving the patient the sense of humility and being one with the world around them.

Motivational Speakers

Motivational speakers who are living clean, sober and successful lives will be invited to come and share their experience, strength and hope with the patients. This will be held every Friday afternoon after the week of working the program. Seeing a person who is living a life free from substance use and hearing their stories of how they experienced hardship and turned to substances as the answer to their problems, and how they then achieved freedom from the desire to use is a truly inspiring experience for any person trying to do the same.

NA/AA Meetings

It is strongly suggested that the patient immediately join one of the unaffiliated programs of recovery upon completion of their program at Hope Hill. Meeting attendance will be mandatory at the facility and all patients are expected to attended. Meetings are where the patient is able to find the unity and support from other addicts / alcoholics who live the life of recovery that the program of Hope Hill Rehabilitation Centre is based on. Meetings are where recovering addicts / alcoholics from all walks of life share their experience, strength and hope and help others to live a clean and sober life. Meetings is where the patient is able go and get a sponsor to guide them through their program after their stay at Hope Hill. These meetings are also where the patient can go to get service positions within the organisations to give them that sense of responsibility while they are getting back on their feet. Hope Hill Rehabilitation Centre will expose the patient to the format of these meetings and to members from the outside world who will come to the facility on selected nights and join the NA / AA meetings. These members will provide encouragement and hope to patients for their own recovery. Hope Hill will also invite special and inspirational guest speakers with impressive clean time to come and share their stories with the patients in order to show them that long term recovery is a sustainable vision.

The following meetings will be hosted by Hope Hill Rehabilitation Centre:  

  • NA “Just for Today” meetings every Monday night open to outside recovering addicts.
  • AA meetings every Tuesday night closed to the public.
  • AA “Big Book” meeting every Wednesday night open to outside recovering alcoholics.
  • NA meeting every Thursday night closed to the public.
  • NA / AA speaker on Friday nights dependent on speaker availability.
Hope Hill Centre meetings

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Free Time

Free time as outlined on the daily program is between group session and may be used for reflection, smoking or as the patient chooses but staying within the confines of the Hope Hill rules.

Spring Cleaning

Spring cleaning is supervised by a counsellor and takes place every Saturday morning before visiting time. During this time patients will be expected to spring clean sections of the house that will be assign to them. Sections are rotated and the patient will have a different section every Saturday. Spring cleaning is done to equip patients with the self-discipline needed when they leave the safety of the institution. Assigned areas will be checked by the counsellor on duty and cleaning will be held to a high standard to ensure every patient takes responsibility for their section.

Visiting Hours & Phone Calls

Visiting Hours

  • Saturdays from 12:00 to 17:00
  • Sundays from 10:00 to 17:00.
  • Public holidays will be treated as Sundays. (Sunday program, Sunday visiting hours)

Phone Calls

  • Tuesdays & Thursdays: 17h00 – 22h00
  • Sundays and public holidays: 13h00 – 22h00