Tag: therapeutic gap year

Top 10 Benefits of a Live-In Therapeutic Coach in Our Wellness Adventure Program

10 Benefits of a Live-in Therapeutic Coach on our Wellness Adventure Program

In our wellness adventure program, a live-in therapeutic coach is not just an integral part of the support system; they are a catalyst for transformation. With their constant presence, expertise, and collaborative approach, they play a pivotal role in helping our students embark on a journey of self-discovery and growth. At Rooted Life Adventures, we are dedicated to providing the highest level of care and support, ensuring that every student’s wellness adventure is a meaningful and transformative experience.

Top 10 Benefits of a Live-In Therapeutic Coach in Our Wellness Adventure Program

1. 360-Degree Wellness Adventure Insight

When it comes to our wellness adventure program, having a live-in therapeutic coach offers a unique advantage. With their presence throughout the day, our therapeutic coach has an all-encompassing view of our students, observing their actions and behaviors in various contexts. This real-time insight enables them to provide timely guidance and support, making every moment a teachable one.

2. Leveraging Successes for Personal Growth

Our therapeutic coach is adept at recognizing and celebrating our students’ successes during volunteer experiences, cultural immersions, and active adventures. These accomplishments serve as powerful teaching tools, allowing our therapeutic coach to draw on them to support coaching efforts. It’s about turning achievements into stepping stones for personal growth.

3. Real-Life Learning in the Heart of Your Wellness Adventure

Understanding each student’s unique challenges is fundamental to our wellness adventure program’s success. Our live-in therapeutic coach is well-versed in each student’s challenges. They are also knowledgeable about past care initiatives, allowing them to tailor their approach to what works best for each individual.

4. A Collaborative Care Team

We believe in a collaborative approach to wellness. Our live-in therapeutic coach maintains communication with each student’s at-home therapist, acting as an extension of their care team. This collaborative effort ensures that all parties are aligned in their approach and goals, fostering a holistic experience.

5. Continuity of Care

We understand the importance of uninterrupted care. That’s why students continue their weekly sessions with their long-term at-home therapist during our program so no ground is lost. Our stable collaborative environment allows for ease of transition to, and from, program with their trusted at-home therapist helping them adapt to a new environment, learn skills away from home, and then utilizing their newly developed skills when they return.

6. Real Life Learning Environment

Our wellness and core curriculum are a welcomed break from the traditional therapy setting. We create a safe environment that encourages students to learn from one another through real-life experiences. This approach helps build essential life skills and reinforces personal growth, while also bringing in the healing power of play and silliness in a “camp-like” fun and games environment.

7. Group Sessions & In-the-Moment Coaching

Our live-in therapeutic coach facilitates two group sessions each week, providing students with a platform to explore and discuss their thoughts and feelings. Additionally, daily check-ins and in-the-moment coaching are available as often as needed, ensuring students receive timely support.

8. Thoughtful Transition Planning

We understand that transitions can be challenging. Our wellness adventure program includes comprehensive transition planning involving students, parents, home therapists, and educational consultants. This collaborative effort ensures a smooth transition from our program to the next phase of a student’s journey.

9. Progress Tracking & Parent Coaching

We provide clear and detailed written summaries of each student’s experiences, challenges, successes, and gains. We empower families, and their care team, to make well-informed decisions for next steps of that student’s journey with a summary of our 360 viewpoint, including recommendations. Parents are kept informed and involved throughout their child’s journey and offered supportive parent coaching. Three (3) parent coaching sessions at the beginning of our program, and three (3) parent coaching sessions towards the end of program to plan for the transition back home.

Learn more about our Parent Coach Jane Samuel, MA, CPC here.

10. Ongoing Communication for Your Wellness Adventure Journey

Communication is key. We provide weekly updates to parents, home therapists, and referral resources, ensuring everyone is well-informed about a student’s progress and challenges while participating in their wellness adventure. This open dialogue reinforces our commitment to the well-being of each student.

By Sharon Laney

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Our Team

Meet Amalia | Field Wellness Director

amalia gamboa field wellness director

Getting to learn about Costa Rica from a local is an incredible advantage – both culturally and linguistically. Amalia brings so much value to our program including high level outdoor acumen and aptitude for therapeutic engagement with students while in adventure settings like white water rafting or repelling down a waterfall. Amalia embodies the heart of Pura Vida and students will feel that and be inspired to open up to a global perspective.

Austin Rogers
Career Achievements Badge

Amalia Gamboa, CSW

Bachelor of Ecotourism, Universidad de Costa Rica
Utah State University, Master of Social Work, CMSW

Trained in:
• Cognitive Behavior Therapy
• Narrative Therapy
• Experiential Therapy
• AEGIS Crisis De-escalation
• First Aid CPR AED
• Technical Rope Rescue

Specializes in:
Trauma / Substance Use Disorders / Family Systems / Attachment / Lack of Motivation / Risk-Taking Behaviors / Self-Esteem Issues / Depression / Anxiety / Mood Disorders / Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD)

Pura Vida Costa Rica

Amalia’s love for playing tour guide in her home country of Costa Rica began at a young age. As a teenager, when her family hosted visitors from the U.S.A., Amalia was fascinated with the language and interactions between her and her family.

I was just a kid but I got a rush of adrenaline showing them things that were unique to my culture. I knew then I needed to follow that path.

Amalia Gamboa, CSW
Cultural Immersion is one of Rooted Life Adventures' core components. We work with local organizations to curate intentional cultural immersion activities where students can learn about diverse values, world views, skills, and life habits. Through this, students expand their worldview and enjoy a global perspective and new lens to view their lives at home. Click here to learn more.

With Costa Rica known for it’s tourism industry, Amalia pursued her bachelor’s degree in eco-tourism and began working at Outward Bound Costa Rica as an instructor. During this time, she explored her adventurous side with white water rafting, waterfall rappelling, and backpacking.

This opened the door for Amalia to work at Pure Life as a field guide and then a field director. Amalia’s responsibilities included always remaining vigilant in the oversight of the physical, mental, and emotional well-being of students, as well as ensuring policies and procedures were understood and implemented in every part of field operations. Amalia also was responsible for responding to and attending any emergency situation and providing medical care (WFR, AEGIS).

Certified Social Worker

Amalia loves showing students how to live a more simplistic lifestyle. Seeing how much the outdoors and therapy together can achieve inspired her to pursue and successfully earn a Masters in Social Work in Utah.

Rooted Life Adventures Supported Gap Year

After completing her MSW, Amalia was snapped up by pioneer of wilderness adventure therapy Aspiro Adventure Therapy. As field director, Amalia was charged with providing clinical services to students and their families, as well as leading therapeutic groups.

From adventure therapy to wilderness therapy, Amalia has worked with students from various backgrounds, particularly teens and young adults who struggle with risk-taking behaviors, defiance, and substance abuse. 

In March 2023, Amalia presented on The value of multicultural group dynamics. “Opening the doors to cultural interchange: Leveraging international diversity in wilderness therapy” at the Wilderness Therapy Symposium in North Carolina.

Amalia uses a mix of different modalities tailored to the needs of both the student and family. These include motivational interviewing, cognitive behavioral therapy, experiential therapy, and narrative therapy. Therapeutic coaching is available to RLA student’s on program 24/7. This is a unique offering as part of our supported gap year wellness adventures program.

I find narrative therapy can be particularly beneficial for helping students analyze and change the stories they tell themselves about the world. From my experience, I’ve seen first-hand how this type of therapy can benefit people who experience mood disorders, or learned helplessness, during their early adulthood.

Amalia Gamboa, CSW
Rooted Life Adventures Support Gap Year

Amalia finds joy in seeing students overcome their struggles and create lasting change in their lives. She is fluent in English and Spanish. Amalia is comfortable working with students in either language.

Amalia is our Field Wellness Director for our Costa Rica 10-Week Fall Program for Young Adults All Genders (ages 18-24) from September 21 – November 29, 2023.

#RLACostaRica #RLALife #TeamRLA

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Our Team

Meet Christy | Mental Health + Wellness Director

Christy is an exceptionally passionate advocate for the transformative abilities of adventure therapy in improving individual and collective well-being of adolescents and young adults. She came highly recommended from Dr. Maurie Lung, a legend in the adventure therapy and experiential education world.

Austin Rogers

Christy joins Rooted Life Adventures as our Mental Health and Wellness Director. Her background comes stacked with firsthand experience working with children and families as a social worker for almost 20 years. She is trained in Child Development and Mental Health, working with children as young as 8, to emerging adults around age 25. Christy has been running New Adventures, her own adventure therapy counseling center, for 5 years.

I use a client-centered approach to my work with folks, as no one knows you better than you know yourself. My hope is to help you see your strengths, and to thrive in them. 

Christy Brock

As our clinical support leader at HQ, you’ll first meet Christy when going through our application process. Her insight will ensure the integrity of our program is upheld, and every student accepted is a fit for our group dynamics. Christy will also support Elise – our field wellness director – while on program, and you may see her on location from time-to-time.

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Certified Clinical Adventure Therapist

As an Association of Experiential Education (AEE) Certified Clinical Adventure Therapist (CCAT), Christy has received specialized training in adventure therapy and been recognized for her knowledge, skills, competencies and experience. She is currently serving as the Vice Chair for the Therapeutic Adventure Professional Group, a subgroup of The Association for Experiential Education.

The practice of Adventure Therapy is the prescriptive use of adventure experiences provided by mental health professionals, often conducted in natural settings, that kinesthetically engage individuals, families and groups on cognitive, affective, and behavioral levels (Gass, et al, 2020).

Independently Licensed Social Worker

Christy is an Independently Licensed Social Worker, with a supervision designation, from the state of Ohio. She received her Master’s Degree in Social Work specializing in Children and Families, from The University of Cincinnati, in 2008. Christy also spent two years at Capital University, in Bexley, Ohio, earning her Bachelor of Social Work Degree in 2006.

In her spare time Christy loves indulging in the therapeutic effects the simple pleasures in life hold. You’ll find her sitting around a campfire, swinging in a hammock, hiking, playing board games, reading a book, or stargazing with her family and friends.

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From Our Founder

The NEW Gap Year Program with Mental Health Support

Austin Rogers

Our world is an intriguing place. I’ve always been fascinated by what it has to offer. From different cultures and values, to foods and languages, our global community is as expansive as it is beautiful.

Travel changes you from the inside out. It opens your eyes to different ways of doing things, thinking about things, and even how you think about yourself. I believe it is by broadening our horizons, challenging ourselves, and stepping outside of our comfort zone that we are truly inspired to grow into our most authentic selves.

Finding Purpose

In my pursuit of what the world has to offer, I myself left my hometown of Dallas, Texas and went in search of global experiences. It was in New Zealand, where my passion for outdoor experiential education found a natural fit in the international gap year community. 

Over the years, I have managed gap year programs with hundreds of U.S. students on 70-day multi-country adventures, from Nepal, Tibet, Southeast Asia, Central America, South America, Hawaii, Australia, and New Zealand. It was through this that I developed the greatest sense of self, of belonging, of capability, and purpose. 

I saw, firsthand, the increasing number of adolescents suffering from mental health challenges, and the growing need for increased mental health support in programs. Gen Z has demonstrated a craving for learning about emotional intelligence, social justice, identity, and empathy with an acute attention to their mental and emotional wellbeing like never before.

Addressing the “Gap” in Gap Year

After a research deep dive, it became clear that there were no programs holding the space between Gap Year and full on Adventure therapy, which can be overwhelming and with a price tag out of reach for most families. 

My mission became clear. I needed to create a therapeutic gap year program that would take the best of the gap year community, volunteer service learning, cultural immersion and adventures activities, and pair it with mental health support, psychoeducational development, and wrap around care. 

Rooted Life Adventures is that therapeutic gap year program. I have reimagined adventure, travel, and therapeutic coaching in a way that facilitates exponential growth and deep and meaningful change through the power of community and belonging.

The RLA Experience

RLA students experience what it means to be part of something bigger than themselves. They learn how responsibility, accountability, and transparency creates authentic connections. They build confidence, self-esteem, and cultivate lifelong friendships by being part of a close knit team – travelling together, learning together, and overcoming challenges as a collective.

By immersing students in other cultures, they will be able to find even more humanity. By volunteering and working shoulder-to-shoulder with locals, they’ll learn how to benefit their global community. By testing their limits in every direction – from rock climbing, hiking, surfing, canyoning, kayaking, backpacking, and white water rafting – students will reach inside themselves and realize they are capable of more than they ever imagined. And by supporting their emotional wellbeing throughout the journey, they will be empowered to understand themselves more deeply and connect with those around them more fully.

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Explore the world, and yourself, through a Rooted Life Adventure.

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#RLALife #RLACostaRica #RLANewZealand