Testimonials
Family Testimonials
“After nearly 6 years of trying to find help & hope for our son who was losing his life to addiction our paths crossed with Embark Recovery. We had been through nearly 10 in and outpatient facilities, years of overdoses and relapses and complete heartache & hopelessness.
Embark and their incredible team restored our faith in recovery and in our son. Their approach is so compassionate and personal and our family is healing through the recovery Embark is providing for us all. They are truly changing & saving lives by guiding young men into rebuilding who they are outside of addiction through boundaries, accountability and integrity.
My gratitude is unmeasurable and I know that my son is alive and recovering today because of what Embark has helped him discover. This is by far the most effective recovery program our family has ever been part of. We are so grateful to have our son alive, sober, healing and surrounded by incredible young men in recovery.
Thank you Taylor & founders of Embark Recovery.”
— Carey Keenan-Rowell
“I am so thankful for the Embark Recovery program and team. For the first time in many years, I truly have hope for my son’s future. Unfortunately, my son’s addiction issues started so young he never gave himself the opportunity to grow into the man I knew he could be. While we had tried other programs which provided short periods of sobriety, we did not have any success in truly dealing with his addiction issues until he went through the Embark Recovery program.
The program provided my son with not only a process to follow to maintain his sobriety, but intense therapy that enabled him to understand the why behind his path of addiction. He now embraces many basic life skills that because of his addiction issues, he had little need for. The program provided him with a structure that allowed him to learn and understand what it meant to be a man, provide for his own needs, have meaningful relationships and most importantly, take responsibility for his actions.
As is common with addicts, my son had to face some very difficult circumstances because of bad decisions he made prior to becoming sober. I was amazed as he took responsibility for each issue, faced it straight on and paid the consequences of his actions. If not for the coping skills learned from the program, I know he would not have been able to get through this difficult time and maintain his sobriety. He faced each issue with a positive attitude and outlook, believing this was the last step in cleaning up his messed up life from addiction.
In addition to the renewed life the program has given my son, I’m also grateful for the support the team gave me. Taylor was very patient when explaining the program to me, understanding how addiction affects the entire family. Ryan’s weekly status calls were extremely helpful as it allowed me to stay informed but not interfere in the process. Andi’s reassurance that my son had learned the coping and impulse control skills needed to face life provided me great comfort. Most importantly, Taylor, Ryan and Andi helped me better understand my role and responsibility in my son’s addiction and recovery.
My son’s sobriety is a new start for my family. I cannot express how incredibly grateful I am for the Embark Recovery program and the Embark team. I know my son now has the tools to be a man we can all be proud of and live a meaningful life. Thank you Embark and team – you truly make a difference!!!!”
— Judy H
“It was March 2015. It seemed like there was no solution for my son. After going through 6 different treatment facilities, living on the street, out of his car, jail, hanging with dealers, criminals, prostitutes, and thieves in order to get drugs, and now being threatened at knife point and getting his jaw broken by a thug. Where was hope?
My life was in constant turmoil and trauma having a son immersed in his addiction for the past 8 years, nothing working and no end in sight. His choices were either to leave town, try and start a life somewhere else, or stay here and end up dead or in jail.
Then in one phone call everything changed. He called a friend who was on staff at EMBARK RECOVERY who gave my son Taylor's phone number. I could hear the change and hope in his voice as he spoke to Taylor and listened to him explain about EMBARK and how it works. This time it wasn’t arranged by me or his father. He made the call himself. Eight days later, he was on a plane to Arizona and a new life.
Everything about EMBARK is different. One of the key elements is that it is run by courageous young men who are about the same ages as their patients. They have walked the hard road from alcohol/addiction to recovery, and have set a peer group standard that is very powerful and effective. Embark is a perfect blend of structure and professional services combined with patience, compassion, and the wisdom of experience.
I have been through 9 Family Weeks in my life living with a husband and sons with addiction issues. EMBARK does not do a Family Week, but NOWHERE ELSE have I experienced such excellent family communication! The Family Liaison at EMBARK is exceptional and beyond compare. All of the liaison personnel were so good with the weekly calls and specific updates and progress of my son, and I have loved talking with all of them. I probably got to know Ryan best of all. He was always accessible. Whenever I needed anything he was there for me- courteous and dependable when I needed to get feedback or just air any concerns. Thank you, Ryan!
There is a verse in the Bible that says, “Iron sharpens iron”. This is the essence of EMBARK. The guys hold each other accountable with realistic expectations, helping to build responsibility, living skills, structure and recovery into the lives of their peers. This is hugely powerful. My son will graduate this Friday from EMBARK. He is 8 months clean, holding a job, and 180° different from when he first arrived. I am in awe and amazed at the difference this place has made in his life, not to mention the pride I feel for all his hard work and courage. I am eternally grateful to all the EMBARK team- the wonderful young men and the whole staff who have helped him start a new life! I thank God for the gift of EMBARK.”
— Marla Campbell
Patient Testimonials
“I came into embark recovery on August 21 2014. I came in after experiencing the grips of a horrifying drug and alcohol addiction. I had nothing left. I didn’t know how to stop drinking. I smelled like a homeless man. I didn’t know how to take showers, brush my teeth, do laundry or even dress myself appropriately. This is a brief description of the tragedy my life used to be.
What I like to touch on most is that before Embark Recovery I had no friends and knew nothing except loneliness and depression. The men in this program brought me in with open arms and open hearts. They did not judge me. They loved me. They showed me what true friends are and brought me into a fellowship of love and growth. Then they taught me how to show the same love, respect and care for the next man coming in. Now this experience wasn’t all rainbows and cookies. There were hard truths to swallow about myself. There were times the men around me had to tell me to shape up. They pushed me to grow and be a better man, which hurts sometimes.
The man I have become is something beyond anything I could have ever imagined. I have been taught how to be a friend and I have more friends than I know what to do with. My life is full of activities that I love participating in such as rock climbing, playing music and fully participating in life. The crushing loneliness and depression that so many addicts feel has been lifted and has been replace with contentment and excitement for what life has to bring. Thank God for Embark Recovery and the program they provide. I wouldn’t be half the man I am today without it.”
— Anonymous Patient
“Weeks before arriving to Arizona yet remaining conflicted confusion and pain so deep I couldn’t pull away from. Every day, minute, and second hurt my heart so badly to want to draw breath in this life. My only hope for happiness was to find peace; my only hope of having it, was to find a place of complete silence from my mind and sight of black through my eyes. The drugs and alcohol had stopped working.
Cutting my wrists became a lesser pain than what I felt. Believing that my only way out was destruction and death. At night on my knees, tears down my cheeks, I prayed to any God to take my life because I couldn’t allow myself to do so; so I started praying for just a chance —a second chance at life far from any type of life I’d ever known. It was my miracle of hope before I left this earth. That’s all my prayers were — hope — the hope to see my Mom happy again, the hope my Sister would come back home so I could just see her face and hug her one more time, hope my dad would someday forgive me for the pain and disappointment I caused, and hope my Brother would allow me to be a part of his life.
This place, you people (Embark) turned all my hope to reality. Gave me a chance to forge a miracle. Worked with me to find myself and never gave up on me, not matter what circumstance. Something nobody has ever done and something I thought that I didn’t deserve. You taught me how to feel loved and cared about. Showed me how to love myself. Gave me happiness and peace without death, my only option to obtain it. My miracle in life was Embark. All my dreams have come true. I used to wonder what it was to look in the mirror and know what you’re seeing. To be ok with what you saw.
Today I can look in the mirror and I finally know the answer. Words nor actions can ever show the gratitude I have. Thank you.”
— David S.