As summer ends and fall begins, we all start to get back to our daily routines. A new school year begins for our kids and tans start to wear off had we been lucky enough to enjoy the sun. The world is now showing signs of the crisis weaning and we all look forward to a hopeful new year. I have realized that it has been almost a year since we last communicated with our friends and ex patients so I feel it is time I sent out a few updates about what we have been doing over the past months along with some exciting developments in the pipeline.

It has been just over a year since we relocated to a beautiful farmhouse set over 12 acres in the peaceful and tranquil countryside of Deal, surrounded by breathtaking National Nature Reserves. We worked hard to maintain high standards of treatments that we are accustomed to offer whilst ensuring that our patients did not experience any interruption to our services. Sadly, Mum and Dad decided to move on to different projects as I did my utmost to carry over that homely feeling we had at Nonington over to our new clinic. I am excited to bring you news of what’s to come and introduce you to our new home at Hay Farm.

In this newsletter, you will find news of our continued expansion abroad and online as we strive to provide innovative services to help us all continue on our path of recovery. I am particularly looking forward to getting in touch with you personally through our new online portals, which I hope will help all the PROMIS alumni to support each other, meet new people in recovery and share our experiences together once again. If you do try our new portals whilst in Beta, please do send us a message, we would love to hear what you have been up to and any feedback is welcomed.

Best Wishes,

myRecoveryNet is a social networking site for recovery, founded in order to continue the work of TRN, a popular recovery network which had to close down due to financial reasons. It was a shame to see such a useful tool that helped so many in recovery disappear and so we decided to lend a hand to help rebuild the community. There are forums for discussions, chat rooms for meetings, blogs for personal expression and more. Even though the site is only in the testing phase with many improvements on the way, we already have members joining us from all around the world and setting up regular meetings to share their experiences. Please feel free to sign up for your free account now and you will be the first to know of the official launch.

myRecoveryPlanner is a website for workbooks and tools to aid in recovery. You can store your work as you complete various exercises and, should you choose, have a verified counselor go over your progress with you. We have started with a 12 step workbook to give people a good introduction to the 12 steps. We are also producing more exercises to help people manage other recovery issues such as low mood, managing rumination and difficult thought patterns and so on. Should you wish to have a counselor assist you with this, please contact us directly.

We will not stop here. We are very excited for what’s to come and look forward to presenting you with the first official releases in the very near future.

Since there is virtually no private inpatient Minnesota Model treatment of addiction available in French speaking Europe, the project has consisted in creating a specific primary treatment program in french using the existing facilities and infrastructure available at PRC / Kent. The logistics of coming to PRC / Kent are particularly easy with the Eurostar serving Paris, Lille & Brussels to Ashford and Gatwick airport for clients coming from Geneva.

Eric NEEDHAM, who is perfectly bilingual, joined PROMIS earlier this year as the pivotal counselling staff member on the french wing. When the number of french speaking patients warrants it, he is joined there by counselling staff from Paris who rotate in turn. This provides french speaking clients with a unique higly personalized 12 steps treatment program in their native language and continuum of care can be done through aftercare in the PROMIS offices in Paris or Geneva.

Other developments, as mentioned in the December 2007 Newletter, have consisted in the practise of EAP for PF clients, conducted on a weekly basis at the Polo de Paris or Apremont (north of Paris) by Marie de NOAILLES (therapist) and Daisy DELAPALME (horse specialist). This program is a first in France in the field of addiction treatment.

Emmanuelle VAUX-LACROIX and David DELAPALME completed the intermediary EMDR training session in London and have been busy introducing this useful tool and practising with clients at PF. Again this program is breaking new ground in France for treating traumas and triggers associated with addiction. In addition, Philippe CAVAROZ completed a french training session in Motivational Interviewing.

Finally, PF was involved earlier this year, in several TV programs featuring addiction on French Television which generated some very positive feedback and helped our exposure in an otherwise very closed environment.

One last little bit, Asta GEORGSDOTTIR has returned to work at PF, the proud Mother of a wonderful little boy.

What consists of a typical day’s work at PROMIS?

I have a duel role, I am primarily here as a Twelve Step Counsellor but I am also responsible for the patients’ Health and Fitness wellbeing during their time here. My day is comprised of facilitating groups, writing up notes, spending time and being available for any of the patients (not just my focal patients) going through all the administrative processes connected with managing my focal patients. I am also responsible for monitoring the patients’ weights during their time here and I am involved with contolling how much exercise is appropriate for them.

What do you do to monitor the patients’ exercise?

If patients show an interest in doing any physical exercise during their stay here I ask them to fill in a Healthy Lifestyle Information Questionnaire. This gives me vital information regarding their exercise habits and what activities they may enjoy doing. A recent development has been to add this into the focal intake process. When, as counsellors, we do an intake with a new patient we can ask them if they will be interested in looking at their physical health during their time here. This information is vital for me to then be able to develop a programme to suit their needs.

What interactions do you have with the patients when planning their physical activities?

If a patient comes in and is interested in doing any physical activities during their time here, I will have a consultation with him or her to ascertain specific needs. Some patients are regular exercisers so it may just be a case of going through the Healthy Lifestyle Questionnaire and Pre Test Lifestyle Screening and then doing an induction in the gym to familiarize them with our equipment. However, some patients may not have exercised before or not done anything for a while and so will want me to write a programme for them. I have also worked with numerous eating disorder patients on a one to one basis and monitored their progress.

What kind of activities do you offer to the patients?

We offer a whole range of physical activities here including – Gym, Karate, Yoga, regular timetabled walks. There is also a wide range of sports facilities available including Tennis, Badminton, Table Tennis, football, cricket, volleyball, rounders and bike rides. We also have some golf clubs and balls so any patients who want to practice their swing and short chipping game can do so in the garden. There is also a croquet set available for the more refined patients who come here. Basically, we can facilitate any form of exercise that the patients would like to do and if we don’t have the means on site, we can take patients off site or bring in specialized facilitators. We have, had a Tai Chi instructor come in and work with the patients in the serene surroundings of the garden in the summer. Also we have had a World Champion Tae Kwondo instructor do some one to one training with a previous patient. We have even taken someone out to do some clay pigeon shooting and taken patients out swimming.

What Effect does excercise and physical activity have on a person’s recovery at PROMIS?

The contributions that exercise makes towards someone getting better are immense. Many studies have linked physical exercise with an effective improvement in mental alertness and productivity. Modern living is full of negative stress and the best cure often proves to be regular aerobic exercise. Even short bouts of moderate regular exercise can produce natural endorphins which medical scientists say are more powerful in the control of stress or depression than any man-made drug. By increasing energy levels through regular exercise, your heart and lungs will become stronger and more efficient in using the vital life giving oxygen and improve your overall fitness. This will ultimately give you more energy and a zest for life. I am hoping that during their time here at Promis the patients will take the opportunity to address both their psychological (mental) and physiological (physical) health. I am a great believer in striving to obtain and maintain keep total abstinence of any mood altering substance or behavi
or by attaining total health, both physically mentally and spiritually (body, mind and spirit).

What plans for development are you looking forward to?

I believe the plan for the new recreational building have been agreed and the project is due to be completed by 2010.

This will in my opinion be a massive advantage for Promis as something that will enhance the quality of service that we have to offer here. However, until this building is complete, there are plans to re-vamp the existing gym over the next couple of months. I would also like to develop a Personal Training package that we could offer our patients together with some form of aftercare Counselling/Personal Training service to help patients who have recently left adjust back in to life. I would also like to be able to offer our patients the opportunity to try anything new during their time here and be able to take them off site on occasions to participate in activities such as Rock climbing, Absailing, Kayeking and other out door activities.

What are your personal interests/hobbies?

Health and Fitness has been a massive part of my whole life. I feel totally connected and spiritually cleansed when I am out on a run or on my road bike, riding through the beautiful country lanes or participating in any form of exercise. It is  never a chore for me, it is a way of life. I also love to travel and have aspirations to visit more countries in the world and experience the diversity of different cultures. I have an 11 year old son, Ollie and spend as much time as I can with him. We play and watch a variety of different sports, go to the cinema and generally hang out together. He is like my best mate and he is a massive part of my life. What I enjoy most about my job is that every day is different at Promis. The dynamics of the patients groups change all the time but the job satisfaction can be very rewarding when you see patients coming in on their knees and then progressing through the programs and leaving with a new insight and zest for life.

Extract from A New Life (healing depression) by Dr Robert Lefever

Step 1 for Mood-altering Substances, Behaviours and Relationships

I admit that I am powerless over my addiction and that my life has become unmanageable.

My life is a mess and I have lost control of some aspects of it. Some problems persist despite my repeated attempts (occasionally temporarily successful) to be in control. I have attempted to use some mood altering substances, behaviours and relationships in order to feel better. These attempts to comfort myself have eventually turned against me: the mood-altering effects have been progressively less successful, while the damaging consequences have grown. I have felt increasing self-pity, believing that I deserve better and to have a better life, and I have increasingly blamed other people, places and things for my pain. I have used some mood-altering substances, behaviours and relationships, saying that I need them, deserve them, and could not reasonably be expected to do without them. On some occasions I have tried to give up a particular mood-altering substance, behaviour or relationship and I have felt so bad that I “had to” go back to it, thus failing to acknowledge that the bad feelings are in fact direct withdrawal effects from previous use.

On occasions when I have succeeded in putting down one mood-altering substance, process or relationship, I have often increased my use of another. I have continued my use of mood-altering substances, processes and relationships despite the repeated serious concerns of other people and I have justified my actions (to myself if not always to them).

My way of life sometimes illustrates the very opposite of the characteristics of honesty, open-mindedness and willingness that are seen in recovery. I may have expected other people or the state to provide for me or to bail me out of my problems. I may have contributed progressively less to society. My relationships may have been immature, when I have expected other people to be sensitive to my needs and wants, irrespective of my behaviour towards them. Furthermore, my relationships have been damaged, or may even have broken down altogether, as a result of my behaviour.

Do I want to be rid of all my addictive outlets for my neurotransmission disease or do I want to hang on to some of them?

Am I frightened of change or staying as I am?

Am I ready to take responsibility for my own life?

I recall the news last year that Robbie Williams had been admitted to a clinic in the US. I was horrified to see that the media had the gall to suggest that this was a stunt to improve album sales. Shame on them!

This inappropriate treatment of a suffering person may finally be changing. I think this change started to happen after Britney Spears was paraded before the press in a wretched state. Finally the public couldn’t help but see the terrible pain that lies behind the lurid tabloid headlines. Now in the UK, the public are beginning to see the pain behind the behaviour of some of our stars who feature in the tabloids day after day.

Maybe the pain of these stars is trailblazing a path to make it easier for others to seek help. Maybe the time has finally come where people can ask for help and get the full support they deserve while making such difficult changes in their lives. Certainly here at PROMIS our aim is to give all patients our full support and understanding. Maybe now is the time to take these first steps.

PROMIS is one of the first private treatment centres in Holland where addiction is treated as an illness. Until 2 years ago addiction was not treated at all by the 12 Steps in Holland. The Dutch approach was, and to a certain extent still is, substituting one habit for another. People with a heroin dependency were given methadone, alcoholics were taught how to limit their consumption of alcohol and sometimes even recommended to smoke hashish or marijuana, which are not illegal in Holland. Needless to say, very few people recovered. Many addicts faced a future without a job or a place to live or a steady relationship.

This situation is changing. Since PROMIS opened its doors in Amsterdam, government funded programs are increasingly endorsing 12 step based treatment. Already 10 people have been selected from AA and NA meetings in Amsterdam for Minnesota model counselling training in Hazelden USA.

We still have a long way to go. Our commitment in Amsterdam is to offer a premier treatment service and that is exactly what we did last year. A lot of interest has been shown in Dr.Robert’s books because doctor’s education has left them with limited knowledge of how to treat addiction.

Generally people hear about PROMIS by reputation, we are one of the few clinics that offer a discrete family programme to help further recovery. We always try to invite people for a relaxed talk at our Counselling Centre at the Herengracht in Amsterdam. During this conversation we listen to what they tell us about their problems and we offer them a solution: treatment, either as an out-patient or in the clinic. If primary treatment is too early for someone, we offer day treatment or just one-to-ones.
When family members, a concerned friends or sometimes employers contacts us for help, because they are concerned about someone with addiction issues, we invite them to prepare for an intervention on location. During this conversation we ask the family to participate in the process of stopping their relative/friend/employee’s denial with a view to accepting professional help.

At this moment we work with 4 people at PROMIS Netherlands:

Cissy Fisser, addiction counselor and head of housekeeping, Juul van der Does, GP and addiction counselor, Rene Fonck, administration and trainee-counselor, Peter Kaagman, addiction counselor and assistant-manager. On housekeeping we have two sisters, Saron and Saren.