Pacific Teen Treatment - Anxiety, Depression, Trauma, & Drug Treatment

Jennifer Nichols _{on Google}

Apr 9th, 2024

My daughter attended PTT in October for 6 weeks. I have waited to write my review until she finished the complete discharge plan that PTT had laid out so that I could truly look back and give the best comprehensive review to a parent looking for information. My daughter finished her PHP and IOP on Monday and will now be doing regular therapy.
I echo the other reviews about how daunting it is to think of sending your child away. We felt we had no choice as my daughter was self-harming and desperately needed help after a very scary incident. I spoke to so many programs and I could not find any that would allow me to have contact with my child more than once a week, until I found PTT. I remember Jeremy telling me their objective was not to keep the family apart but to help us heal. We were willing to make the journey all the way from Atlanta because we were convinced it was the right place. The size, the location, the description of the program- everything seemed right to us.
When we arrived, Kathy took us on a tour of the house and helped make my daughter and myself comfortable. I was terrified to leave her but she seemed okay. The first week was all her telling me I needed to pick her up, she could not do it without me, it was too hard, etc... The staff were absolutely amazing in supporting both me (the calls were awful) and my daughter. By Friday she accepted that we were not coming and she dug in and decided to do the work.
Her individual therapist was Chris and she drew a picture of him as Superman. Our family therapist was Lyndsay and I can honestly say that I was so blown away by her family therapy skills that I am completely convinced it made a huge impact on our family. My daughter did the hard work with Chris and her peers. We as a family did hard work with Lyndsay, the group and our peers during our weekly sessions. One thing so unique about PTT is how involved the families are in the treatment process. You will get a phone call from the psychiatrist once a week, your child's therapist once a week, you have a zoom call for family therapy, a group zoom call with all families and clients and a parent only zoom call.
We loved hearing from our daughter. In the beginning it was sometimes multiple times a day and then became once a day and eventually became every other day. We had to start calling her!!! She made strong connections to her peers and I believe the small house atmosphere fosters this and a sense of openness and trust amongst them. She would be sad when someone left and yet excited when a new client arrived. She has kept in touch with several of her peers and they continue to support one another.
At her graduation from the PHP/IOP the director said that our daughter was one of the best success stories she has seen from residential. She also said that PTT's discharge planning was the best she has ever seen. She mentioned that our support of her was part of the reason she was successful and I let her know that it was PTT that prepared us and allowed us to understand how to be in the supportive role.
If you are looking for a caring, intimate environment for your child to get the help they need to start on the path to healing, I encourage you to reach out to Jeremy. It was the best decision we have ever made for our child and we are forever grateful.

K W _{on Google}

Mar 17th, 2024

My 17yr old son was discharged about 2 months ago. I want to make this review for parents who dont know who to trust with their child. None of us want to send our child away for a month with people we know nothing about! I can ease your mind since we were there. Jeremy will answer all your initial questions. He runs the house and is very approachable. Your child will be assigned to a lead therapist and a family therapist. The therapists are amazing! So smart, knowledgeable about teens and their behaviors, insightful, warm, and just so good at their job. They will also have a Psychiatrist who calls every week for an update. You will have 4 zoom calls a week which include, other parents, family counseling, parents and kids, and your child. They do group outings, classroom time and group activities. It was tough for my son initially, with all the restrictions, different personalities of the other residents but, he wanted to get better and accepted it for the time he was there.
I looked at a ton of places and feel I made the best choice. Good luck and Thank you PTT. Alex is doing great!

Clara Hong _{on Google}

Feb 4th, 2024

PTT came highly recommended to me by my son's psychiatrist who had other patients that completed treatment at PTT and really benefited from it. This was the first time I heard about residential treatment centers. The thought of sending my son away, for a duration of time, to stay with strangers and receive intensive therapy was daunting and scary to me. However, I was desperate to find something that would help my son. I was at my wits end. I felt like my family was falling apart, in large part due to my son's actions and behavior, and I had no idea how to fix it. My son refused to attend school, had daily anger outbursts and violent reactions towards his siblings and me, and ran away from home.
After a consultation with Jeremy and a tour of the facility, we decided to send my son to PTT. Jeremy's gentle and gracious approach convinced us that this was the right placement for my son.
My son stayed at PTT for a total of 3 weeks. During the first week, my son's mission was to convince me that PTT wasn't the right place for him, and I needed to pick him up and take him home. However, after building some trust with the staff and his treatment team, things really turned around and real work was done. He received daily individual therapy and really bonded with his therapist, Chris. Our family sessions with Lyndsay were so valuable because they allowed space for our family to address issues we had never talked about before, under the skillful guidance of our therapist. The group therapy and parent therapy sessions on the weekend were wonderful in giving us the opportunity to meet other families who had a child that was struggling. I felt that I wasn't in this fight alone. The book list that was recommended by Cindy was super helpful. I am currently listening to the audio book version of Not By Chance for a second time.
I was honestly very anxious about my son's return home. The three weeks he was at PTT were three of the most peaceful weeks my daughters and I had had in a long time. I did not want to go back to our chaotic and dysfunctional ways. To my surprise, things changed. Something was different in my son, like something had been lifted off of his chest that was a source of darkness for him in the past. Of course he still has some anger outbursts here and there and things aren't perfect, but he is so much more agreeable, less defiant, and just more pleasant to be around. Not once has he refused to go to school. He actually cares and wants to do well. The other day, I came home and found him tutoring his younger sister in math. That brought tears to my eyes. I always knew deep down he had a gentle and sweet soul, but it had been covered up all of these years. I thank the team at PTT wholeheartedly for helping my son shed some of his armor. You do life-changing, amazing work! Thank you!

KW _{on Google}

Oct 29th, 2023

Our experience at PTT was nothing short of life changing for our family and our son. When we had very little experience in knowing where to turn to and who to trust with the care of our son, we stumbled upon the PTT website and saw some wonderful and warm reviews and decided to call Jeremy. His compassionate and gentle approach was exactly what we needed and immediately made us feel comfortable and interested in learning more. Our son even opted to talk with Jeremy and came away with a really good feeling about PTT and the approach, and while he still wasnt all in on going, the discussion with Jeremy relieved a lot of his apprehension. The intake with Cindy was thorough and professional and she shared a lot of good information about the program as well. The weekly parent sessions run by Cindy on Sunday mornings provided excellent therapy for us and we were able to bond with the other parents.
On the day of arrival, Kathie did an amazing job of welcoming our son and the entire family and putting us at ease. She has a very kind and soothing way about her that told us that our son was in good hands.
Jeremy and Kathies overall leadership and manner set the tone for the entire PTT experience.
What can I say about the support staff? The CAs were an incredible group of people who provided support, friendship and a listening ear to our son. Derek, Sophia, Ali, Katie, Ned and many more provided a support structure that was friendly yet firm and structured. Our son really bonded with the staff and made him feel very comfortable.
What can I say about the therapists? Dr. Miller and her team were absolutely the best. Chris was our sons primary therapist and immediately allowed our son to get comfortable and open up. Chris was the best fit for our son and provided great counsel and support. Lucy is another amazing therapist that provided a warm presence for our son to talk to when Chris was not around. Courtney was our family therapist and had the entire family opening up, crying and becoming even closer as a family unit. She had just the right touch in those sessions. Dr. Kimn provided psychiatric support in a compassionate and supportive manner that allowed us to make informed decisions on medicinal aspects of our sons care. Each Tuesday, I looked forward to our check-in chat with Dr. Kimn and peppered him with questions and he was a patient ear who gave really great advice and feedback.
Surrounding all of this focused and intense individual and group therapy was a constant stream of activities that struck the right balance so our son could have fun and breathe a little bit. Surfing at the beach, trapezing, karaoke, writing original songs on the keyboard with Ali and Chris, weekly visits to Barnes and Noble, Sunday night bake-offs, etc gave our son memories of a lifetime and allowed him to really bond with his PTT peers and the support staff. Our son also loved the weekly yoga, exercise, music and other extracurricular activities that were brought to the doorstep of PTT. And Cyril the chef was the cream of the crop and our son is no longer a picky eater!
Our son arrived at PTT skeptical of therapy, thinking no one could help him, and feeling he would not be able to relate to his peers. From day one, he embraced the PTT experience and worked really hard on himself. That was only possible because of the myriad of benefits I highlighted above. As a result, he walked out of PTT fully embracing the value of individual and group therapy, realizing that it was possible to get the help that he needed, and bonding with his peers such that he considers them friends for life and a surrogate family that will serve as ongoing support for each other. He really loved his PTT experience and loved the all the staff.
We are immensely grateful and thankful to the entire PTT team. The 6 week stay far exceeded our expectations and provided a solid foundation for our son to build upon as we move forward.

Raven Mills _{on Google}

Oct 7th, 2023

I went here three years ago, an absolute mess of a kid who had no desire to live or really do anything at all. I literally jumped at every sound, flinched at every movement, honestly if I met myself back then I would have deemed myself a lost cause. But my treatment team didnt. For the first time in my entire life I felt safe and loved, and to be honest I didnt trust it at all. I acted out, waiting for them to prove my theory that all people are violent and malicious, but they never did. the staff took care of me for two months, putting up with all my dumb stunts, and helping me through every low. I was able to discover a personality for the first time, and I truly consider PTT the first real home I ever had.
Anyways, the whole reason Im writing this is because I just turned 18. I made it to be an official adult, something my younger self swore would never happen. I still struggle with an array of mental health problems, relapses, almost dying blah blah but the difference is that now I want to live, something I used to swear to all the wonderful people at PTT I would never want.
Anyways. All this to say, parents, if PTT is anything like it was a couple years ago I truly believe it is the best place to send your kids who need any sort of help. After ending up in terrible rehab situations after here, it makes me appreciate good places like this even more. Places with people that actually give a damn. Means the world.
I still hate family therapy though :)