Don’t take our word for it, here is what our families say.
In your search for treatment, one question weighs heavier than any other: Will I get better here?
All programs tell you that you will, but success means something different to everyone. At Equinox, we define success by emotional health, social health, and positive relationships.
When you complete our program, you will no longer struggle with the problem that prompted you to seek treatment. You will have close, healthy, and connected relationships.
Perhaps most importantly, success does not end when you leave Fulshear. Most of our program graduates go home healthy, stay healthy, and never need treatment again. That is success.
Will you get better? At Equinox, we can assure you not only with confidence but also with evidence, that the answer is yes.
A Letter from an Equinox Counseling & Wellness Center Parent
Reflecting on the 1st 90 Days of Treatment in the program
As I shared during Parent Coaching today, in the past few months I have found myself having mock conversations in my mind with parents who may be considering Equinox for their family. I want to tell them there is hope, that it works and that it is worth the commitment, both time and financial, that it takes.
I remember how hard that first phone call was to make. In-spite of having made so many similar phone calls in the past trying to find someone or something that would finally be the help my family so clearly needed. If I could talk to parents who are considering EQ for their family, I would tell them that when we arrived, I felt broken, tired, insecure, scared, confused and angry. We had done a lot of interventions and therapies (many of which I felt had been a total waste of time and money) prior to ever reaching out to EQ and there was a very loud voice in my head demanding to know why this was going to be any different. The time and the financial commitment was frightening. Could we even make this work? Did we even want to try? What if we did all of this and things stayed the same or God forbid, got worse? WHY would this work when clearly nothing else had? There were doubts on top of doubts on top of doubts. It was not easy for us to make the time or the financial commitment that was required, in fact it added another layer of anxiety onto the whole situation. But we knew that we needed intensive and direct intervention to address the issues that led us to make that first phone call. The program made sense to us and felt like it hit all the areas where we were struggling.
The nagging doubts never went away, but we took a leap of faith and committed 100% to the program. We have been in the program for just over 90 days, and I can’t say everything has changed, but I can say that our lives are in fact changing for better. I can’t say that everything is resolved, perfect and simple, it isn’t. But I can say there is less chaos, drama and frustration and more laughter, confidence and engagement. We have support and resources available to us that genuinely help when we are struggling and have kept us from feeling alone and like failures, feelings that dominated my emotions before EQ. Our entire family is changing in ways that were not even imaginable to me 90 days ago.
The staff at EQ is exceptional and after having experienced multiple treatment professionals and programs outside of EQ, I feel qualified to make that statement. The program and the people really are one of kind (which is unfortunate, if you really think about it). I want any parent who felt the way we felt when we made that first phone call, to know that the hope that EQ offers is real, effective and life changing. It is worth the commitment and sacrifice it requires. I was not at all convinced my daughter would do the work or put forth the energy it required, but it turns out, what mattered is that I did my part of the program. That my husband did his part. Our commitment to changing US made it impossible for our daughter to stay the same and she is changing too. Who knew? EQ did.
Lori - Mother of a soon to be 14- year-old daughter
A Letter from an Equinox Counseling & Wellness Center Parent
Reflecting on their experience in the Intensive Treatment Program (ITP)
We began receiving parent coaching sessions ---- The goal is to help us become effective “Parent Leaders”, empower us, teach us about parenting a child with complex emotional and behavioral issues, help us to identify and clarify our family values, as well as helping us experience what it really means to parent with confidence. For example, our Family Values are that every person should feel safe, treated with respect and given the opportunity to express themselves. Sounds obvious - right? Well, it was a shock to my system, when I learned that some of my parenting strategies don’t support those or other values we SAY we possess or want. It can be as subtle as allowing the kids to banter back and forth with negative or insulting comments. I had accepted such sibling interactions as typical and acceptable - assuming/hoping they will mature out of it; while also, believing that I needed to stay out of it so they can learn to work through things themselves. But how can they learn to work it out themselves if 1) they are not taught HOW and 2) they are not held accountable when causing harm in their relationships. We were under the impression that teaching by example would ultimately do the trick; but as I mentioned earlier, what I was modeling was not what they needed to learn.
Robert’s and my time with Tim, is spent learning new methods and role-playing real situations so our response and coaching of our children are effective and become 2nd nature.
There are areas of parenting that we have learned how to implement with all our kids.
I could go on and on listing examples of how Equinox has helped James and the rest of our family. It has been a very comprehensive approach. In the beginning, they told us that we needed to look at this process as a marathon and not a sprint - that positive change takes practice over time in order it to fully take root. After our orientation and assessment, their recommendations were exactly what we wanted, but the estimated cost was hard to consider. However, we are now believers in the principles; are extremely grateful in their ability to help our family reach our goals; their services are well worth the time, emotional and financial investment!
G. - Mother of a 13-year-old son
A Letter from an Equinox Counseling & Wellness Center Former Client
Reflecting on their experience in the Young Adult Program
Mary Marcantonio was instrumental in teaching me tools to be safe and healthy. I had been in and out of several juvenile homes and treatment centers and they all had the same approach, punish and suppress the behavior. There was very little effort at looking at the root of the behavior. Mary’s approach was gentle but firm. She was able to see past the behavior and was genuinely interested in determining the cause. It’s amazing how much a little bit of love and nurturing made a difference to me as a 16-year-old kid, even with issues that seemed like they would consume me. She made me feel like I was normal, and I was going to be OK, simply by taking the time to pay attention to me.
Mary taught me that it was OK to communicate my feelings. Being able to communicate when I am OK with situations or not is a valuable tool that has kept me safe to this day. She taught me about accountability, which gave me control over my actions. She chose amazing wilderness destinations as our classroom. Destinations such as the Colorado Trail, cross country skiing in Wyoming, and Moab, Utah. And even though it was work, she made it fun. Now, as an adult, I have a wife and two daughters, a successful career in real estate, and most importantly, I feel like a normal healthy person. Life still presents obstacles but it’s always just “stuff” and “stuff” is always going to come up. How I react and deal with it determines how much it affects my life negatively or otherwise. I thank Mary for taking the time to help me work through my problems.”
R.C.
Former adolescent client
As I shared during Parent Coaching today, in the past few months I have found myself having mock conversations in my mind with parents who may be considering Equinox for their family. I want to tell them there is hope, that it works and that it is worth the commitment, both time and financial, that it takes.
I remember how hard that first phone call was to make. In-spite of having made so many similar phone calls in the past trying to find someone or something that would finally be the help my family so clearly needed. If I could talk to parents who are considering EQ for their family, I would tell them that when we arrived, I felt broken, tired, insecure, scared, confused and angry. We had done a lot of interventions and therapies (many of which I felt had been a total waste of time and money) prior to ever reaching out to EQ and there was a very loud voice in my head demanding to know why this was going to be any different. The time and the financial commitment was frightening. Could we even make this work? Did we even want to try? What if we did all of this and things stayed the same or God forbid, got worse? WHY would this work when clearly nothing else had? There were doubts on top of doubts on top of doubts. It was not easy for us to make the time or the financial commitment that was required, in fact it added another layer of anxiety onto the whole situation. But we knew that we needed intensive and direct intervention to address the issues that led us to make that first phone call. The program made sense to us and felt like it hit all the areas where we were struggling.
The nagging doubts never went away, but we took a leap of faith and committed 100% to the program. We have been in the program for just over 90 days, and I can’t say everything has changed, but I can say that our lives are in fact changing for better. I can’t say that everything is resolved, perfect and simple, it isn’t. But I can say there is less chaos, drama and frustration and more laughter, confidence and engagement. We have support and resources available to us that genuinely help when we are struggling and have kept us from feeling alone and like failures, feelings that dominated my emotions before EQ. Our entire family is changing in ways that were not even imaginable to me 90 days ago.
The staff at EQ is exceptional and after having experienced multiple treatment professionals and programs outside of EQ, I feel qualified to make that statement. The program and the people really are one of kind (which is unfortunate, if you really think about it). I want any parent who felt the way we felt when we made that first phone call, to know that the hope that EQ offers is real, effective and life changing. It is worth the commitment and sacrifice it requires. I was not at all convinced my daughter would do the work or put forth the energy it required, but it turns out, what mattered is that I did my part of the program. That my husband did his part. Our commitment to changing US made it impossible for our daughter to stay the same and she is changing too. Who knew? EQ did.
L. - Mother of a soon to be 14-year-old daughter
We began receiving parent coaching sessions ---- The goal is to help us become effective “Parent Leaders”, empower us, teach us about parenting a child with complex emotional and behavioral issues, help us to identify and clarify our family values, as well as helping us experience what it really means to parent with confidence. For example, our Family Values are that every person should feel safe, treated with respect and given the opportunity to express themselves. Sounds obvious - right? Well, it was a shock to my system, when I learned that some of my parenting strategies don’t support those or other values we SAY we possess or want. It can be as subtle as allowing the kids to banter back and forth with negative or insulting comments. I had accepted such sibling interactions as typical and acceptable - assuming/hoping they will mature out of it; while also, believing that I needed to stay out of it so they can learn to work through things themselves. But how can they learn to work it out themselves if 1) they are not taught HOW and 2) they are not held accountable when causing harm in their relationships. We were under the impression that teaching by example would ultimately do the trick; but as I mentioned earlier, what I was modeling was not what they needed to learn.
My husband's and my time with Tim, is spent learning new methods and role-playing real situations so our response and coaching of our children are effective and become 2nd nature.
There are areas of parenting that we have learned how to implement with all our kids.
I could go on and on listing examples of how Equinox has helped our son and the rest of our family. It has been a very comprehensive approach. In the beginning, they told us that we needed to look at this process as a marathon and not a sprint - that positive change takes practice over time in order it to fully take root. After our orientation and assessment, their recommendations were exactly what we wanted, but the estimated cost was hard to consider. However, we are now believers in the principles; are extremely grateful in their ability to help our family reach our goals; their services are well worth the time, emotional and financial investment!
G. - Mother of a 13-year-old son
Mary Marcantonio was instrumental in teaching me tools to be safe and healthy. I had been in and out of several juvenile homes and treatment centers and they all had the same approach, punish and suppress the behavior. There was very little effort at looking at the root of the behavior. Mary’s approach was gentle but firm. She was able to see past the behavior and was genuinely interested in determining the cause. It’s amazing how much a little bit of love and nurturing made a difference to me as a 16-year-old kid, even with issues that seemed like they would consume me. She made me feel like I was normal, and I was going to be OK, simply by taking the time to pay attention to me.
Mary taught me that it was OK to communicate my feelings. Being able to communicate when I am OK with situations or not is a valuable tool that has kept me safe to this day. She taught me about accountability, which gave me control over my actions. She chose amazing wilderness destinations as our classroom. Destinations such as the Colorado Trail, cross country skiing in Wyoming, and Moab, Utah. And even though it was work, she made it fun. Now, as an adult, I have a wife and two daughters, a successful career in real estate, and most importantly, I feel like a normal healthy person. Life still presents obstacles but it’s always just “stuff” and “stuff” is always going to come up. How I react and deal with it determines how much it affects my life negatively or otherwise. I thank Mary for taking the time to help me work through my problems.”
R. - Former adolescent client
Equinox saved our family. Our son was struggling and the whole family was struggling as a result. My son received the individualized attention and help he needed to learn how to feel good about himself along with the strategies, techniques and therapy he needed to become successful in life. The rest of the family received the same: individual counseling for the siblings, family counseling, parent coaching and the hope that we could be a family again. EQ offered the most integrated team therapy approach we have ever experienced in 16 years of searching for help; counseling, experiential, service work & peer support. The staff was professional, supportive and constantly available… now, we are taking family vacations, our son just graduated high school and we are a family.
B. - Mother of a 16-year-old, adopted son
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