High Watch Recovery Center

Located in Kent, Connecticut, High Watch Recovery Center is surrounded by chapels, apple orchards, and humble schoolhouses. An inpatient treatment facility, High Watch, is set on a 300-acre campus.

Alcoholics Anonymous’ 12 steps are the building blocks of any treatment program at High Watch.

Accommodations

Kent is located in Connecticut’s Litchfield Hills, a two-hour drive from New York City; Hartford and New Haven are an hour’s drive. Residents at High Watch typically stay for a month. The High Watch Recovery Center compound is simple, cultivated ground that is surrounded by flowers, and rolling hills. Residents sleep in houses. The center has a total capacity of 78 beds.

Residents can use their cell phones during certain designated hours. While laptops are not allowed, residents can watch computer, under supervision. If clients want an eye pillow or a yoga mat, they can purchase it on the campus.

Residents have to pay for using the laundry facilities, but bleach and detergent are free.

Food

Residents are served meals in a large dining room. They can also order a B&B-style breakfast. High Watch offers a full salad bar as well as gluten-free and vegetarian diets. Except for bottled water, residents cannot get any outside food or drink.

The store sells lollipops and Jolly Ranchers, but no chocolate or hard candy. While cigarettes and coffee are allowed, rolling papers and loose tobacco are prohibited.

Treatment Program

One of the primary requirements for getting admission into High Watch Recovery is that the clients have to be adults and need to be sober before entry. Upon admission, clients are subjected to health screening. While the center does not offer detox, they do provide transport to the detox center.

The primary treatment modality at High Watch Recovery is the 12-step model. Clients are kept very busy during the week. Breakfast is served at 8:00 am. At 9:15, the clients split and take part in Daily Reflections for about 45 minutes, which is followed by a Big Book study and a non-denominational chapel service. Lunch is served at noon.

Clients split again for the 1:00 pm group—either Relapse Prevention or Living Sober. Afternoon schedules can vary, but the residents typically have yoga or meditation, personal therapy appointments, as well as a Fourth Step Study. Dinner is served at 5:45 pm. Residents attend either off-site or on-site AA meetings after the dinner. Individual sessions are held two days a week, and residents can meet therapists once weekly in a group context.

The treatment program gives equal importance to knowing addiction as a disease as well as co-occurring disorders such as depression, bipolar disorder, and anxiety.

Staff

All members of the clinical team at High Watch Recovery have Master’s degrees. Other members include accredited nurse practitioners and nurses, and LCSWs.

In Addition

High Watch Recovery organizes on-site Al-Anon meetings every Saturday at 4:00 pm. An open AA meeting is conducted on Saturdays. Residents can entertain visitors during the weekend from 2:00 to 4:00 pm.

Besides meditation and yoga, residents can go for a hike, make art, or play volleyball. Equine therapy is also offered to the program participants. Those desirous of sweating it out in the gym can use the fitness center present on the campus. High Watch also provides a Transition Support Program, which provides the program graduates with six coaching sessions.

Family services are also offered at no additional cost.

Cost

Approximately $16,400 (30 days) or $546 (per day).