By: Lakeview Health
The Ranch at Clear Springs is set on a tranquil property in Aquilla, Texas. Referred to as simply “The Ranch” they offer adults personalized, evidence-based therapies for addiction treatment. Kito Holtzman, executive director, and Stephan Marion, business development director, sat down with Gina Thorne, vice president of marketing at Lakeview, to talk about their program. During the conversation they also offered some exciting news about some expansion on The Ranch. Watch their podcast to learn more! https://youtu.be/VHJyudKc80c You can get more information about their services by visiting their website at ClearSpringsRanch.com.
Transcription:
Gina Thorne, Vice President of Marketing at Lakeview Health Kito Holtzman, Executive Director of Clear Springs Ranch, Aquila, TX Stephan Marion, Business Development Director at Clear Springs Ranch Gina: Hi everyone. Welcome to the Lakeview Video Podcast Series. I’m pleased to be joined by Stephan Marion and Kito Holtzman with Clear Springs Ranch out of Aquila, Texas. It’s nice to have you both here. Kito: Nice to be here. Stephan: Glad to be here. Gina: We’re interested in hearing more about the Ranch and the programming that you all do there but before we do that, I’d be interested in hearing more about your backgrounds. (Looks at Kito) You’re the Executive Director of the Ranch, (then looks at Stephan) you do new business development, so how did you all get into the field of addiction treatment? Kito: (Laughs) You want to start, Stephan? Stephan: I’ll start. Yeah, I was a long-term construction worker and DJ for years, in addiction. I ended up coming from Canada to Texas to get sober and ended up staying. I managed sober houses and then worked in admissions and RA and then finally got to this point. But there’s just like a genuine happiness that comes from working this field. It’s you know, kind of paying back which was given to me and being able to help families is kind of more rewarding than, you know, any of the other things I’ve ever done in my life. So that’s kind of what keeps me planted in this field today. Gina: It’s great. I feel the same I by the way. I know you’re right, there’s just a genuine joy that you get from working in this field. A lot of people wonder about that like, “How could you go work for people who have addiction and feel joy?” Kito: Absolutely. Gina: So what’s your story, Kito? Kito: Well I was in private practice for about 12 years and I had a very successful large private practice in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas and I was afforded the opportunity by another treatment center to get into the industry. And at first I was like, “There’s no way it will ever work,” you know? I couldn’t imagine changing. But I went to work as a counselor at this place and eventually became Clinical Director then I got afforded this opportunity. But again, it was kind of like what Stephan was saying, my private practice was great, but you only see the clients once a week and it’s a little different. And to be able to do some deep level work, and you know, trauma work, and all this other stuff, and see that magic that happens when a client comes in and their beat up, and just they look kind of shriveled up… and then when they have that light go on and the magic that happens when you see them leave and they look actually six inches taller is just… you can’t put a price on that. So I just I love what we do, I wouldn’t do anything else, and it’s a beautiful thing, it really is. Gina: So talk to us a little bit about the Ranch, its located on a beautiful piece of property, obviously very serene. What are patients going to expect or what are people to expect when they arrived there? Kito: Well I went to treatment at a hospital at Castle Medical Center in Hawaii in the early 80’s and it was just like you were in a psych ward. And I always said, when I was in private practice, that “I’ve got to open a treatment center one day you know, on a Ranch or somewhere where it’s serene and it’s a good place to recover. The hospital didn’t take that time, of course. But it’s just the serene setting, it’s a wonderful place to recover. It’s 200 acres and there’s lakes and the clients can go fishing and go hiking and walking around and it’s just gorgeous. It’s a great place to go recover. You want to add anything to that Stephan? Stephan: Like, it just the general feeling when you walk onto the campus that lets you know is it it’s a special place and you know, there’s just like a certain energy to that, to our campus and it’s calming. Gina: Is it a mixed-gender program or is it gender-specific? Stephan: It’s mixed gender right now. We actually broke ground this week on a women’s center on the other side of the property so we’re very excited about that. Kito: It’s very finally exciting. Stephan: Finally coming to fruition, and sometime early next year. Gina: And how long do clients typically stay there, what’s the length of stay? Kito: 30 to 45 days. Gina: Okay and you’re doing primarily cognitive behavioral therapy? What types of there for you doing with your clients there? Kito: We meet them where they are. We do we do use EMDR for trauma. We may not be able to clear all their targets, but we’ll clear you know, maybe one or two, [depending on] whether it’s with us. We do CBT, DBT you know, whatever is appropriate for that client. All our clinicians are chameleons, and they kind of adapt to whatever the client needs. So I wouldn’t say we have one model that we use for everybody, as far as clinically. Now we are 12-Step immersion program and everyone that comes through our program will go through the steps, and usually they leave with some amends that they’re going to be making. They’ve learned how to make amends and they are well-versed in the big book of Alcoholics Anonymous. Now if they’re not, like, if they’re totally opposed to a higher power and anything like that you know, I’ll usually talk to them or Stephan will talk to them or one of our other clinicians who was opposed to the 12-Step program will talk to them. And there’s some other resources out there that are non-theistic 12-Step, and they’re a little Eastern, they have an Eastern slant to them. But they work wonderfully, so we are 12-Step immersion, and pretty much every[one] that goes through will have a 12-Step experience. Gina: Well it sounds great. So somebody who’s watching today and wanting to access services at the Ranch, how could they get in touch with you all? Stephan: They can call us on our 800 number which is 877 –THE-RANCH or they can go to our website which is www.ClearSpringsRanch.com. We have many people answering the phones 24 hours a day. Gina: That’s great. So very good! Well thank you for taking the time to visit with us today. For those of you that are interested in learning more about Lakeview Health, we invite you to visit us at lakeviewhealth.multiplica.dev or if you know someone who needs treatment right away feel free to give us a call at (866) 887-0142.
