As I sit in the garden listening to the twitter of the birds, under a clear blue sky, in the leafy, tranquil suburb of Walmer, Port Elizabeth; if I had to choose a rehabilitation centre, then I would look no further than Welbedacht Therapeutic Centre.
Welbedacht is special.
It is a place where you are treated as an individual.
You matter.
For this reason, they keep their in-patient numbers between 7 and 15. This allows for plenty one on one time with all the specialised members of staff who are there to listen to every issue and problem they have. Currently they have a Psychologist, Social Worker, Psychiatric Nurse, Occupational Therapist and a counsellor. You become part of a family environment, where everyone knows your name and there is no discrimination of any form.
For the past 26 years they have been delivering both drug and alcohol rehabilitation treatments to patients both locally and nationally, offering a 3 day medically supervised detoxification process, before patients enter the 21-day therapy programme. This is followed up by an aftercare programme which they encourage their patients to attend on a regular basis.
One is never left on their own.
Someone is always there to keep you on the straight and narrow.
Another key factor for attending Welbedacht Therapeutic Centre is that they have their own detoxification unit. These are few and far between in the Eastern Cape.
To be able to stay in the same facility and continue your course of treatment in familiar surroundings just makes a lot more sense to me.
At some stage you might come across someone 18 years or older, who has recognised that they have a drug or alcohol problem and are voluntarily looking for someone to assist, I hope that you would point them in the right direction.
At Welbedacht, they believe that the person isn’t the problem, that the problem is the problem.
As I leave the grounds, I am left with that warm, fuzzy feeling you get when you are with people who seem as though they have been in your lives forever. This is a place where one feels both welcome and safe.
Welbedacht Treatment Centre
300 Main Road
Walmer
Port Elizabeth
Telephone: 041 367 4276