Life After Treatment: A Space to Talk, Connect, and Grow
For Teen Girls & Young Women
We just wrapped up our first cohort—and it truly blew us away. We’re now putting the finishing touches on the second round, which will begin May 20th. Full details will be posted soon! In the meantime, you can sign up at the bottom of this page or email us at welcome@hominginstinct.org, and we’ll be in touch shortly.
Coming home after residential or wilderness can feel strange. Maybe you’ve changed, but everything else feels the same. Maybe you miss the structure of treatment, the people, the inside jokes no one at home gets. Maybe your friends and family are struggling to relate with what you went through. Or maybe you just don’t know what’s next, much less how to get there.
One of the biggest surprises for many treatment graduates is how much they miss having a built-in community of people that truly understand that journey. That’s why we started Post-Treatment Support Groups—a space designed specifically for young people stepping into their next chapter.
This is a space to come as you are, connect, and support each other. Here’s what that would look like:
Sharing the highs and lows of treatment and life after
Peer support and advice from people who understand your journey
Figuring out how to hold onto the positive changes you worked so hard for
Guidance for navigating relationships, routines, and personal growth
An encouraging team as you move forward, set new goals, and build a meaningful life
Each session will be a mix of real talk, group activities, and guided discussion to help make sense of this season of life with others who are doing the same.
Why Join?
We believe community is a vital part of sustaining recovery. This group is meant to help you find belonging and support among others that understand the unique challenges of post-treatment. When people working towards healing come together, these transitions start to feel a lot less overwhelming and a lot more possible.
What’s Offered?
One 1:1 session with Ciara and Erica
A dedicated one-on-one session to get to know you more personally, talk through anything you’d prefer to share privately, check in on how you’re doing, and offer personalized support and guidance from both Ciara and Erica
Weekly support group
A safe and consistent space to connect with peers, share what’s on your mind, reflect on the week, celebrate what’s working, and support each other in growth and progress.
Text chain between sessions
Ongoing connection through a group text thread—offering encouragement, check-ins, and gentle reminders.
When: Tuesdays, 5 pm PST / 6 pm MST / 7 pm CST / 8 pm EST
Where: Online—join from anywhere!
First Meeting: May 20th (we meet for 8 weeks)
The Details
Meet Your Guides
I’m Ciara, and I know what it’s like to be the so-called “troubled teen” or “black sheep” (now I call myself the green sheep!). I went through all of it—therapy, meds, inpatient, wilderness, therapeutic boarding school. I know what it’s like to have a high school experience completely different from any of your peers — to go through the highs and lows of treatment, and then come home only to feel… lost.
I started Homing Instinct—to be the kind of support I wish I had. Think of me as a wise, older sister—someone who’s been through it, and who’s here to remind you that you’re not alone in this.
When I left treatment, I had zero road map. But over time, I figured out how to rebuild—how to reconnect with my family, find real friends, finish school, and land a job. It wasn’t easy, and I had to make my own way. Now, I want us to share and learn from each other so you don’t have to figure it all out alone.
The hope for this group is that it becomes a space where we can be real, support each other, and keep growing together.
Bio
Mentor for Teens and Founder of Homing Instinct
Wilderness Specialist at Project Avary, a summer camp and community for children of incarcerated parents
Responder with Concrn, compassionate response for behavioral and mental health crises in San Francisco
Worked at Meta (Facebook), Pandora, and Recharge
From San Francisco, living in Denver, CO!
I’m Erica. On the outside as a teen, I looked like I had it together—I was doing all the right things. But inside I was stuck. No matter what I did, I couldn’t shake the shame, the dread, the feeling that something just wasn’t clicking.
What changed everything for me? Community. Finding people who actually got it—who let me be real about the hard parts, who I could show up for, and who showed up for me. It made me realize I wasn’t as alone as I thought. My hope is that this space can hold all of it—the good, the hard, the in-between. That we can build something real together.
I can’t wait to see where this goes. 💛
Bio
Supervisor Support Specialist & Volunteer Coordinator at Family Promise, Inc
Behavioral Health Counselor at Eating Recovery Center
Clinical Intern, Addiction Counseling at University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
Medical Social Work Intern, at The Medical Center of Aurora
MSW Candidate at Metropolitan State University of Denver
From Seattle, living in Denver, CO!
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Right now, this group is completely online—we’ll meet on Zoom for our calls and stay connected through a group chat in between for check-ins, encouragement, and support.
But this is just the beginning! In the future, we hope to host in-person groups and retreats, creating even more ways to connect beyond the screen. Stay tuned!
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To begin, fill out the form below, and we will be in touch with information for next steps!
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So, we want to be super clear—this is NOT a therapy group. While this space is supportive and facilitated with care, it’s not a substitute for therapy, psychological counseling, or professional mental health treatment. Any guidance shared here is meant to offer connection and support, not medical or clinical advice.
If you need professional mental health or medical support, we strongly encourage you to reach out to a licensed therapist or healthcare provider. We’re here to build community—but your well-being comes first.
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This group is for YOU. Everything shared in the group is 100% confidential and stays within the space we create together.
If your parent is signing you up, we might connect with them only for logistics (like scheduling) but that’s it. We’re not here to report back on what you share or update them on your personal experience.
This is your space—to be real, to connect, and to have a community that’s just for you.
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We want this group to feel close-knit, with everyone on the same page from the start, so we strongly encourage attending the first meeting. However, since this is a beta group, we're experimenting and seeing what works best!
If you're unable to make the first meeting but still want to participate, we're open to making it work. Please reach out and share a little about your situation, and we can determine together if joining late is a good fit!
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We are in the process of creating a group for teen boys and young men and have connected with potential facilitators. If you're interested, please share your details below, and we’ll notify you as soon as the group is ready to start.
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We want every teen and young adult to feel safe, supported, and in the space that best fits them. Trans and nonbinary teens are welcome to join the group where they feel most comfortable—whether that’s our group for girls and young women, our group for boys and young men, or another option in the future. This decision is entirely up to them. If you’d like to connect with us to discuss which group might be the best fit, we’re happy to chat.
FAQ
If you don’t see your question answered here, please reach out to welcome@hominginstinct.org, and we’ll be happy to provide more clarity!