The Long-Term Dream, Goal, and Vision of the Design Your Detox Project

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When this project began in 2014, I had no idea it would turn into a life-long journey for me and my children. At this time now, which is 9 years later, I am slowly preparing ten acres of undeveloped land in upstate New York and will eventually be building a retreat cabin for anyone who needs a holistic retreat and reset deep in the heart of nature. My dream is to one day have a much larger piece of land to build a long-term holistic retreat and off-grid community. I've met some of the most amazing people during the course of this project, virtually and in person. With some, I formed life-long friendships, even if we don't talk much and even if their recovery is having ups and downs. I've seen so many people put up the most brilliant fights for their lives; trying, falling, getting back up, learning, growing, struggling, progressing in their own time and their own way. When I look back on my own recovery journey, although the drug-use ended in the 90's, the actual journey of transforming my life is going on still today, and always will. A lot of the people I worked with that detoxed themselves paid it forward by helping their friends detox and begin their own journeys.

Nothing about this project ran smoothly. It ended up being self-funded so my resources were extremely minimal, but our hearts were in the right place; my heart and the hearts of the people I worked with, and sometimes even their families and friends. That turned out to be the most important element in all of it. Sometimes herbs help, sometimes they don't, sometimes rehabs help, sometimes they don't, sometimes 12 steps help, sometimes they don't. But at the end of the day, it's the love and support that really changes the course of things. I always wished I had the resources to really help people, to be able to pull them out of their hectic worlds and give them a true reprieve so that they could detox and heal. I hope to one day have the funding needed to make that vision a reality, to open a holistic retreat and to begin a holistic community where we can all heal each other, and ultimately heal together. I believe one day it will come to pass. But for now, and as it has been for 9 years, I will keep allowing this majikal path to unfold on its own time and in its own way, and do everything in my power to bring this vision into fruition.

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This journey will never end for us, in fact, it's really just the beginning. 

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Aho 

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