Honestly, Pontiac was the best mental health center I went to--it let you have some freedoms, and the staff there were kind, considerate, and understanding. Of course don't plan a trip to stay here, but if you do end up coming here, it's not the worst place you could be at.
About Third Way Center
Third Way Center offers inpatient mental health and substance use treatment programs for adolescents. They have five residential treatment centers in the Denver, Colorado area, including this location.
Their focus is on treating trauma through brain healing and their encephalopathy unit is the only one in the United States. They accept Medicaid but your teen must have their Medicaid numbers prior to placement.
They also have a Teen Mother’s Program that serves young mothers from 15 to 19 years old. The program helps teen moms with severe mental health disorders and no financial resources.
In all the programs, they do a holistic evaluation and brain treatment first. They operate on the understanding that teens are unable to respond to treatment due to changes in the brain from trauma. Once the brain is healed then treatment can begin.
Here, they use the Six Boxes Methodology. The first step is identifying bad behaviors which are a symptom that something is wrong. The next step is getting to the underlying feelings that cause bad behavior such as feelings of sadness, anger, or frustration.
Identifying trauma is the next step. This may include abuse, neglect, brain injury, or mental illness. Once the trauma is identified, then they work on getting justice. After obtaining justice, teens have new and better feelings and can then change their negative behaviors.
There are four specialized tracks in all of their inpatient programs. These are vocational and independent living skills, substance use treatment, offense specific programming for teens involved in the justice system and aftercare. The goal is to address each client’s unique needs and equip them for adulthood or to return home.
If you’re getting ready to go out on your own then you’ll receive a job skill assessment. They teach you how to write a resume and sit for an interview. You’ll also learn life skills such as how to store and cook food, clean, and do laundry and other activities of daily living.
All the clients receive therapy. If there’s a substance use disorder involved, they’ll also work with a substance use treatment coordinator. The substance use treatment also involves identifying trauma first so the client can move forward in trust and safety. They’ll develop a unique treatment plan for each teen based on what type of trauma they’ve endured.
This facility is CARF accredited.
Rehab Score
Our Methodology
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Accepted Insurance
Other Forms of Payment
Self-pay involves paying for treatment out of your own pocket. You can use savings or credit, get a personal loan, or receive help from family and friends to fund your treatment. If you don't have insurance or your insurance plan doesn't cover a specific program, self-pay can help ensure you still get the care you need.
Medicaid is a state based program that helps lower-income individuals and families pay for healthcare. Medicaid covers addiction treatment so those enrolled can use their coverage to pay for rehab. When a program accepts Medicaid the client often pays very little or nothing out of their own pocket.
Addiction Treatments
Levels of Care
Outpatient Outpatient rehabs offer a wide variety of services and levels of care to align with clients' unique and evolving needs. Outpatient care is best suited for clients who are stable and for those who wish to remain at home while receiving treatment. Clients typically receive addiction counseling and recovery-focused life skills training, including participating in evening, night, and weekend sessions to accommodate clients' schedules. Clients at an increased relapse risk may receive more frequent and intensive treatment.
Inpatient Residential treatment programs are those that offer housing and meals in addition to substance abuse treatment. Rehab facilities that offer residential treatment allow patients to focus solely on recovery, in an environment totally separate from their lives. Some rehab centers specialize in short-term residential treatment (a few days to a week or two), while others solely provide treatment on a long-term basis (several weeks to months). Some offer both, and tailor treatment to the patient's individual requirements.
Aftercare Support Clients engaged in a rehab aftercare program have completed active addiction treatment and are receiving services designed to promote their sustained sobriety. Drug rehab aftercare typically encompasses a wide variety of medical, mental health, and social services meant to facilitate clients' reintegration into their home, workplace, and community. Clients typically collaborate with their case manager and/or recovery team to identify and access the services they need, often including peer coaching, career counseling, and care referrals.
24-Hour Clinical Care Detox can be dangerous if not properly supervised, making 24-hour clinical care in Colorado an essential tool in the recovery process. The constant monitoring by medical professionals helps individuals through critical stages of recovery. Medical professionals and addiction specialists are available 24/7 to provide medications that ease withdrawal symptoms and to treat any other issues that arise.
Treatments
Many of those suffering from addiction also suffer from mental or emotional illnesses like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, or anxiety disorders. Rehab and other substance abuse facilities treating those with a dual diagnosis or co-occurring disorder administer psychiatric treatment to address the person's mental health issue in addition to drug and alcohol rehabilitation.
Mental health rehabs focus on helping individuals recover from mental illnesses like bipolar disorder, clinical depression, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, and more. Mental health professionals at these facilities are trained to understand and treat mental health issues, both in individual and group settings.
Programs
Adult Program
Adult rehab programs include therapies tailored to each client's specific needs, goals, and recovery progress. They are tailored to the specific challenges adult clients may face, including family and work pressures and commitments. From inpatient and residential treatment to various levels of outpatient services, there are many options available. Some facilities also help adults work through co-occurring conditions, like anxiety, that can accompany addiction.
Young Adult Program
Young adulthood can be an exciting, yet difficult, time of transition. Individuals in their late teens to mid-20s face unique stressors related to school, jobs, families, and social circles, which can lead to a rise in substance use. Rehab centers with dedicated young adult programs will include activities and amenities that cater to this age group, with an emphasis on specialized counseling, peer socialization, and ongoing aftercare.
Clinical Services
In individual therapy, a patient meets one-on-one with a trained psychologist or counselor. Therapy is a pivotal part of effective substance abuse treatment, as it often covers root causes of addiction, including challenges faced by the patient in their social, family, and work/school life.
Trauma therapy addresses traumatic incidents from a client's past that are likely affecting their present-day experience. Trauma is often one of the primary triggers and potential causes of addiction, and can stem from child sexual abuse, domestic violence, having a parent with a mental illness, losing one or both parents at a young age, teenage or adult sexual assault, or any number of other factors. The purpose of trauma therapy is to allow a patient to process trauma and move through and past it, with the help of trained and compassionate mental health professionals.
Research clearly demonstrates that recovery is far more successful and sustainable when loved ones like family members participate in rehab and substance abuse treatment. Genetic factors may be at play when it comes to drug and alcohol addiction, as well as mental health issues. Family dynamics often play a critical role in addiction triggers, and if properly educated, family members can be a strong source of support when it comes to rehabilitation.
Life skills are traits you need to be successful during recovery, such as managing stress and interpersonal relationships. During rehab treatment in Colorado, you and your therapist will identify any skills that need to be developed and work on methods to strengthen them.
The right diet balances your body's dopamine levels, which are the natural "happy drugs" of the brain. Nutrition therapy helps you learn the best foods to eat to achieve and maintain this balance, which supports long term addiction recovery.
Amenities
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Residential Setting -
Private Rooms
Staff
Hildegard Messenbaugh, MD
Founder
Renee Johnson, LCSW, CAC III
Executive Director
David Koehler, MBA
Assistant Executive Director
Kristi Edmonds, Ph.D. LPC
Clinical Director
Contact Information
(303) 780-9191 
455 Acoma Street
Denver, CO 80204
Get Help Now - 719-405-0523
Who Answers?
Who Answers?
Fact checked and written by:
Susan Bertram, BA
Edited by:
Courtney Myers, MS
