Round Lake Treatment Centre commemorates 45 years of healing

SYILX OKANAGAN TERRITORY — National Addictions Awareness week has ramped up discussions around harm reductions, the overdose crisis, and recovery treatment in B.C.

The Round Lake Alcohol and Drug Treatment Society is one of the longest running facilities in the Interior, and recently commemorated its 45th anniversary. The centre specializes in addiction counselling services through a First Nations lens. Over the years, its approach has evolved, and so has the demographic of people seeking out its recovery programs.

CFJC drove out to Round Lake this week to learn more about how the facility works, and spoke with one of the centre’s alumni. (Article continues below)

It’s no coincidence that water, trees, and wildlife surround the Round Lake Treatment Centre. The landscape is a large part of why the site was chosen.

“Round Lake is situated in one of the Syilx traditional healing spaces that we’ve used for ceremony since time immemorial,” explains Executive Director, Jeanette Defauw. Her family is among the founding leadership of the facility, and she’s been involved with the centre from young adulthood.

“We include the land in our programming quite a bit. We bring them out on the land to recognize their connection to it,” she adds.

Round Lake has been offering addictions recovery to people since 1979. Programs blend cultural practices with addictions psychology, trauma counselling – all founded on the values of the First Nations people who run the facility.

“It’s not just about being sober today, it’s about healing so that that approach to coping is not needed anymore. That you’re capable of coping with your traumas, and your healing, and life in a healthy way,” Defauw says of their treatment-focused approach.

The main building has capacity for 35 people, and the later-stage recovery lodge can host another 10 clients. There’s outdoor space for ceremony, and sweats, counselling and workshop space, an indoor gym, and sauna.

“People actually find that a really key piece to their recovery while they’re here. They’re here with us anywhere from 6 weeks to 9 weeks and when you are coming to us in such a fragile state physically, being able to rebuild some of that is really key to your recovery.”

Lyle Bonneau is an alumni of Round Lake. He’s three years sober, but it took most of his life, and nine different stays at treatment centres to get there.

“I gave up on myself. I lost hope. I thought I was going to be an alcoholic, an addict for the rest of my life. I was sure of it,” he recalls of his past experience.

Bonneau describes seeing how widespread alcoholism was on the reserve he grew up on, and having his first experience with alcohol when he was 14 years old. When Bonneau was 18, he says he lost his father to cirrhosis, and was unable to cope with it. He began drinking heavily, and eventually got into harder substances.

His struggles with addiction didn’t improve after having children, and Bonneau says he was often away from home for weeks at a time. Eventually, he decided to try to get clean.

When asked what the difference maker was between his eighth and nine treatment stints, Bonneau describes a serious attitude shift with his approach. He got into meditation through classes at Round Lake, found a better understanding of his own spirituality, and focused on taking sobriety day-by-day.

“You know, Round Lake has helped so many people,” Bonneau says, “There will always be a special place in my heart for Round Lake.”

Today, Bonneau spends his time hosting a weekly recovery support group meeting out of Penticton, and periodically returns to the centre to share his story with others.

“More recently I’ve gone back to school.” Bonneau explains, “I’m in my second year of a fluency language program, and I’ll end up with a Bachelor’s of Language when I’m done in a couple more years.”

In recent years, Defauw says there’s been a shift in Round Lake’s demographic, with younger people reaching out.

“Which is wonderful. Because there’s an opportunity for them to make a change earlier in their lives, and there’s hope for a different future for them and a different future for their children.”

There’s decades of experience with how to run programs, and Defauw also describes a high level of flexibility to work with people as individuals. Some clients have one stay at Round Lake, while others return several times throughout their lives to address relapses, or get support in maintaining their sobriety.

“Life continues. Traumas happen,” reiterates Defauw, “It’s not just the childhood stuff. Trauma is divorce, death, grief and loss. Grief and loss is such a massive one in our communities. And we always include it in our programs because it is such a huge piece. People don’t stop moving on, passing on. So if you need to reach out again there’s never any negative in reaching out and continuing to heal. Or come back and dig deeper.”

And as for how successful its approach is? Round Lake’s post-treatment follow up surveys have shown a 64 per cent abstinence rate with its clients