I don't normally write Yelp reviews, but given how few existing reviews there are for this…read morelocation, and how profoundly impactful my experience there was on my life, I feel obligated to share so that others who are struggling like I was 4 months ago can hopefully make the best decision possible for their wellbeing.
For those unfamiliar with PHP/IOP treatment, it's essentially a middle ground between regular weekly therapy and full hospitalization. If you're in a crisis and are not currently receiving any kind of psychiatric care, this place can help you; if you're already receiving care, but it doesn't feel like enough, or you feel like you need something more intense--without being admitted to a psychiatric hospital (the image I had in my mind was being restrained in a straight jacket and surrounded by doctors in lab coats)--this is EXACTLY the kind of program you're looking for.
Essentially, it's a 3 month commitment. After speaking to the admissions team and doing a remote interview with the program director, Tim, you'll likely begin within a few days--possibly within 24 hours.
For 4 weeks, you show up every weekday at 9am and leave at 3:30pm. This is the partial hospitalization program, or PHP. You'll go through an extensive intake process where you'll be asked some very personal questions (I was uncomfortable at first, but trust me, the staff here are super caring and kind and you'll get to know all of them really well). You'll be thrown into the existing PHP group (mine was around 10 people) which is also nerve-wracking--but again you'll be surrounded by people who are probably there for similar reasons as you, and everyone will be totally understanding and welcoming). You'll be assigned a personal care team consisting of a therapist and a counselor, each of whom you'll meet with individually once a week. There's also a nurse practitioner who you'll consult with weekly, who can assist with prescribing medications or simply supervising/monitoring any existing ones you may be taking. There's a 30 minute lunch halfway through the day, as well as 10 minute breaks in between each group session. The sessions include traditional group therapy (known as "open process," led by one of the therapists); dialectical behavior therapy (DBT, led by a counselor); reading/journaling exercises on a whole range of topics related to things like coping skills, causes of anxiety, depression, trauma/PTSD, social skills, communication skills, etc. (the list goes on and on); and some interesting once-a-week sessions like art therapy, sound bath, and drama therapy (it's not what it sounds like, trust me).
After that, you'll transition into the intensive outpatient program (IOP) over the course of 2 weeks; this is known as the "hybrid" period--hybrid PHP for one week (attending PHP for half days only, either 9am-12pm or 12:30pm-3:30pm), then hybrid IOP for another week (half day PHP on Tue/Thur, and half day IOP on Mon/Wed/Fri).
The remaining 6 weeks are the IOP portion of the treatment, consisting of the same half days, but only 3 days a week (Mon/Wed/Fri); these types of programs are a "revolving door" of people entering and exiting, some at the start of their 3 months and some at the end, so when you transition to IOP, you'll be in a new group--same staff and care team, some new faces, mostly familiar ones, just a different room than PHP and slightly different activities and program structure. You'll still meet with your individual therapist and counselor every week.
After 12 weeks, you'll finish and will be officially discharged from the program. The staff can help you get set up with an outside therapist and psychiatrist if needed.
Now, logistics aside, this place changed my life. I'm not "fixed" nor did I expect to be. I'm not even necessarily doing "better"--but I am different; I think just a little bit differently, I feel just a little bit differently, I think about my feelings just a little bit differently. My life is more or less the same as it was before I went through the program, however--there are now small but powerful glimmers of change that I notice as I go about my days, little cracks in the behavioral patterns that have been on repeat for years, tiny moments of clarity where I understand what I'm doing, what I'm thinking, what I'm feeling, and why it's happening. It may not sound like much, but my time at Clear was without a doubt the most profound 3 months of my life, and attending was quite possibly the best decision I've ever made for myself.
Special thanks to Mike and Lilly for being such a chill and awesome care team for me, Tim for creating such a thoughtful and in-depth program, Caroline for being so welcoming every day at the front desk, and everyone else for cultivating such a safe, kind, and respectful space each and every day--Sarah, Hailey, Donovan, Thomas, Kelly, Lainey, Gavin, John, Kristina, Logan, Joanna, Alexis, Wendy, Nathan, Jamie, Christian, Amanda, and uh...anyone I'm forgetting.
