Wilderness Therapy with Aline U.Wilderness Therapy with Aline U.
The Elevate Experience
Aline Urkumyan reflects on teen meth addiction, a harsh wilderness therapy programme, relapse, and eventually finding 17 years of sobriety. She explains how nature, qigong, daily routines and personal responsibility shape her recovery today and help her handle life’s hardest moments without substances.
1:05:58•5 Oct 2021
From Desert Camps to Qigong: Aline’s 17 Years of Sobriety
Episode Overview
- Putting yourself first and practising real self-care is central to Aline’s long-term sobriety.
- Nature, hiking and occasional solo trips into the wilderness help her reset and process emotions without substances.
- Qigong, yoga and slow, mindful movement support physical health, organ function and emotional balance.
- Simple daily routines—hydration, movement, seasonal food, basic hygiene—give structure and stability to recovery.
- Owning mistakes, learning from them and practising gratitude helps her cope with grief, setbacks and life stress without using.
“"We never change until we decide that we want to."”
How do individuals turn their lives around after addiction? This conversation on **The Elevate Experience** follows Aline Urkumyan as she talks through meth addiction, a controversial youth wilderness programme, and 17 years of sobriety. Aline starts by separating the moment she began using from the moment she realised she had a problem.
Introduced to acid and then meth as a teenager working her first job, she recalls being instantly hooked on the feeling: it made her feel like a "superwoman" who could juggle school, work, church, sport and family expectations. Compliments about weight loss only fed the cycle.
When her family finally uncovered the drug use, Aline was sent to a wilderness programme in Utah, the kind "where they kidnap you at night." She describes phases like Mouse, Coyote, Buffalo and Eagle, being given three days’ worth of granola, learning to make fire by hand, and hauling heavy carts down near-vertical rock faces.
The experience was harsh and at times frightening, yet it quietly planted tools she’d use years later: teamwork, real leadership, and a deep connection to nature. She admits she relapsed within two weeks of returning home, with meth now laced and more addictive than ever. The turning point came at 21, after a terrifying drug-fuelled drive when she thought she was in the Amazon. She flushed everything and "never looked back", redirecting her energy into education and career.
Today, Aline’s recovery is built on ownership, routine and simple practices. She leans on qigong, yoga, time alone in nature, three-day wilderness “solos”, and small daily habits like cold water and seasonal food. She also speaks honestly about grief, surgery and COVID-era losses, stressing that gratitude and the willingness to sit with difficult feelings keep her grounded. If you’re wondering how to build a sober life that actually feels good, this story offers plenty to think about.
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