Wilderness therapy has been utilized for many decade to aid in the personal growth, develop resilience, develop self-control and improve self-esteem in teens and young adults. The tools and self-discovery gained through the curriculum used in wilderness therapy can also be taught in the home.

Robert Trout, having many years experience in wilderness therapy, as a guide and also a therapist, recognized a need to not only equip clients, but also their parents. From this realization, The Experiential Healing Institute, was launched to offer this service.

He and his team travel the US, going into the home and offering two and three day, intensive trainings to support parents on their quest to support the often treacherous path of meeting the needs of their children, regardless of age.

Often parents want to prevent, avoid or eliminate the struggle that teens and young adults face. The intentions are with merit, but the results counter productive because it's actually the struggle that can help build resiliency, grit and self-determination. So the key, is helping the parents gain the tools and skills to recognize the struggle, identify how they can offer support and then create an action plan to be part of the solution in the midst of the challenge.


"My greatest takeaway: the struggle is what helps them mature. Smoothing the path too much for our children takes away their opportunities to struggle, grow and learn coping skills. Who knew?" excerpt from a parent testimonial Rob trained.


About Robert Trout, MA, Wilderness Therapist and Director of The Experiential Healing Institute

With a Masters in Counseling and extensive experiences as Master Field Guide, Field Director and Wilderness Therapist for many programs over his career Robert has one of the most extensive backgrounds to better understand and work with wilderness therapy students and families that can be found.

With over 17 years of experience in group facilitation, ceremony, rites of passage, wilderness therapy and experiential practices, Robert uses his depth of knowledge in these areas to guide experiences that challenge individuals to see beyond their own limitations of belief and to foster new ideas in their lives and within their families and communities. He utilizes his study of ancient and modern ceremony, metaphor, experiential practices, life and survival skills to influence and work with people's belief systems to create a supportive environment so they can choose to grow and change.

Robert's unique perspective was formed through a lifetime where he has spent over 1000 days in the wilderness seeking direction for his own life as well as guiding others through their self-discovery.