When love isn't the problem — and home isn't enough.
If you're reading this page, things at home have probably been hard for a while. You've tried therapists, consequences, school meetings, heart-to-hearts at midnight. And still, your teen is struggling in ways that scare you.
This page will help you understand what residential treatment is, when it's the right step, and how to find out if Stillwater Academy can help.
Sending your child to residential treatment isn't the moment you stop parenting them. It's the moment you parent them with everything you have — including help.
A therapeutic home, a real school, and a family-centered program — in one place.
Stillwater Academy is a licensed residential treatment center in South Jordan, Utah, serving teen boys and girls ages 13–18. For over 30 years, Stillwater has combined intensive therapy with fully accredited academics inside a structured, relationship-based environment — so teens heal without falling behind in life.
Intensive, evidenced-based therapy
Group therapy twice daily
Weekly individual sessions
DBT, CBT, EMDR & family systems therapy
Delivered by licensed clinicians
Family-style homes, not dorms
Small, family-style homes near campus
Real routines & daily structure
Growth through relationships & accountability
Fully accredited academics
Certified teachers & small classes
Individualized academic plans
Credits transfer back to home schools
NASET School of Excellence
Parents are part of the program
Family systems therapy
Parent coaching & support
Consistent communication throughout
Healing happens as a family
Signs your teen may need more than outpatient support
Residential treatment isn't a first step — it's what comes after committed efforts at home haven't been enough. If several of these describe your family, it may be time to have this conversation.
Weekly therapy isn't holding
Your teen has been in outpatient therapy — maybe with several different therapists — and things keep getting worse, not better.
Escalating emotional or behavioral struggles
Intense anger, defiance, deep depression or anxiety, self-destructive choices, or substance use that keeps escalating despite your best efforts.
School is falling apart
Failing grades, refusal to attend, suspensions, or a teen who has completely disengaged from their academic future.
Home no longer feels safe or stable
Failing grades, refusal to attend, suspensions, or a teen who has completely disengaged from their academic future.
You’ve lost your connection
The relationship has eroded to the point where your influence as a parent — the thing that used to reach them — no longer does.
You’re parenting from fear, not hope
You check your phone with dread. You've stopped imagining the future and started bracing for the next crisis..
Child & Teen Wellness Assessment
A parent-guided screening tool to understand your child's needs
This tool is designed for screening purposes only and does not constitute a clinical diagnosis. If your child is in immediate danger, please call 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline) or 911. Results should be discussed with a qualified mental health professional.
Questions you may be worried about
"Will my child feel abandoned?"
This is the fear underneath all the others. At Stillwater, parents aren't sidelined — you're actively involved through family therapy and regular communication. Most teens eventually come to understand this decision as the moment their parents fought hardest for them.
"Is this one of those punitive 'troubled teen' places?"
No. Stillwater's model is relationship-based and collaborative, not punitive. Change is built through trust, daily structure, and skilled clinicians — not through breaking a kid down. They also publish a Student Rights Promise and encourage families to visit and ask hard questions.
"Will my teen fall behind in school?"
Academics aren't an afterthought — they're half the program. Coursework is fully accredited, credits transfer home, and many students actually repair damaged transcripts while they're there
"Will my child feel abandoned?"
Stillwater is a longer-term program because lasting change takes time. Insurance is accepted for many families (Medicaid is not), and the admissions team can walk you through options before you commit to anything.
THE NEXT STEP
You don't have to figure this out alone.
Stillwater's admissions team answers questions with no pressure — by phone, text, or their free online assessment. And if you'd like to talk it through with me first, I'm here for that too.
Call or text Stillwater admissions: (385) 352-3371 · admissions@stillwateracademy.org