Family Matters at Edgewood

Family Matters Edgewood Treatment Centre Nanaimo BC

We don’t have to do it all alone. We were never meant to. —Brené Brown

Meet Erin Albanese, Family Programs Supervisor at Edgewood

Erin was born and raised in Toronto, ON, by Italian and Irish immigrant parents.  She studied, worked, and trained in different parts of Ontario including Guelph and Ottawa before moving to Nanaimo, BC. While she says she sometimes misses the city life, Vancouver Island is gorgeous and ideal for family life, so today that is where she and her husband choose to raise their young family that includes a toddler who keeps them on their toes!

Erin admits that working with families was something that she originally knew very little about until an incredible opportunity came along and she took it: “I started working at a residential treatment center for youth and was astonished and inspired by the adolescents’ strength and resilience.  I knew instantly that I wanted to be part of that—and now here I am, 10 years later, working with incredible, courageous families, and I’ve never looked back.”

Families often ask, “how can I support my loved one with a substance use disorder?” The truth is that the most supportive thing families can do is to seek support for themselves. Our family programs do just that: they support the family through education, connection, and individualized road maps to encourage wellness and healing for everyone in the family.

“I’ve been working at Edgewood since 2016, but it feels longer because of the connection we have here as a team” says Albanese. “My job is amazingly rewarding because I get to see individuals and families get healthy. I don’t consider it work,” says Erin, “I feel privileged that I get to walk alongside people and families for a time in their journey. It is a tremendous honour that I am able to be part of an incredible team of people that has launched an all-encompassing family experience at Edgewood.”

Announcing Expanded Family Programs and Services at Edgewood

The newly expanded family programs and services at Edgewood include the following:

  • Family Education Workshop: three-day program, included in the cost of residential treatment
  • Insite: four-day intensive therapeutic process for families
  • Bounce Back: three-day children’s program

For more information regarding Edgewood’s Family Education Workshop and Insite, please visit Edgewood’s Family Program page.

For more information about Edgewood’s Bounce Back program, please visit the Bounce Back page.

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