Fulshear Treatment to Transition

"My daughter was at the ranch for three and a half months. She just moved over to the apartments very recently. It is a challenging environment in many ways and there were many ups and downs. It was very hard for me for the first few months to trust the people, program, and process. The staff proved to be patient with me as a parent navigating new territory. Most of my distrust and scepticism stemmed from difficulty letting my young adult function apart from me. I can honestly say that from my perspective, the staff were very caring and devoted. My daughter's individual therapist was a recent grad who was beginning her career. She was effective and humble and caring. Communication was excellent most of the time with all the staff. They put up with lots of emails from a worried mom. The family therapy was very helpful and I got the feeling all the time that their intention was always to strengthen the family. We showed up weekly, consistently, and were teachable, and great progress was made. My daughter had a medical condition which required extra care. The nursing staff was thorough, deeply caring, and communicative. I had the phone number for the residential staff at all times. Each time I called or texted, I got a prompt, courteous response. I felt like I was welcome to communicate with them at all times. I did not eat meals there but I know they offered three meals a day, extra fruit, and that they tried to encouraged healthy eating. I had weekly calls with my daughter and on all holidays, birthdays etc, there were extra calls. She always got the mail we sent. The daily schedule/programming has recently changed. I saw this as evidence that they are trying to always be more effective at what they do. My daughter enjoyed many community outings around the area at restaurants, parks, stores, etc. The cottages were in need of updating and have recently been renovated and are very nice now (my daughter arrived before this was completed so I saw both). My daughter did complain about bugs beforehand, but the recent renovations made the cottages like new. My daughter was not extremely interested in the equine therapy. They gave her the opportunity to be, but did not ever pressure her. She did grow to love one horse and I think would have been even more involved but the Texas winter did not provide optimal conditions. They recently contracted with an excellent parent coach who has been very helpful for me and my husband. We are continuing to participate in those bi-monthly calls and are about to finish our fourth of four individual sessions with the parent coach as my daughter transitions to the apartments. I also benefitted greatly from family programming, which is quarterly. In retrospect, I wish I would have attended the first one that was held one week after my daughter arrived. My own adjustment would have been easier. To meet the staff in person, participate in programming as a family, and meet other families was a very positive experience. The weekend we did attend fell about 3 months after her arrival and just prior to her recent exit. I don't think there is any residential setting that I would be able to give 5 stars, but I give a very strong 4 to Fulshear. My daughter did admit recently that she had come to appreciate the ranch and while she was excited to move to the next phase, she was sad to leave her friends. Difficulties arose during my daughter's time there between the young adults. This was stressful. I can say on most occasions I was satisfied that the staff tried to handle these things wisely, even when my opinion was different than theirs. Lastly, the policies have recently changed and while this is a setting for women, they have expanded to include biological males transitioning. This was something I appreciated knowing ahead of time. The staff honored my requests regarding housing and roommates. I have read all the reviews and some of them seem very outdated. It is challenging but the staff are professional and intentional."

"I am writing this review because in the past I didn’t think it was worth it considering this place will continue to run when it shouldn’t be allowed.. but now I have decided that people need to know what really happens… Fulshear is a very corrupt business, I was at this establishment for about 14 months and I never graduated. I saw a lot of girls that also did not graduate because it is very difficult to graduate unless you are there and already don’t have many issues.. The ranch used to be nice until the bugs and rodents got worse.. I had to be moved out of my cottage because of the drastic bug infestation that went on.. I woke up and found bugs everywhere, in my bed, the shower, the sink, all over the floors and the windows. It was disgusting. This place has yellow water and cold water too. The groups on the ranch were okay, nothing special at all and were not taken seriously in the slightest. The therapy aspect was good but only because I had therapist who cared. She was the only one. Treatment team was a nightmare and if you were late then it didn’t happen for another two weeks. The management were extremely rude and did not care about you. The chef was a creep and he often called people fat and managed what or how much we ate. The apartments were nice but only because fulshear didn’t build them. The staff at the apartment did not care about you at all. They made it very clear and the treatment team and groups were even worse. I was moved into a separate apartment from everyone else and was there not allowed in other clients apartments or off campus. Lived there for the last three months of my stay where eventually was not allowed to graduate. After being discharged I was told that they would call the police on me if I came back for any reason. This has made me scared to even walk by considering I live so close to the facility. If you have read all of this thank you and there is more. Please don’t bring your child here.. please please please. There are much better program than this one and it is not what it seems at all."

"With everything that I have been through in my life and it is a lot. Before coming to Fulshear Treatment to Transition I didn't think I would make it past 18 and here I am living past 20. Now I do have to say that the work is not easy, and one of the most important things that I learned while being at Fulshear is that, I am not and never was broken, i was just lost, and being at Fulshear with all the staff and therapists and life skills people and nursing and everyone else but most importantly the horses helped me find who I really am, and how to never lose myself again. I also struggled with saving money and I could never budget, I also learned that at Fulshear, I learned a lot at Fulshear, I learned how to be more vulnerable, and how to let people in and trust them. I couldn't be more happier than who I am today. That horse in the picture was my most biggest supporter besides all the coaches, therapists, equine specialist, cooks, psychiatrists, nursing, dietitians, and many more. I cannot thank them enough for changing my life."