STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

Kim Hayes wants to put drug treatment courts out of business.

Hayes recently opened Carbonate Recovery Center in the old Marketron building at 101 Empty Saddle Trail in Hailey. The only nonprofit outpatient facility in the valley, its goal is to detect and treat those with substance abuse and mental health challenges before those issues wreck lives.

“Addiction is not a crime, but it can turn into one,” said Hayes. “(Judge) Ned (Williamson) doesn’t like to send someone to prison because they have an addiction. My goal is to remove financial barriers to seeking treatment. Once someone gets in trouble, it’s hard to get out because they have to pay expensive attorney fees, court fees...”

Group therapy takes place in this room.

Hayes, a licensed clinical social worker, opened her own clinic--KH Counseling & Health Center--in 2018. She opened Carbonate Recovery as 501©3 nonprofit focused on prevention and treatment of substance abuse disorders this past year.

Individual sessions cost $80 and group sessions, $60. But she doesn’t turn anyone away for inability to pay, relying on Medicaid reimbursements, grants and donations to offer discounted or free therapy.

During the clinic’s first several months, it conducted 78 free individual sessions for individuals. Its free Wellness & Recovery group provided 114 individuals with free treatment during that time.

Hayes and her staff strive to provide early detection of substance use issues. They might, for instance, detect substance abuse problems during a marriage counseling session.

Once they detect an issue, they focus on mitigating it with intervention, rehabilitation and a recovery plan so it doesn’t become a bigger problem.

“We want to see rehabilitation over incarceration,” said Hayes.

Hayes has several counselors who specialize in substance abuse and other mental health challenges which, she said, often occur simultaneously with substance abuse. One counselor is fluent in Spanish, as well as English. Two counselors specialize in working with youth and families, including at-risk youth, while others are certified in grief or trauma therapy.

They have a variety of tools to work with, including EDMR, also known as eye movement desensitization and reprocessing, which uses rapid eye movements and taps to help the brain reprocess traumatic memories to alleviate PTSD.

Bioregulation therapy, or BRT, uses sensors placed on part of the body to read electromagnetic fields being emitted so those signals can be modulated toward a healthier pattern. It’s used to accelerate healing, increasing relaxation, reduce chronic pain, improve sleep and support detoxification.

It helped one woman who has had allergies since she was 3 address the severe allergies she gets living next to alfalfa fields. After six treatments, she no longer had to take medication.

It helped one patient heal quickly from extreme pain caused by a broken vertebrae so he could get back to moving.

Quantum Neuro Reset Therapy, or QNRT, helps reset the brain’s response to emotional triggers via applied kinesiology and a cold laser.

And Dialectical Behavior Therapy, or DBT, blends cognitive behavioral therapy with mindfulness to help people learn to manage their feelings and navigate relationships. It’s extremely helpful for things like borderline personality disorder, said Hayes.

Ninety-minute group therapy sessions focus on relapse prevention, recovery roadmaps and dialectical behavior therapy. They use the movement desensitization to reprocess trauma and bioregulation therapy. And they learn mindful awareness to learn how to regulate themselves emotionally when they feel anger or other emotions coming on.

Hayes said her clinic helps people suffering from anxiety, depression, cravings and addiction to such things as vaping. They also teach distress tolerance.

“We don’t like to be uncomfortable, but we teach people how to be uncomfortable,” Hayes said. “I love this community and want to see a healthy, happy community.”

Want to learn more? Visit https://crchailey.org/