My name is Dave S. and my clean date is April 15th, 2004, the day I checked into Caron/Renaissance. I was 40 years old and had been an abuser of drugs and alcohol since age 14. This is a very special date for me, obviously, but it is also my fathers' birth date and the end of tax season (my mother owns a CPA firm). At the time I checked into treatment, I wasn't talking to my father and my mother had just asked me if I was trying to kill her (emotionally); not the best of family relations. Before sharing my opinions and experience about my stay there, I feel compelled to tell you, I am currently serving as the President of the Renaissance Institute Alumni Association; the first of its' kind to receive the 501 (c) (3) designation from the IRS! You may ask, why as the owner of 2 businesses and the parent of a 21 year old boy crazed step daughter (I am no longer married to her mother, but she calls me dad) do I make the time to do this, the answer is quite simple, I am eternally grateful for the way they challenged me and believe from the bottom of my heart, these folks know what they are doing when it comes to saving lives. As a member of the recovery community of Delray/Boca, I have met literally hundreds of men, women, and teenagers who have participated in being "Renaissanced". Generally they are shook up, stressed out, miserable and kicking and clawing to express their frustration and anger at what goes on in treatement. Most of them are in treatment and still struggle to admit they have a problem. Can you imagine that your life was so messed up that you had to check into treatment and still think you don't really have a problem? Many are there because their parents gave them an ultimatum, because they could no longer watch their children killing themselves. My first conversation with most is how they don't understand the way they are treated and they want to run. I share with them that I felt the same way, at first, but I have come to believe the staff there knows what they are doing and of that, I and countless others are living proof. Unfortunately, many of their clients allow their sometimes unique treatment methodologies to scare them away. I have heard many say "they are turning my family against me". I tell them the folks there have seen many John/Jane Doe's and they know how to help you even if you don't understand why they do what they do. I tell them I felt the same way, but today, my relationship with my parents/family is better than I could ever have imagined. I have come to accept that just because I believe/think something, that doesn't mean I am right! How many of you have made a decision with all the conviction in your soul that it was the right decision, only later to find, you were wrong. Does a 50% divorce rate in this country ring a bell? Through my years in recovery I consistently hear the same things from those who have been able to put together lengths of recovery time and that is, "I am grateful for having had the gift of desperation". Some times in order to get that gift of desperation, desperate measures must be taken. Caron/Renaissance understands this and incorporates this in their individually designed treatment plans. They do not coddle all their clients (some they feel that is needed), but in my opinion they try and get them to a mental state that they surrender to their disease and become willing to try a different way. Let's face it, if you want to have something you have never had (comfort in your own skin), you have to do things you have never done! I am eternally grateful for the ways they challenged me and educated my family in how to carry themselves as to assist me in my recovery rather than enabling my poor behavior. Did I like the way they did things, not so much at first. Let me share with you a little story. I had a relative go through treatment many years before and he was instrumental in my being admitted to Caron/Renaissance. There was a point in my third week of recovery where I had the opportunity to speak with him. I told him in no uncertain terms, when I get out of here (which I could have done at any time) you better look over your shoulder because I am going to kick your ass. Three weeks later after gaining some perspective, I ran into him again and kissed him on the cheek and thanked him. That my friends' is how it works! read more

-100 is the star rating for Renaissance. Words can't describe how awful this place is, the lack of ethics and treatment that was given to my husband and lack of quality given to rest of the family. I had read several reviews of this place that cautioned how destructive, abusive and down right destructive this place was but I thought " it must be angry addicts who couldn't cut it". NO! It was family member's who talked about how it tore them up financially and emotionally. I had known about Caron in PA and assumed it would be as fantastic as it is there. I was wrong. The keep you from talking to your loved one for months, only through letters. My husband kept telling me what was going on and only after our therapist at home talked to the staff, as well as I talked to another "victim" there it was confirmed it was unhealthy. When we decided he would be leaving we asked the staff to help find another place better suited to his/our needs and they 1. Told him some lies to get him to stay into the next month( funny, his billing cycle was up and he would have owed another 17K) 2. When he was told all the lies he found a way to call me in total distress. In the end he left and I had to get the police to take him to the hospital because he was totally falling apart. I am sure if Caron had known this is what happened they would have said " he is faking it. He just does not want to be responsible, clean and on his own". This way they don't have to take responsibility for how awful the therapists are that work there. They refer to the " clinical philosophy" which has been proven to be outdated. They use a type of boot camp method. They insult, push, degrade, label and abuse clients. No compassion and treat people like dirt, but tell them they treated all of us like dirt in their addiction. This is true, at least for me, but abusing my husband so he does not do it to others does not work. They also think being abusive to the family is good and most take it. Why? Because 1. we are used to it from our addicts and 2. Because they are the " professionals" so they must be right. By the GRACE OF GOD my husband left there. DID NOT USE !!!!! And got care to keep him self until he got to the right place.The sick thing is that when he got to the hospital there was another person there from Caron....two lives have now been saved getting out of that place. It needs to be taken over and the philosophy at Caron in PA needs to be followed, because I am certain people have killed themselves as a result of being at this place and it was not because they didn't cut it, it was because Caron failed them. Trust your gut....if you are reading this and feel the same fear I did when reading the other reviews, LISTEN to it and find another place. There are so many good ones and your addicts life depends on it, as does yours. read more

If you want an ACCURATE conceptualization of what Caron Renaissance is and WHY they do what they do please take a minute to read my personal testimony. I am a recovered alcoholic, a graduate student, a loving daughter, sister, aunt, and friend and most importantly I have self-esteem and I am proud of the woman I am today. Caron did more then save my life...it gave me a whole new one that I could never have dreamed of. Whether you are the addict or a concerned family member I guarantee you will be enlightened. Two years ago I went to Caron Renaissance for my addiction and mental health issues and stayed for 6 months. Being far from home and in another country it was a difficult transition. What separates Caron from the average treatment center is that the philosophy treats the entire person as well as their family and NOT just the addiction. The problem with simply focusing on the addiction is the FACT that drugs and alcohol are just a symptom of the "living problem." Every single addict and alcoholic walking the earth has a LIFE PROBLEM. The reason why Caron does what they do is because the therapeutic team treats the real problem that CAUSES the addiction. Caron is the top of the food chain when it comes to quality of care, trained experts, and long-term results. In order to remain sober an individual must experience a personality change and fix the living problem. Without tough love, direct feedback, appropriate guidance, and expert insight it is unfortunately not possible. This is why so many people who complete the program do not relapse, with me included. Working in the addictions field myself it breaks my heart to see the high rate of relapse that comes out of the majority of other treatment programs. There is a solution. At Caron I learned to face my demons in EVERY possible aspect, to grow up and be a woman of integrity, to gain self-esteem, to tackle my mental health issues, to own up to my mistakes, to recognize how my behavior and addiction has harmed my family, to realize that I am capable of success, and to be an independent woman. When I first got to treatment I knew it was my last chance and without Caron I firmly believe I would not be here today. I apologize for all the poor reviews of this outstanding facility. My family is forever in gratitude to Caron Renaissance and I am so grateful to have them back today. In life they say real friends tell you what you NEED to hear rather than what you WANT to hear. As far as I'm concerned the staff members at Caron Renaissance are among the best friends I have ever had. read more

For all the friends and families that are currently seeking a drug rehab for their loved ones, there is nothing else like Renaissance out there and in my opinion is one of the best treatment centers in America. Now, when you are looking at reviews many times you will either see very positive reviews or really negative reviews for Renaissance, the reason for this is because Renaissance is the only treatment center out there that takes a completely different approach towards addiction. Most rehabs approach addiction with a "it's a disease, it's not your fault" kind of approach. Renaissance on the other hand, takes a hard look at the behaviors associated with being in addiction and challenges the pathologies of their patients. As someone that is in recovery, I can assure you that overcoming addiction is so much more than to just simply stop using drugs and alcohol. If you do not change your behaviors that are associated with your addiction, I can 100% guarantee that you will fail. So with that being said, they are going to hold patients accountable if rules are broken, they are going to challenge patients on their actions and behaviors. It's going to be uncomfortable at times; it's not going to be fun. It can be very difficult and I can tell you as a previous patient, there were many times I wished I was not there and didn't agree with their practices. But they are doing this because they truly have their patients best interest in mind, even if I didn't understand or agree with some of their practices at the time, I can assure you that it was the best thing for me and was exactly what I needed. I needed to take responsibility for my addiction and by doing that, I can tell you that I am living a much more fulfilling and happy life being in recovery and I have the best relationship with my family now then I ever did in my life, even before drugs and alcohol were ever in the picture. Renaissance also does a great job by helping you create a sober community so when you do complete you have a great network of AA/NA meetings and friends that are also in recovery as well as alumni that have previously gone through Renaissance. So with that being said, I owe Renaissance my life and I am very grateful for everything that they did for me and my family. read more

I went to this treatment center(caron renaissance). they convinced my family we should not use my insurance(which could get me into many great rehabs fpr free (like the retreat, mirmount, banyan and many more) I was there for almost a year, they made my family take out extra mortgage on home to pay for treatment saying if their son(me) went to another treatment center I would surely die. my parents now have no retirement plan and I am mentally damaged due to the aggressive and damaging clinical philosophy Caron follows written by a previous owner named Sid Goodman. Do not send your kids there. I am now sober (no thanks to my time at caron pa and caron renaissance) and just with my family knew this before being manipulated into this trap. Their clinical methods are beyond extreme, tp the point where many patients have commited suicide while being treated there. And one of these incidents happened while I was a patient. If you need help finding a reliable treatment center for your loved one I would be willing to try to help but remember that therapist and anyone referring you are always paid and sometimes up to 10 thousand dollars to refer you or your loved one to a treatment center. so please dont believe everything you hear. I just read a renaissance "positive" review that said "As a patient, you might get put against other patients, subjected to screaming, humiliation. but you may stay sober and live a productive life" Please believe me when I tell you if you stayed sober it is due to your hard word and not because this treatment center. the only people that should be berated daily by their therapist are sociopaths I will pray for your loved ones nick kiefer nickkiefer919 @ gmail .com read more

To the skeptical or concerned patient-to-be or family member: Look.. there are a mix of reviews on here. It is kind of sad to read some of the bad ones. They are robbing you of an accurate picture. I know, as a consumer, I am always looking for something bad. But please read this, and some of the the other informed posts. I am advocating for Renaissance, sure, but that decision is up to you. I don't really care. I just hope you make a Fully informed decision. I am alumni. I almost didn't come due to my cousin and aunt reading a bad review. Luckily I still came. It saved my life. Renaissance is a strong program. It is tough. They hold the bar high. I have been to other treatment centers. I am alumni and now I work at another treatment center. I can tell you that NO other place I have seen, is as effective. I am not going to bash my own employer on here. But PLEASE be warned. Most other places are all about insurance or money or this or that. Most places are not patient-centered like Renaissance. I have never encountered such skilled and caring staff. It is like spring training for the ball season, its like basic training for the military. It is serious. A serious, thorough solution for a Serious problem. (That's why you read reviews of people moaning and groaning). But they either don't want to look at themselves, are only looking for the negative, or didn't stick around to see the miracle happen. I am in my third year of sobriety now. I never thought it was possible. Never. Besides that, the therapy helped reduce my anxiety and depression. I have a solid network of people I met in the process. The staff is there for me still to this day. The list goes on and on. read more

If you're in a position to be reading these reviews, either you or your child are a perfect candidate for treatment at Caron Renaissance. Though the treatment I received was consistently very challenging, it was an absolutely necessary step to my achieving long term sobriety. I am now sober almost 8 years, since I entered treatment at Renaissance. Think of addiction as the most invasive cancer you can imagine. It's going to require the most aggressive treatment options, you'd be willing to try traditional medicine as well as experimental therapies. If you're fortunate enough to be able to go through Renaissance, it's going to feel like you're getting all of these treatments at once, but unfortunately, that is what is required to treat an illness as insidious as addiction. I can safely say that I have not met one single challenge in 8 years sober that Caron Renaissance did not prepare me for. I have been able to regain much of what I lost due to the disease and am now a thriving member of society. What a tragedy it would be if some negative and mischaracterized Yelp reviews kept even one suffering addict from the treatment that they needed. This is a life or death choice. If you're in a position to be able to go, you should. Remember FEAR stands for Face Everything and Recover. read more

Wow. Where do I even begin. This place changed my life. This was the third treatment center I went to and the approach that Caron Renaissance takes to addiction treatment is far different than anywhere else I have been a part of. It is NOT about the money here. The therapists and all staff genuinely care about the well being of each patient. Drugs and Alcohol are a system of a much greater issue and it was here that the work began to get to the root of the problem, which was me. The therapists and staff helped teach me to take responsibility for my actions, decisions and ultimately my life. I have never been to a place that genuinely cares so much about my well being that my mediocre effort was NOT going to be good enough for them. I could no longer lie and manipulate my way through situations. This is not an easy program to complete but one of the most rewarding things to accomplish. The family program is one of the best in the country and I owe the new relationship I have with my family to them. The treatment does not stop when you leave. Caron Renaissance has continued to support me in my recovery and gives so many opportunities to stay involved and connected. They have become my second family and I will forever be grateful. read more

Save your money and time!!! I was there 8 months. It did absolutely no good. all it did was shatter every single relationship I had made. Spent $160k in that time, and once I got a job as a paralegal down there (which they tried to get me not to do, they wanted me to have lower paying job) - they shuffled me out into IOP so they could have another bed. They are dishonest from the start, manipulative, traumatizing, and overall - not what recovery and A.A. is about. It's about understanding and love. One addict understanding another. One time at Caron me and 40 others were locked in a room with ONLY access to water for 3 days because someone figured out the WiFi password. I'm sorry Caron was too dumb to figure out 100 millennials will figure out ANY WiFi password!!! At this point it's laughable. I'm past all of that and make more than any single employee there. How's that for a turnaround? One example so you can understand the magnitude of Caron's wrongdoing and federal crimes - is that if they don't like how you're behaving, they will kick you out homeless onto the drug-ridden streets of delray to fend for yourself. They did this to 2 girls one time - they were both raped the first night. read more

Please be extremely careful in choosing a drug and alcohol rehab for your loved one. This particular rehab [caron renaissance] use draconic methods of treatment which include humiliation, intimidation, and what can be categorized as abusive treatment of residents. Their reputation had in the past been relegated to accepting residents that many, many rehabs across the nation had rejected, so this gives you some indication of their cliental. This is a branch of the Caron facility in Pennsylvania but it is by no means indicative of treatment methods used in Pennsylvania. Family week in culmination of the stark abuses of Caron Renaissance staff in the first six (6) weeks, consisted of as many as seven (7) families in one large room trying to hash out intimate family issues - An impossible situation for families impacted and torn apart with the affects of drug and alcohol abuse. We know. Please beware. Do your research wisely. Amazing that the state or federal government hasn't shut this place down read more

Major ethical concerns. You will not be treated humanely. This place is the definition of abuse. In addition to being traumatized on a daily basis for 11 months, I am currently facing an identity theft issue at the hands of CR's staff. I repeat the staff, not a patient. I have absolute proof of this, in fact it's directly linked to Caron's address. Do not let them fool you. Your personal information is not safe with them. I also have to go all the way to Florida to expunge the ID they made all patients take out with their address on it. It has been nearly impossible fighting this ID theft issue for this very reason. BTW the ID is valid another 7 years and I have been out of there for 6 years. I plan to fight this. Do NOT let these people fool you. Do not let them rob you of your personal information or money. They are con-artists empowered by having absolute control over another person/ family. Feel free to reach out with any questions. (Before they delete my review again). read more

Yeah, I was at Caron for 7 months and it's great, in theory. Do NOT go to Caron if you have literally a single thing going well in your life. Do not go if you have a significant other, or you have a good job, or you have a relationship with your family, or you're in school. I can 100% guarantee that the therapists at Caron will do everything in their power, including punish you, extend your stay, and Baker Act you, to rip everything important away from you. You will not be there for 3 months. You will be there for at LEAST 6, I've seen people that were in there for 10-12 months, and they just want more of your money and sanity. I've seen car salemen, highly educated people, managers, captain's of industry, forced to get low paying, low skill jobs. But yeah, if you're literally one bad decision away from mainlining a speedball and you're living in a crackhouse, go to Caron. Just don't expect to have any relationships when and if you leave. read more

The Caron staff create custom plans for families to give them the best chance of helping them and their addict create new patterns to support fledgling sobriety. While there are no guarantees, if parents listen and place their trust in the staff at Caron, they will gain tremendous insight into their family dynamics and stop enabling their addict. You have to do what they tell you. It can be challenging, but no more difficult than losing one's child to addiction. The programs are thorough. Nothing is happenstance. Everyone, parent and addict, leaves with the tools they need to become sober or stop enabling. The choice is theirs. We listened to everything they said; we have our son back. What better review could I offer? He entered a self-centered, immature, irresponsible addict from a home that had become insane. Today he is a mature, responsible, self-reliant sober adult. It would not have happened with out Caron and all that went with it. read more

Caron Renaissance staff and family addiction care approach saved our 23 yr old son who is an addict with pain killers as his drug of choice. The Caron program is very challenging, it will test your enabling tendencies and will have you scratching your head at times, but if you accept the program with open arms and heart you will be thankful. As we look back almost 18 months later, our son is enjoying a sober life, earning his own living and paying his own bills. He has recently become a sponsor for a new member of the Caron family and attends regular meetings. In addition to his new sober life, our family has also learned the tools needed to be happy again.... So not only did Caron save my son......they saved our family! read more

Caron renaissance is an abusive cult. when I was there, they made all patients split up into groups of 2 and each day the 2 would walk to the DMV and they forced us to get IDs with the rehabs address. I experienced ID theft in the time after this. This place was my worst nightmare and gave me PTSD and so many illegal things are happening here they are murderers. pushing people to commit suicide with the verbal and extreme psychological abuse. they should be held responsible for crimes against humanity. This is fraud and an attempt to dismantle patients preventing them from being able to leave or go home and there are HUNDREDS of unreported suicides here. read more

I am an alumni of CR and it was the best and hardest thing I've experienced. Yeah sure, you get yelled at sometimes, but it was honestly in my best interest. Since completing renaissance in early 2013, I have been the most productive, responsible person I have ever been. They truly taught me what it was to be a good daughter, mother, friend and employee. I am super grateful for my experience and I'm so glad that renaissance never gave up on me. Prior to Renaissance I had been to two other facilities and neither of them worked for me, either because of their treatment modalities or my own desire to be a productive person. read more

My brother was a patient at Renaissance. It's heart breaking reading the poor reviews some people have given. Caron saved my brothers life as well as my families. I would wake up every night at 3am to make sure my brother was breathing. Once entering Caron I knew he was finally safe, miserable initially but alive. He is now thriving living in Florida. I miss him everyday but know it is better for him to be out there. I can finally say I have my brother back and that is all thanks to Caron and his willingness to better himself. read more

If I could give it no stars I would. I was a patient here for 7 months. That was this time last year. I barley got out before I relapsed. This place is so incredibly harmful to the patient ,abusive and money hungry. I luckily got out and started a new life at home and haven't used drugs or alcohol or any other behavior in over a year since before I went to Caron. Abusive. Cruel. Horrible staff. Unsafe. The list goes on and on. read more

Caron Renaissance has saved my life! There program was tough and they were not easy on me. It was exactly what I needed, life or death. I chose life, and once I started to do the work my life started changing for the better. Not only are the therapists amazing, they also have an alumni network that is pretty incredible. Thank you Caron! read more