Cedars Recovery

The foundation of my healing & recovery journey. I've met many of my peers, counselors, and staff at Cedars Recovery, and all have come from so many walks of life, and atmosphere, the compassion, and this system of healing & learning to love oneself again, through programs that are there to match your needs. Beautiful. I'll be 3 years in my healing/ recovery journey this coming May 3rd. God bless the diversity and the inclusion of all humanity as one here!

This app has been monumental in my ability to stay connected to all the amazing people I met at Cedar's ❤️❤️❤️

My experience as the active parent dealing with an inactive, addicted co‑parent raised serious concerns about Cedars’ priorities. The centre operates with a profit‑first model, often recommending second‑stage housing regardless of clinical need. Staff roles include funnelling patients into affiliated sober living and therapy services—many of which are privately owned by individuals tied to Cedars’ leadership. If asked by outside agencies whether a patient is able to return to work, Cedars will say they are not—only to later hire those same individuals to work at the rehab. In my view, this model prioritises revenue over individualised care and lacks transparency and accountability—especially given its access to public funds. Regarding their 5 star reviews: in November 2025 an Island Health staff member publicly posted a 5‑star Google review of Cedars Recovery, praising the care they received. This raises ethical concerns given Cedars’ contracted role in Island Health’s Regional Treatment Beds Program. When employees of the health authority endorse a facility that directly benefits from government‑funded referrals, it creates the appearance of a conflict of interest. The program generates revenue for Cedars and sustains Island Health’s treatment network, so employee endorsements blur the line between genuine patient feedback and institutional promotion. Stop privatizing Canadian healthcare. It starts here.

As a family member I am appalled and now worried that my loved one won't be treated respectfully after making a phone call to this place. Hopefully the person that answered the phone is simply just a admin person and does not work closely with the vulnerable people that may be seeking help here. I called this evening just to get an update on a loved one to make sure that he is ok and at the very least made it there because he is not allowed to call his family until next week. He asked who the family member was, then asked who I was and said "I cannot confirm or deny that that person is here". First of all, More than likely he is there as he flew in and I spoke with him in a facetime call while he was heading to the vehicle with the person that was driving him there from the airport. Secondly, I did not ask if he was there or not. I simply asked for an update. After his response I stated "Why did you ask who I was and who he was if you were not going to give any update in the first place" with which his response was to hang up on me. If he was not going to give an update then he simply could have said "sorry we are not going to be able to give any updates" but he just had to know who was calling and for who. Extremely distressing for a family member to call and expect they are going to speak to a professional that knows how to at the very least respectfully speak to people. At the cost of a thousand a day that is the very least we can expect is it not? As a current nurse and social work student this behaviour is appalling. Does this said person have to interact with my family member or any other people that may be in a vulnerable state? I hope not. People go there to heal. If his behaviour is accepted there does this mean other workers with poor behaviour are accepted there? Not very comforting. After this call I have no choice but to wonder if this person gets off on causing distress to guests and their family and is more than likely, after asking for our information reading my family members chart just for fun. Awful. Don't work with people if you don't know how to be kind, compassionate and empathetic. For 55,000 per person for two months do better. Next time a family member calls to just see if their loved one is ok and made it don't bother asking them for their names if you're just going to tell them you cannot confirm or deny that they are there.

When I had issues logging in I sent a email and they responded quickly and corrected the issue I was having and followed up afterv

I saved my life here! I was ready to ask for help and I got it. They provided safe, professional and authentic treatment. Everyone from the counselors to the kitchen staff. I am so grateful for the support that I received in learning to love myself as I am.

My experience at Cedar Recovery was one of the most toxic, unsafe, and traumatizing environments I’ve ever been in. Nothing about this place resembles the supportive, trauma-informed care they advertise. From the moment I arrived, my concerns were brushed aside. I wasn’t even assigned a peer for the first two weeks of detox, leaving me confused, isolated, and without basic structure. When I attempted to advocate for myself, I was yelled at publicly. My dietary needs were ignored, forcing me to waste my own money on junk food just to get through each day. What I witnessed was even worse. I saw Indigenous women being bullied and talked down to because of their bodies and clothing. The atmosphere was judgmental, hostile, and anything but therapeutic. I saw a patient get refused her medication at midnight, become distressed, leave the property, and end up missing in the forest. A full search party had to be called. That should never happen at a licensed treatment facility. The culture speaks for itself. Multiple patients told me: “You have to stand your ground here or staff will walk all over you.” And they meant it. One patient even left her assigned house and came to detox because the environment at her house was so toxic — and nobody was shocked. That says everything. But the most damaging part for me was how my counsellor treated me. Instead of offering support, she labelled me “pity seeking,” “manipulative,” and said I “act like a victim.” I had just arrived. I was trying to settle, trying to cope, and instead my symptoms were used against me. And when I reached out because I was experiencing suicidal ideation, it took the on-call doctor over 12 hours to provide an emergency prescription. Twelve hours. In a crisis. I felt abandoned, unheard, and completely unsafe. Cedar Recovery did not help me. It broke me down further. I left feeling worse, not better. If you value safety, dignity, or even the bare minimum of mental-health care, I strongly suggest looking elsewhere.

I sorry excuse for a rehabilitation center. They fail to take into account the vast differences in client's pasts, nor do they make any changes to treatment based on things like trauma, lack of spirituality or religion, and perhaps worst of all they LIE. They will tell you absolutely anything you want to hear in order to get you through the doors, and once you're there that all vanishes. I am sober despite this place. Despite one of their counselors forcing me to read an in-depth list of 'sexual experiences' I'd had, in front of HER and 3 other clients. Despite them telling my family to abandon me when I needed support the most (thankfully, my family doesn't believe in 'tough love', or I'd probably be dead). Ethan is perhaps the worst (yes, you are, Ethan), he is a slimy salesman and nothing more. A lying, manipulative, slimy salesman. Avoid this place if you want to live. There's places that will help, that will see you as an individual, and won't cost tens of thousands of dollars.