Counselor blends therapy with outdoor adventures

Kalispell-based counselor Sean Patrick thinks he has the best working space in the world — Montana.

Since 2017, his Evoke Changes clinical practice has been giving people the chance to seek mental-health wellness both in a traditional indoor setting as well as with “adventure” trips that take clients on a journey of self-discovery.

While most of his adventure trips take place within the boundaries of Montana, he has also led therapy trips to Texas and Thailand.

“People can fake things in an office one hour a week, but on a wilderness trip lasting three to seven days, you are going to see the roller-coaster of emotions that people have to deal with,” Patrick said. “My job is to recognize where people are struggling and encourage them to do something different.”

Patrick’s journey into the field of psychology was not an easy one. Diagnosed with a learning disability at an early age, he made it through school with the help of several gifted counselors who inspired him to want to help people. A psychology degree was always his goal, until one college professor told Patrick that he would never be able to pass the classes needed in the field of study. He suggested that Patrick learn a trade or craft instead.

“At that young and impressionable age, I took his advice and wound up changing my major five or six times,” Patrick said. “I wound up working construction jobs while I tried to decide what it was that I really wanted to do with my life.”

It was during this time of deep depression that Patrick struggled with alcohol and drug addiction. His struggles came to a head at age 20 when Patrick attempted to take his own life, and failed. It was a moment that would change his life forever.

“I made the decision to get better and, from there, my life gradually started changing. I wish I could say it was like the movies where there is a sudden 360-degree change, but that’s just now how things work in real life,” he said. “It took gradual steps to get me to where I am today.”

Still committed to his desire to help others, Patrick continued his construction job during the day, but returned to the college classroom at night in pursuit of a psychology degree. With the campus library basically serving as his second home, Patrick earned an associate degree in psychology from San Antonio Community College and then his bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of Texas at San Antonio in four years.

“As I learned more about emotion management — about psychology and cognition — I started to be able to manage my emotions in a very different way. After I was able to put away all of the things that were negatively affecting my life, only then did I really feel like I was in a place where I could start helping other people,” he said.

Patrick continued his education at Texas A&M University Kingsville, where he earned a master’s degree in clinical psychology.

Patrick began work on his Ph.D at a school in Vermont before deciding that was not the route he wanted to go. He was contemplating a move back to Texas when he came across a job opening at Summit Preparatory School in Kalispell. As a longtime outdoor enthusiast, Patrick felt their outdoor therapy model was a perfect fit for his skills.

“When I first read the application, I didn’t think it was a real job. It was just too perfect for me,” Patrick said. “They flew me out for an interview over the Fourth of July weekend; two weeks later I was moving to Montana.”

Patrick quickly fell in love with the school’s therapeutic techniques, especially the use of outdoor adventures to encourage emotional well-being and growth.

He soon suffered another setback, though, suffering a pair of serious concussions in a short period of time after slipping on the ice and hitting his head, and not long after rolling his truck in an accident.

Six months of speech and occupational therapy left Patrick without a job and once again struggling with his plans for the future. It was then that he decided it was time to finally chase his dream of opening his own practice, and Evoke Changes was born.

Finally in a position to help others in the way he had always dreamed, Patrick has one last obstacle to overcome — he had to obtain a guide license. With the help of a local outfitter, he soon cleared that hurdle and began using Montana as a tool for healing.

With several therapy trips behind him now, Patrick has even expanded the program to include a nonprofit, Evoke Changes Outdoors, that helps raise funding to provide therapy trips for veterans and first responders.

While the road was not an easy one, Patrick is glad to finally be able to help others in ways he never even dreamed of.

“I know traditional therapy doesn’t always work for everybody. It’s difficult to sit in an office with someone you don’t know and open up about things. I am extremely grateful to have the opportunity to be able to help people in a way that makes them more comfortable with the whole process. We are not just about going on the trips; we are about facilitating lasting change in people.”

For more information about Patrick’s endeavors, visit www.evokechanges.com and www.evokechangesoutdoors.org.

Reporter Jeremy Weber may be reached at 758-4446 or jweber@dailyinterlake.com.