Mountainside Treatment Center – Canaan

DO NOT GO HERE! In my experience, this facility has seriously gone downhill over the past few years. I stayed here for three days and left feeling extremely disappointed with the care and treatment I received. One of my… biggest concerns was that I felt my cravings were not taken seriously. I asked about medication to help manage my cravings, but I felt that my concerns were dismissed rather than properly addressed. Instead of feeling listened to and supported, I felt like I was being looked at as though something was wrong with me for asking for help. I also experienced interactions that made me feel racially discriminated against. I cannot speak for anyone else’s experience, but I can speak about how I was treated and how those interactions made me feel. I felt singled out and uncomfortable, and it significantly affected my sense of safety and trust in the facility. For a place that is supposed to help people during a vulnerable and difficult period of their lives, I expected to be treated with dignity, respect, compassion, and understanding. Unfortunately, that was not how I felt during my stay. I strongly encourage anyone considering this facility to do thorough research, ask detailed questions about how cravings and medication are handled, and pay attention to how staff communicate with you before making a decision. My experience was deeply disappointing, and I would not personally return based on what I experienced.

I really enjoyed mountainside treatment center the only thing is they made some mistakes with my name and didn’t always make me feel comfortable and validated so that’s why i give it 3 stars.

Mario is truly an amazing recovery coach. He goes above and beyond to support, encourage, and inspire me and my recovery. His compassion, patience, and genuine dedication make a lasting difference. Mario doesn’t just… help me through recovery—he believes in me and reminds me of my strength every step of the way.

Was looking for a reset and choose mountainside and leaving with mixed feelings and disappointment. Clearly you can feel there PE backed ownership puts profits ahead of “client service”. It’s a defiantly pay for service… environment as I chose to upgrade my recovery with a suite as I needed access to my computer and phones from time to time. Even in recovery you have real world responsibilities. This “access” didn’t come without a significant incremental per diem cost in excess of $1,500 per day. The wellness programs I thought were beneficial - my clinician Nicole was a true advocate and really took ownership in providing the best treatment as possible. From a personal perspective, as soon as I decided to not renew the suite even though I also paid for the regular accommodations, the admissions/concierge team couldn’t get me out of Mountainside fast enough. No exit interview. No post treatment plan. No guidance as to next steps. Just constant “badgering” as to when will I be out of room and when will my car pick me up. In addition, no one informed me that ride shares are practically nonexistent here leaving me on my own to find transportation home. It’s unfortunate because there was some good that transpired here but in the end I was just a body and number. Also please be aware, if staying over the weekend, many of the class instructors are “no-shows” leaving the clients/patients waiting around until finally heading back to there rooms without any explanation or more importantantly rescheduling of missed classes. I would encourage you to look elsewhere and good luck in your recovery.

I had the privilege of working with Mario Cocozza as my recovery coach, and I can’t recommend him highly enough. Mario meets you where you are — no judgment, no scripts, just genuine care and real accountability. He… checked in consistently, celebrated the wins, and helped me stay grounded through big life transitions. What sets Mario apart is that he actually walks alongside you; he’s invested in your success as a person, not just a client. My recovery is stronger because of the work we did together. If you’re considering Mountainside and get the chance to work with Mario, take it.

Mario has been my sober coach for a couple months now and has been a great influence on my sobriety. Between months 7 and 8 I came close to a relapse and soon thereafter he became my sober coach. He carried me thru some… very difficult times, losing both my grandparents in the span of two days, alongside a breakup and he was there to support me thru it the whole way. Checking in on me has been incredibly helpful. Encouraging me to go to AA meetings regularly, helping me get employment. He is truly dedicated to helping other people stay sober and it’s very clear he’s passionate about what he does. He always makes you feel seen, heard, validated and understood. I’ve never once felt judged or shamed by him, even when I was struggling. He truly understands what we’re going thru and it shows that he cares about his clients immensely.

Very rarely am I impressed by or grateful to a business or entity that provides clinical services of any kind, but the fact that I am even writing this positive review proves that Mountainside Treatment Center has… managed to achieve the impossible. Having suffered repeated, long-term medical gaslighting and clinical negligence in the past due to provider prejudice—as a person with a history of substance abuse—and in light of additional traumatizing experiences that I’ve had with other treatment centers, it is very hard for me to trust anyone in a medical or clinical setting anymore for fear of suffering further harm at their hands. I entered MTC last fall with the same mindset, very weary of the situation, but desperate enough to give it a chance, and within days of being admitted, I had become much more optimistic. By the time I graduated and left Mountainside, my faith in society’s ability to provide individualized, evidence-based, balanced, COMPASSIONATE care to people suffering from addiction had been restored (accessibility is another story, but I won’t go there). Ultimately, I even decided to engage the services of a Mountainside Recovery Coach, Kristina Green, with whom I have been working remotely for about eight months, and I love her. I do not think people commonly continue with recovery coaching for such an extended period of time, but for me, it has proven more helpful in maintaining my sobriety than any 12-step based program, sober living, or even psychotherapy ever has. The former two have never proven conducive to my personal recovery in the past. Moreover, Kristina is uniquely positioned to understand my situation and offer informed insight in such a way that a well-credentialed third-party therapist alone never could—with all the academic training and clinical hours in the world, but none of the firsthand experience. Beyond recovery coaching, Kristina is also just an amazing person in general. I was very fortunate to have been matched up with her, specifically. Did I mention that they have a high ropes course at Mountainside?

Bait and switch program!! Admissions promises a certain program, then you pay 400 dollar intake and they switch the program to one that costs 5 times more!! Worst of all they pretend it's to help you while you are at… your most vulnerable! Complete scam!!

Extremely unprofessional staff, only care about your money. Seriously go anywhere else but here.

Horrrrible treatment center. Would definitely recommend finding another facility to go to before choosing them

Mountainside let me down twice now. This is not a safe space for gay people. They don’t investigate homophobia appropriately. I would never suggest this place to anyone in the LGBTQ+ community, they tend to take down… bad reviews to save face, it’s nowhere near a 5 star facility from my experience the residential isn’t posted online for a reason they only post pictures of the detox. They only have 2 private bathrooms and the rest of the men have to share public restrooms which are disgusting and the sinks are always clogged. Even on visiting day they don’t let family Down into residential (which I’ve never seen ever in any rehab I’ve ever been to) because if they saw how everyone had to live, they would not pay all that money out out of pocket. I was promised would be packed with care and they just threw everything together ruining around 60$ worth of my things. They just dropped the ball on everything. They also sent me home with my schedule for the day that I got kicked out, I also knew some of the client services staff are homophobic as well, quite a few of them are rude to only me and to send me home with my schedule right on top of the bag was like they’re mocking me. Absolutely disgusting

They let my son down twice, they’re all about the money, although there are some great counselors on staff.

Mario is my brother’s recovery coach. I don’t have the words to say how incredible Mario is. The support he is providing and has provided over the past month has been beyond what we could’ve ever asked for. Our family… will forever be grateful 🙏

I am a current client at mountainside in the sober living house and I am so grateful for every second I have spent here. I have been here for almost 4 months and have been through all programs by this point. When I got… here I was met by friendly faces when being brought into detox. I didn’t feel uncomfortable at any moment and thanks to the amazing detox staff I had a very zero stress and cozy stay. To the residential staff, you all are absolutely AMAZING! I cannot thank everyone enough for making the 47 days with you guys made me feel heard and loved. To Ally, thank you for letting me share my experience with you and being a friend to me and helping me through some hard times. I will forever be grateful for you. PHP was a nice step down from all the restrictions. Being able to spend some outside time at meetings or going out for some good food was very helpful to showing that I really can have fun sober. Sober living so far through mountainside has been a life changing experience. I definitely lucked out with having some of the best roommates ever! Mario was amazing during my first month in the house. As a recovery coach he helped me get on track with my recovery and think of goals that I would like to accomplish in my sobriety. I was lucky enough to know him from the beginning and I am very happy that I was able to work with him later in my stay. Having someone that I can always rely on when I am having a rough time that was only one call away was very relieving for me. I will stop talking now as I could go on forever saying amazing things about this place. Thank you Mountainside ❤️

Mario has been an absolute gift to our family. My husband has been doing sober coaching with Mario since he completed rehab at Mountainside. Mario keeps him accountable while fostering a strong relationship built on a… foundation of trust. Mario keeps it real with both my husband and me with his humor and humility. He checks in with me weekly and reminds me his phone is always on for me. He approaches the difficult road of recovery with dignity for the client, compassion for the family, and respect for the process. He shares his own personal stories and experiences. Mario is deeply invested and loves what he does. I could not have gotten through these last few months without him, and my husband continues to make growth in this partnership. When my husband was having a hard time Mario drove across the state to meet with him in person. He is the definition of above and beyond with his dedication and kindness. I am so thankful for Mario and the impact he has had on my husband’s recovery as well as on me. While we are grateful for so many of the kind and dedicated people at Mountainside, Mario’s coaching has been the most impactful part of the journey.

Mountainside helped when I needed it. I was having difficulty after losing my job and I was able to pull my life back on track because of the support I received from their programs. Sober coaching really helped get me… over the tough times during this period. Mario was there for me when times were hard. Having someone to pull you out of dark thoughts was essential when I didn’t have much hope. Now, sober and moving forward, I see a lot of good things happening in the future.

Mountainside saved my life. I say that with joy, gratitude-- and astonishment.

When I checked myself in over 7 months ago, I had no idea what to expect. All I knew is that I didn't want to drink any more. I did everything they asked me to do and everything that I was physically capable of. I even… tried yoga twice! When I got released I was worried I would slip back into old habits but I immediately went to AA meetings and used what I had learned about CBT. I start OP shortly after and really enjoyed it. Then I started work with Recovery Dharma and eventually found a meeting I love. I'm still on meds to help with cravings and all these things put together are working for me. When people ask me how I've done it, I say I learned a lot at Mountainside and have applied it to my life after I left. Everyone has their own journey but I truly beleive mine would not have started if it weren't for Mountainside's staff. If you are in need of help with any addiction, you first need to want to stop, and then Mountainside can help you do it. Namaste 🙏

I came to Mountainside back in 2021 and the program was great. I really enjoyed my clinician and they helped me work through one of the hardest times of my life . When I didn’t want to come to group someone always came… and checked in on me to make sure I was doing ok. That meant a lot to me and showed me the people here really cared about me. I would not be at the place in life I am today if I didn’t come to Mountainside and get the help I deserved. I am eternally grateful!

My husband was in treatment at mountainside, and I cannot say enough, good things. I especially want to acknowledge Mario his mentor and recovery specialist. Mario is an amazing human being. He is empathetic,… Encouraging, And should absolutely be acknowledged for going above and beyond his job description to make sure that my husband has been safe and cared for every step of the way. He has also reached out to me numerous times to make sure that I am not alone in my husband‘s recovery experience. He is a godsend, A true angel, And I hope that this review is seen by his superiors so that he can be acknowledged and rewarded for his efforts.

My ex-husband was under the care of Mountainside Rehab throughout the vast majority of his final year of life. On December 8th, he disappeared—this was the last time both Mountainside and our family heard from him.… Mountainside reached out to notify our family that he had been missing on December 17th, nine days after they lost contact with him. From December 17th through December 22nd, our family and Mountainside were in frequent communication regarding his disappearance. We found him deceased on December 22nd. While NYPD followed their standard procedure and listed his date of death as 12/22 (the day he was found), police and the NYC Medical Examiner acknowledged he had been deceased for weeks. Despite Mountainside knowing they lost contact with him on December 8th, they will only refund sober coaching fees from December 22nd through December 31st, using the official date of death rather than the date they acknowledged losing contact with their client. They also refunded the credit card on file rather than reach out to the family to find out the best way to make the refund. His credit card was cancelled by the end of December based on advice from his lawyers, the bank, and the police. All advised this is standard practice for deceased people. Additionally, there was a charge on his credit card in early December for a $1,500 transport from Connecticut to Brooklyn. He abandoned his own car in Connecticut for this transport, which indicates he was incapacitated and not in the right state of mind to consent to this substantial charge. This rate is nothing short of predatory. During one of the most devastating times of our lives, Mountainside's response has been to keep fees for services they could not have provided to someone they knew was missing, and charges for transportation when he was clearly not capable of proper consent. Given that Brian spent nearly his entire final year under Mountainside’s care, this financial exploitation is a disgraceful breach of trust. Families trusting loved ones to addiction services deserve better accountability and compassion than this.

Between the warm and caring staff, the beautiful campus and the unique perspective on recovery - Mountainside stands out. It is truly one a kind and I am so grateful to be able to refer anyone who needs help to them.… Thank you Mountainside staff for all you do 🫶🏻

Excellent

This place is amazing. They’re like family to me and extended care wouldn’t be the way it is today, if it wasn’t for Mike Harrington, and Donna Martin, helped me get through some of the toughest things in life.… Mountainside has been a huge part of my life and has shown me there is more to my future. I am so blessed to have a second chance.

I’m a Mountainside Treatment Center alumni with over three years of sobriety, and I can honestly say my time there changed the course of my life. A huge part of that is because of Alyssa Cumpstone. Alyssa consistently… went above and beyond to support me during my stay. She met with me regularly, made herself available whenever I needed extra support, and truly took the time to understand me as a whole person — not just a diagnosis. Through her guidance and the holistic activities offered at Mountainside, I began to rediscover who I was and learn how to actually live again, not just stay sober. She helped me build confidence, reconnect with myself, and develop tools for long-term wellness and recovery. That foundation has stayed with me long after treatment. Today, I’ve maintained sustained recovery, completed my Master’s in Social Work, and now work in behavioral health helping others in treatment for mental health and substance use disorders. I truly don’t believe I would be where I am today without Alyssa, the supportive staff, and the healing environment at Mountainside. If you’re looking for compassionate, individualized, and genuinely life-changing care, you will find it here. There truly aren’t enough stars to reflect how life-changing this place and the people here have been for me.

To simply put it , Mountainside saved my life . I was dying of alcoholism and unable to love myself . My clinician and the entire staff loved me until I loved myself again . They provided me many ways of healing… including my intro to AA but also many other options like spiritual enhancement groups , CBT , DBT, NA , and others . The family wellness dept helped me mend relationships with my closest loved ones that I fractured due to my addiction. On top of that after my departure from inpatient they set me up with a good after care program and continued to follow up with me to make sure I was doing well. I could never express how grateful I am for what Mountainside did for me . ❤️

unfortunately they seem to more concerned with money then really helping anyone. My insurance covers almost all costs and they were more interested in payment than actually getting the patient admitted. very sad

Mountainside gave me my life back. The environment is supportive, safe, and healing, and the staff just genuinely wants you to succeed. I left with real tools, clarity, and hope for my future and stay connected… throughout the Alumni department. I’m deeply thankful for my time here and would recommend Mountainside to anyone ready for a real change.