Article updated: 1/10/2012 11:57 AM

Lombard woman promotes recovery through nature

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Gwen Miller, 24, of Lombard was sexually abused as a child and hopes to start her own wilderness therapy program for survivors of childhood sexual abuse.

Daniel White | Staff Photographer

Gwen Miller says she’s always found comfort in nature. “I just felt so much happier when I was in the outdoors. I felt so much more alive and safe than I did at home,” she said.

Daniel White | Staff Photographer

“There’s a lot of different ways you can use nature for therapy,” Lombard’s Gwen Miller said. “Physical activity is also good for mental health.”

Daniel White | Staff Photographer

About this Article

When Gwen Miller of Lombard was sexually abused as a young child, she found a less-than-obvious place for therapy and comfort: nature and the outdoors. Now 24, she wants to become a wilderness therapist, opening the outdoors to other youths who need nature's healing powers. “Because of the help I received when I first disclosed it,” Miller says, “I want to provide that level of help to others who have just disclosed it.”

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