Ramona Teufl deals openly with her illness. “I’m addicted to cannabis,” says the 35-year-old. She has been at the DGD mother-child center ” Schwanzenwind ” in Upper Franconia with her four-and-a-half-year-old daughter for about six months. The center is located next to Haus Immanuel, a DGD specialist clinic for addicted women in Hutschdorf, a district of Thurnau in the Kulmbach district.
In the past, Ramona Teufl has already been to Lower Bavaria and the Westerwald for long-term therapy. The child was in a youth welfare office at the time. After a relapse in the adaptation phase – this is what the phase after withdrawal is called – Ramona Teufl got a place in the mother-child center in Hutschdorf. There she can spend time with her child. “We really like it here,” says Ramona Teufl, who comes from Upper Bavaria. “I really wanted to stay in Bavaria. And I like the rural surroundings.” She has regular contact with her daughter’s father, even if the relationship has broken down. The father pays maintenance for his daughter.
The neighboring specialist clinic Haus Immanuel has 60 therapy places for women. The facility was founded in 1907 as an addiction clinic, and since 1961 it has only admitted women. Alcohol and medication addiction are primarily treated. In April 2023, the DGD Mother-Child Center Schwanzwind (MKZ) was opened next door. There are twelve family apartments on two floors. Children up to 16 years old are allowed to come along. The facility also includes a daycare center for up to 28 children.
The construction of the MKZ cost around eight million euros, says Gotthard Lehner, head of the specialist clinic and initiator of the mother-child center. A large part of the money came from sponsors such as the Upper Franconia Foundation, the “Antenne Bayern hilft” foundation, “Sternstunden” or “Ein Herz für Kinder”. The Haus Immanuel specialist clinic and the MKZ Rückenwind are sponsored by the German Community Diaconal Association (DGD). “The women have often experienced violence in their relationships,” says Lehner. Outside the clinic grounds, the mothers and children can meet with the fathers. However, there is often no contact.
Many of the children initially had behavioral problems, reports Monika Ohnesorge, head of the MKZ Schwanzwind: “You can tell that they have been through a lot.” In some families the roles are reversed: If the mothers cannot take good care of them because of their illness, children sometimes take on more responsibility than is good for them. “We’re helping to reverse the roles,” says the facility manager.
Some time ago there was a fire brigade operation at the specialist clinic, reports Gotthard Lehner: “I thought the children would find it exciting. Instead, many were disturbed. The flashing lights and sirens brought back bad memories for them, for example of police operations in their own apartment .”
Mothers and children stay in the mother-child center for at least a year, and next door in the specialist clinic they usually stay for 15 weeks. “The detoxification, which takes place before the stay in the specialist clinic, is only part of the therapy,” says Monika Ohnesorge. “For us it’s about the background of consumption: What needs to change in my life?”
A return to their old environment is often difficult or impossible: many of those suffering from addiction had to give up their apartment. If they reunite with friends or partners with whom they previously consumed alcohol or other addictive substances, the risk of relapse increases. The MKZ has around 15 employees, almost all of them part-time, says Monika Ohnesorge. Above all, they are social workers, educators, educational assistants, psychologists, childcare workers and special education nurses. There is always a contact person available for the mothers, and there is also a night standby.
Children’s yoga is particularly popular in the evening ritual
The clients are usually in therapy in the morning while the children are at daycare. These can be group or individual sessions, psycho- and social therapies as well as trauma therapies. Practical things like parenting advice or dealing with money play a big role. Some days the women shop together and cook lunch. There is a library and a games room in the MKZ. Outside is the “Atrium”, a kind of small amphitheater that was built from the stones of the former specialist clinic building.
Once the mothers have picked up their children from daycare in the afternoon, they continue with mother-child therapy. There is an evening ritual for mothers and children twice a week. “Children’s yoga is particularly popular,” says Ramona Teufl. “Because it’s relaxing. The children are often very excited in the evenings. They fall asleep better after yoga.”
The women and children spend a lot of time in nature: Hutschdorf is idyllically located at the intersection of the Upper Franconian tourism regions Franconian Switzerland, Fichtelgebirge, Franconian Forest and Upper Mainland. The MKZ also has a stable with alpacas. The species of camel, which comes from the South American Andean highlands, is very suitable as a therapy animal, says Gotthard Lehner: “Alpacas are at eye level with humans. They react to them, but don’t run towards them.”
As far as he knows, the MKZ concept is unique in the country, says the clinic director. The special feature is that it brings together two socially separate complexes: integration assistance for addicted mothers and youth welfare for their children. “It was very difficult to even get this approved,” says Lehner. In addition, there are double billing costs: the therapy for the mothers pays for the integration assistance, the children’s stay is paid for by the youth welfare office.
Gotthard Lehner reports on a mother who was one of the first residents in the MKZ. The responsible youth welfare office promised by telephone that it would cover the costs of the child’s stay. But the money has not arrived to date. Since August 2023, the authority has not responded to calls or written inquiries. It’s about 45,000 euros.
Gotthard Lehner says he is primarily concerned about the children of addicted parents: “Our therapy system is fully geared towards the person addicted to drugs. The children fall behind.” At Haus Immanuel he often experienced patients who came with children the first time and without them the second time: in the meantime, the youth welfare office had taken the offspring into care. Gotthard Lehner speaks of “forgotten children”.
Ramona Teufl knows her daughter is in good hands at MKZ Tailwind and would like to stay there for longer than a year. Maybe next year her daughter will start school. “I want to be done with therapy by then,” says the 35-year-old. She is a trained childcare worker and care assistant for people with dementia and is planning to return to work: “I really enjoy working with children.”