Nic’s departure from the Ohlhoff halfway house

Nic’s departure from the Ohlhoff halfway house turns a request for more treatment into a fresh disappearance. After Nic Sheff asks to stay in rehab longer, his family agrees to the plan; three days after he moves into the halfway house, David Sheff calls to check on him and learns that he has vanished.

The decision to stay in treatment

At the fourth week’s family group session, Nic surprises his family by saying he has realized he needs more time in rehab and asking to move into the program’s halfway house. The plan is supported by the treatment principle Walter Ling expresses: “Time off the drug is the best predictor of more time off the drug.” David Sheff wants the crisis to be over and Nic to be cured, but recognizes the proposal as sensible. He also admits to fearing what might happen if Nic came home.

Disappearance from the halfway house

The family agrees, and Nic moves into Ohlhoff Recovery House’s halfway house. The arrangement lasts only three days before David’s check-in call brings the news that Nic has disappeared. The reversal is stark: the family has accepted Nic’s own request for more time in treatment, yet his whereabouts are once again unknown.

The family waits

David follows a familiar routine, calling the police and hospital emergency rooms; neither yields news. A day passes, then another, then another without word from Nic. David explains the situation as carefully as he can to Jasper Sheff and Daisy Sheff. They understand that Nic is in trouble and that their parents are deeply worried. Jasper asks whether Nic is in jail; David replies that he has called the jails and Nic is not there. Jasper’s next question, “Where does he sleep?”, gives the uncertainty a child’s directness: the family does not know even where Nic spends the night.