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• What are your general reactions to Stephanie’s personal narrative?
I am moved by her intentional sharing of her experience and her willingness to proceed at Brown to make it a safe place for all. Such courage to forge on and see both the value to her own recovery by reaching out to her peers for help and to be a peer supporter herself. As well, to improve conditions at Brown so others may find a way.
• What are your thoughts on the difference between the medical model, pathology-based approach and a person-driven, recovery-oriented approach to helping as embodied by a peer recovery support approach that Stephanie describes in her story?
Person-driven approaches provide individuals with an open arena to explore themselves and connect themselves to others. The word autonomy comes to mind. Talk about a system that might give someone hope that they were not the only one, not alone in this, not damaged goods, able to take the next step for themselves. Naming what is going on is so different than labeling the person. Is there a place for medical? When the prescription pad comes out before other exploration, we are completely separating the human form from their lived experiences, emotions, spirit. Sure, medications might be useful for some people – whether it is cancer or an inability to keep oneself safe. Pathologizing seems to cast a shadow on everything else about a person. We are doing humanity no good by encouraging them to think that a medication is what is going to make a long term difference in their lives.
Meeting and learning from those who have lived experience reinforces the human connection in so many potentially healing and useful ways.
• What are some strategies you have or would use to link consumers to peer recovery support services in your community and develop collaborative relationships with peer specialists?
If I were working with a consumer professionally, we could discuss and explore the resources available in the community, provided in this class. Respecting the anonymity in self-help does not have to be a barrier to trying to make a warm handoff. In a recovery plan we could identify steps to making connections, discuss the individual’s thoughts, fears, ideas about whether and how to go about pursuing them. Following up incrementally – mindful / narrative writing before, during, after the experience. Not moving too fast.
• Take a moment to reflect on the course material over the past four weeks and the new insights you have gained about wellness and recovery promotion. How do you envision bringing these new insights into your work with consumers?
One of the things that I’m most mindful of right now is how some therapists, for example, function in a vacuum. I’ve met too many people who have never been to an open self-help meeting as a guest, for example. Giving someone a local self-help meeting brochure does not a connection make. I am more aware thanks to this course about how we tend to describe people as their diagnosis. “Diabetic patients”, “Alcoholics”, “Chronic self-harmers”…and the dreaded “she’s a Borderline, what do you expect?” We are not seeing anyone when they are shrouded with a label. I feel our system can tend to make a crisis into an experience that takes away an opportunity to reach someone.
I need to make more of a habit of exploring what is out there – both in the community where I work, as well as on line. I want to talk more with peer advocates, visit advocacy centers and engage with folks living the experience of recovery. It is an investment in my work, in the people I work with – just like keeping up with my continuing education.1. It felt more like a commitment to myself than a public statement. I could approach it at my own level of comfort – taking smaller steps as a way to get started. It helps me face my avoidance and push my comfort zone by committing to myself, supporting and encouraging myself and being accountable to myself to JUST DO SOMETHING toward my goal.
2. I know I have people who would cheer me on and pick me up if I fell. I can get stuck behind the barriers in my head when i KNOW my strengths deep in my heart will get me to the next step. Bringing someone into my personal goals/dreams really helps with that.
3. Creating a PICK chart, of sorts, can be a nice way for people to identify next steps. how much energy would this particular goal or step take? What do i need to build up capacity for that? How do i nourish myself so i feel up to the task? The priority column is one great way to help others gauge their initiatives. Some people are very visual by nature, making something like this into something that they can move themselves along their path as they take the next step may prove to be both validating and motivating.My experience has been to approach strengths with respect and care. Like some of the reading above suggests, focusing too much on strengths and dreams can cast a shadow on recovery work. I can easily rely on my upbringing as a solid foundation of respect and love (strength) and totally ignore my vulnerability and times when I really need to stop just “looking on the bright side”. Some people did not come into the world with that type of safety and support. It takes time to even help someone understand that what they have to say is real and real important.
As I think about it, strengths are useful as grist for the mill when I work on my own healing. I can have a whole bunch of YUCK in the mill and if I don’t mix it up with strengths, I’ll get stuck in the YUCK. If I apply this to work with clients, it is like inviting them to practice showing up for themselves using whatever strength they can identify. It might be a strength outside their ‘personality traits’ like a distracting activity. Not always going for the insight card has been a lesson I’ve learned through the years.
As an art therapist by training, I have used fine arts, music, poetry, movement as a tool to give voice or make something visual when it might be hard to describe in conversation. Realizing with art, for example, that the strength is NOT the finished product…but the courage to even put anything down on paper and tear it up if the moment calls. The whole phoenix rising is an analogy that I think about a lot. Even when someone is in the flames, we can work together for them to identify what strengths they have to put something around the fire to prevent it from spreading. Have you ever experienced a client’s “aha” moment when you’ve said something like “wait…did i just see you take a deep breath just now”? It is an honor to behold when holding up a mirror helps someone see strength in their own reflection.
What are your general reactions to the mindful writing? What were some of the personal resources, skills, and abilities you relied on to help you through a difficult experience in your life?
I tend to be resilient, but can move through things too fast sometimes. Taking time to write to honor the present challenge, sit with it, move with it like a dance of sorts as I grapple with painful feelings is very useful. I tend to move the body to move the mind, and sometimes I jump over the “muddiest puddles” because I just don’t want to acknowledge them. But you know, I have never minded getting dirty. Some of the resources that help me through difficult experiences include getting OUT in nature-for a challenging hike, gardening, splitting wood; specific supportive people (may be different depending upon what I’m dealing with), reading/listening to radical acceptance and other concepts. My family is an incredible resource that I don’t take for granted. My pets. My own ability to get up and out to move is ALWAYS useful.
What are some of the ways the questions and or the mindful writing helped you uncover your narrative of resilience?
Taking time to slow down is really important to me. I’ve really worked on staying in the moment most of the time and this enables me not to miss the opportunity to be grateful, to notice a beautiful sunrise or interesting growth in nature, smell the changing season. It also helps me to say the things I’m feeling or thinking so that I can honor the reality and do what I can to let it move through me rather than getting stuck within.
How might you apply the Narrative questions and or mindful writing in your work with others to help them uncover a neglected story of resilience in their lives?
Sitting and practicing narrative writing is a way to teach myself so I can assist others in seeing if there is value for their own process of recovery/ healing. We don’t always have to talk during time with someone, maybe creating an agenda for a session together that includes 5-10 minutes to arrive and do some narrative writing would be a great way to start a session. HmmmmPatty Morini
I worked as an Art Therapist and LADC/LCPC for many years.
I now work in administration for a local community health system.
I also teach classes in our Prevention and Healthy Living programs.
Very interested in building sustainable wellness programs – sustainable in terms of something individual community members can succeed at at their own pace within their learning and motivational realm. I am so interested in this course to learn what i don’t know – and expand what I do know. 🙂
