Pathways to Recovery: A Strengths Recovery Self-Help Workbook

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Recovery Community Centers—peer-operated non-residential centers that provide recovery information and resources, activities, and family support in a locality Some RSS are delivered by treatment providers, some by lived experience recovery organisations ( LEROs), and some by a combination of both. See section 7 below for more about LEROs. The final outer layer of figure 2 represents the wider community and the factors in it that can promote and inhibit recovery. These factors are represented here by the 5 steps to mental wellbeing and the 5 ways to wellbeing. These are:

Peer volunteers and staff bring expertise from their own lived experience. This means that they are well-placed to understand, connect with and help people to sustain recovery. Diverse and inclusive Figure 2 shows how specialist alcohol and drug treatment and recovery services, and the non-specialist services are embedded in the communities they support in an effective ROSC. This diagram follows on from figure 1. Like figure 1, there are 3 circles that represent treatment services, RSS and LEROs. Around these specialist services, the diagram shows the main non-specialist services that can support treatment and recovery outcomes. These are: Lived experience initiatives and recovery support services ( RSS) support people in recovery and their families and benefit the wider community. They offer practical and emotional support to meet a person’s needs and build on their strengths.FAVOR UK runs an ARCO with a network of RCO members in the UK and has developed a toolkit to support people setting up RCOs. The UK ARCO identifies the core principles of an RCO as follows. What is advisable depends on the needs of each individual. Many types of recovery support are available, and many people make use of more than one type at any time and may shift from one type of support to another as recovery proceeds and needs evolve. An increasing number of high schools and colleges offer addiction recovery resources (CRPS, or Collegiate Recovery Programs) for students, including mentors, workshops, dedicated lounges, and group meetings and activities. Below is a sampling of many types of support that can be found.

Faces & Voices unites and supports the growing network of RCO’s. Our Association of Recovery Community Organizations (ARCO) links RCOs and their leaders with local and national allies and provides training and technical assistance to groups. ARCO helps build the unified voice of the organized recovery community and fulfill our commitment to supporting the development of new groups and strengthening existing ones. Peer-led initiatives use their extensive networks to get a deep understanding of the problems associated with alcohol and drug use and people’s experiences of treatment and recovery. This means they can speak and advocate for recovery communities. Involving and supporting families People’s experiences of problem alcohol and drug use and recovery are personal and complex, so people’s recovery journeys and definitions of recovery differ. Definitions of recovery have traditionally included abstinence as a necessary condition (Witkiewitz and others, 2020). Research and contemporary definitions identify 2 core aspects of recovery (Kelly and Hoeppner, 2014). These are:

Identity—shifting towards a new, positive view of oneself, one more aligned with one’s deeper values and goals, one built on self-confidence gained by acquiring new skills and new behaviors. community capital: examples of this include recovery-supportive community attitudes, services and resources such as non-stigmatising attitudes in the broader community, treatment services and other services and supports

offer choice by providing a flexible and inclusive menu of services, community support and opportunities, including lived experience initiatives, recognising that there are many pathways to recovery

Religious faith and spirituality are important to some people’s recovery journeys. This includes people returning to old or adopting new religious or spiritual practices. Healthy environments and access to community resources This course is intended for professionals working in the addictions field, supporting people in recovery, or those working in peer recovery organisations. Upon completing the course, you will: Many find in 12-step programs—Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) and Narcotic Anonymous (NA) are among the best known—a caring, supportive community willing to pull each other through the temptations, the self-rebuke, and the hopelessness that especially mark the early stages of recovery. They also value having role models of recovery and someone to call on when the recovering self is an unsteady newborn. Whatever the stress relief that comes from being in a group, many others are not comfortable with the religiosity, the steady focus on the dangers of relapse rather than on growth, or the subscription to powerlessness of AA and NA. Data show that the programs are helpful for some but not for everyone. Addiction treatment is not one-size-fits-all. It is possible to recover from mental health problems, and many people do – especially after accessing support. Your symptoms may return from time to time, but when you've discovered which self-care techniques and treatments work best for you, you're more likely to feel confident in managing them.