September is Recovery Month!

Published:

September 10, 2024

Each person who enters recovery is as unique as their story. This month, in honor of Recovery Month, we are featuring a special edition of Essential Conversations, recorded in 2023, which highlights powerful recovery stories from individuals in diverse populations. Through their experiences, they share what they believe providers need to know to offer better support. These stories reinforce this year’s theme: Recovery is Possible for Everyone.

Listen & Learn More!

About Recovery Month

SAMHSA’s (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) Recovery Month, established in 1989, aims to raise awareness about mental health and addiction recovery while showcasing evidence-based treatment and recovery practices. The month is dedicated to celebrating individuals in recovery and recognizing the important contributions of the people and organizations that support their journey.

Contributing Center(s):

Mid-America ATTC

Essential Conversations: Recovery Month Edition Episode 1!

Each person who enters recovery is as unique as their story. And this month, in honor of recovery month, we are bringing you recovery stories from people in diverse populations. Hear what people in these communities want providers to know. Episode 1: Laura celebrates her recovery and the person she has become as a result. When her daughter was battling her own addiction, this veteran, divorced, gay mom had to advocate to get her daughter's other mom to be recognized in the healthcare setting. Laura and her ex-partner were the first parents in MO to have a same-sex partner adoption, but even that legal distinction did not stop the discrimination this queer family faced when seeking medical care for their daughter.

Essential Conversations: Recovery Month Edition Episode 2!

Each person who enters recovery is as unique as their story. And this month, in honor of recovery month, we are bringing you recovery stories from people in diverse populations. Hear what people in these communities want providers to know. Episode 2: Hector looked at his family and chose not to repeat those patterns. Hector practiced abstinence into his young adulthood. When he did start using, he practiced harm reduction. As a queer, first-generation Hispanic immigrant, he has been able to put a voice to what so many in his culture could not do.

Essential Conversations: Recovery Month Edition Episode 3!

Each person who enters recovery is as unique as their story. And this month, in honor of recovery month, we are bringing you recovery stories from people in diverse populations. Hear what people in these communities want providers to know. Episode 3: Casey explains that recovery does not have to be abstinence only. She discusses her thoughts on why she practices abstinence only now, but she may not always. She discusses why she may use substances in spiritual practices or rituals that her culture has used for centuries, and that does not contradict being in recovery. Casey uses her voice to stand up for who she stands on.

Essential Conversations: Recovery Month Edition Episode 4!

Essential Conversations: Recovery Month Edition Episode 5!

Each person who enters recovery is as unique as their story. And this month, in honor of recovery month, we are bringing you recovery stories from people in diverse populations. Hear what people in these communities want providers to know. Episode 5: Lisa got sober at fifteen, and now, at 34 people often discount her experience. Lisa has many labels: a person in recovery, a queer lesbian, multi-religious, and a single mom who created her family through international adoption. She continues to work on her recovery daily and is grateful to be sober.

Essential Conversations: Recovery Month Edition Bonus Episode!

Each person who enters recovery is as unique as their story. And this month, in honor of recovery month, we are bringing you recovery stories from people in diverse populations. Hear what people in these communities want providers to know. Bonus Episode: Norma is an 88-year-old woman who entered recovery in her 50’s. As an older lady friends and family have a hard time believing she ever had a drinking problem. She educates her doctors and friends about what alcoholism is.