NORWICH – Celebrating an addict’s recovery is not something to be left just for September, when the nation takes time out to recognize Recovery Month, but rather an accomplishment to be marked every single day and every single moment.
And keeping stories about addiction, treatment and recovery in the shadows does little to educate people.
So said Chenango County Community Mental Hygiene Services Director Ruth Roberts Monday when she brought two former drug abusers with her to a meeting of the county board to help proclaim September 2012 Recovery Month in Chenango County. The two young men spoke about their former lives, the county’s programs and services that helped them and their sustained recoveries.
The first, Eliott, said he used to be a junkie living on the street, but is now sober and attending college full time. He credited the department for helping him, and said he works hard every day to become a better person. “Without them, I don’t think I would be 18 months sober today,” he said.
Back in 2010, the second speaker, identified only as Luman, said he was facing a sentence of 9 years to life behind bars before Chenango County’s Drug Treatment Court helped him set his priorities straight. Also a college student, he recently received a grade point average of 4.0 and plans to earn a degree in December. “I credit drug treatment court for helping me. I was afforded the opportunity to attend ... I couldn’t do that (get a degree) without being clean and sober,” he said.
Roberts said it is the individuals themselves who are doing the “hard work ... living out their recovery in very real ways, each and every day and moment to moment.”
“So much of addiction and what these people have accomplished remains in the shadows. We need to move these stories out in the public... so we can educate people that recovery is real,” she said.
Individuals with a co-occurring mental health disorder and substance use disorder represent the fastest growing segment of those seeking treatment in the county’s outpatient mental health clinics today. Given the serious nature of the public health problem, the board resolved to continue outreach and engagement efforts to reach those in need. The benefits are significant and valuable to not only individuals and their families, but also to schools and the community at large, the resolution stated.
Roberts interviewed several consumers of Chenango County’s mental health services recently, asking them to share their voices about how recovery has changed their lives. Their responses will be featured an article that will appear in The Evening Sun later in the month.