Celebrate Recovery: September is National Recovery Month!
It’s National Recovery Month 2018, and time once again to celebrate and acknowledge the many paths to resilience and recovery from behavioral health conditions.
According to the website of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the 2018 Recovery Month theme is “Join the Voices for Recovery: Invest in Health, Home, Purpose, and Community.” This theme “explores how integrated care, a strong community, sense of purpose, and leadership contributes to effective treatments that sustain the recovery of persons with mental and substance use disorders. The observance will work to highlight inspiring stories to help people from all walks of life find the path to hope, health, and wellness.”
Recovery is an individual journey and it is not a linear process. No two people will walk the same road or tell the same story. But collectively, our stories and experiences have the potential to give a sense of purpose and meaning to one another through life’s victories and challenges. Here are some resources for you to get involved by uplifting voices for recovery and sharing messages of hope — this month, and all year long.
SAMHSA’s Recovery Month Website:
Check out SAMHSA’s Recovery Month Toolkit, including public service announcements that can be shared at any time.
Share lived experience voices about recovery, including your own:
- Alameda County’s Own Black Men Speak – empowering messages of recovery and hope.
- Everything You Think You Know about Addiction is Wrong – incredible TED Talk on the importance of connection and support for people in recovery by Johann Hari
- Faces and Voices of Recovery: a wide selection of stories from people in recovery from substance use.
- The Voices in my Head – powerful TED talk about recovery after being diagnosed with schizophrenia by Eleanor Longden
- Telling Your Recovery Story: Giving Meaning and Purpose to Your Pain by Using It to Help Someone by Ken Braiterman (Wellness Recovery Action Plan)
- This is My Brave: Nonprofit organization sharing personal stories of individuals living successful, full lives despite mental illness through poetry, essay and original music, on stage in front of a live audience.
