Happy National Recovery Month!

September is National Recovery Month, a time dedicated to celebrating the gains made by those in recovery. The theme for 2020 Recovery Month is Join the Voices for Recovery: Celebrating Connections. Here are some ways we can honor these special connections as both individuals in recovery and allies to those in recovery:

1. Understand recovery is a journey, and the path looks different for everyone. While some may find clinical and pharmacological interventions to be the most effective, others may find success with a faith-based approach, and some can manage their recovery without formal help. There is no objective “right” way in recovery. While there are evidence-based practices, it is important to still keep in mind that we are all complex beings with unique experiences, and addiction is a neurobiological disease.
2. Acknowledge that some of us have unique barriers to recovery, and as a society we have work to do in order to make addiction care and support services more easily accessible to everyone. SAMHSA’s website provides an overview of current laws and regulations related to substance use and mental health treatment. Don’t Deny Me is a campaign designed to hold insurance providers, elected officials, and attorneys general accountable for enforcing The Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, which requires insurers to cover illnesses of the brain, such as depression or addiction, no more restrictively than illnesses of the body, such as diabetes or cancer. Doing things such as spreading awareness of this campaign and advocating for equal access to treatment is one way to support our friends and loved ones in recovery.
3. Look inward, and take time to reflect on the things that perpetuate stigma surrounding addiction, recovery, and mental health, such as our word choices. This means being mindful of the language we use to describe terms surrounding substance use, and taking steps to educate ourselves on topics like different treatment approaches and support roles like LADCs and Peer Recovery Specialists. Addictionary, a free resource from the Recovery Research Institute, is an online glossary of terminology pertaining to addiction and recovery which includes labels for outdated and stigmatizing terms.

Happy National Recovery Month!