Excerpts from: "Been There, Done That: Partnering With Those Who Have Lived On Both Sides of the Recovery Journey" Lori L. Yates. LICSW, RDT Mental Health Consumer INTRO I thought my life was over when I was first hospitalized. I was devastated, mortified, terrified, angry and resentful. There was no consoling me and for a while, all that could be done was to contain me so that I wouldn't hurt myself or anyone else. I blamed everyone including God for my brain mal-functioning. I went through every stage of the grief cycle like I was on a speed induced bi-polar trip. The reality was still the same. I had a mental illness, I had to be in the hospital and the sooner I was willing to acknowledge that, the sooner I could begin to heal.... ...I was later court committed to the Wichita Falls State Hospital, where my life would forever change. I was placed on a ward that I was not suppose to go to and admitted by a psychiatrist, Dr. Wassel Lewis, who would much later become my advocate, teacher and friend.... ...Seven years after leaving the hospital as a patient, I would go back as a staff member. I learned much about the intolerance of the professional community on their own when that individual chooses to publicly disclose. Nine years later, I would come back to work at the state hospital. I had grown a little wiser, but never gave up my goal of telling my story in hopes of erasing stigma and in sharing my story of what happens when the system works right.... ...The North Texas State Hospital partnered with me in many ways. They provided me opportunities to share my story with staff, patients, families, students, and media. For the next 8 years, the division of mental health in the State of Texas would open many doors for partnership. It was truly an exciting time.... ...Currently I work and live here in Washington. I have been provided opportunities to partner with the division of mental health, Western State Hospital, and community mental health agencies to provide a consumer voice.... Been There, Done That: Partnering with those who have lived on both sides of the recovery journey. In this presentation I will talk about The benefits of partnering both for the individual and the community How to partner In-Patient partnering strategies- Initial, Collaborative and transitional Partnering with those in the community setting Setting the tone Creating opportunities What it means Partnering with the professional in the field Impact Tips Closing Benefits Partnering with individuals on both sides of the recovery journey greatly enriches your program, your treatment, your policies/procedures, and keeps you closely reminded of both the pain and the hope of healing and recovery. For the individual in treatment, being fully partnered with allows for: A sense of control An opportunity to give as well as take Greater use of existing skills-Work to draw those out and use them A belief that the individual, their life/circumstances is not a complete failure An opportunity to develop a relationship with therapist/counselor/tx team so that honest accountability can happen For the individual in recovery (not in-patient tx) in the community, partnering provides a way to: Give back to tx providers (theirs personally and/or the overall community/field) Share meaningful hope to those who are early in their tx and recovery Provide insight about what worked for them and what did not Discuss ways to improve treatment - specifically and generally Strengthen community relationships For the individual who works in the field already as a professional, partnering with this person: Improves and strengthens the quality of tx and programming Shapes, strengthens and improves policies and procedures Sends a strong message of hope - I can make it too, just like… Provides a great deal of insight about healing and recovery as they have both points of reference in addition to educational and professional training Strengthens and improves the quality of staff training Has good insight around best practices HOW DO YOU PARTNER? Partnering begins with the core belief that we work together. Unfortunately, there still remains a prevalent attitude of "Us vs. Them", and it is this attitude that hinders good, positive and effective treatment, openness to learn from those who have lived on both sides of the journey and it sends messages of "less than", "not as good as, or smart as", "damaged", "power over." Partnering is an attitude of being both the teacher and the student - willing to learn and willing to be transparent. Partnering is an action - Creating and providing opportunities to collaborate....