The Dose of Wellness campaign bridges the often-overlooked connection between physical and mental health.

September is National Recovery Month

As COVID continues to impact our lives, both physical and mental health are put to the test. Recent studies reflect a rise in excessive alcohol intake, substance abuse, and other unhealthy habits throughout the pandemic. While the added stress and uncertainty of living through a global pandemic make routine and balanced living difficult, we can all do our part to commit to doing better. Dose of Wellness was created to help erase the stigma associated with talking about the mental health issues we all face.

September is National Recovery Month—a time as good as any for us all to reassess our habits, and make plans for leading healthier lives. Now in its 32nd year, National Recovery Month continues to educate Americans about substance use treatment and mental health services and celebrate the gains made by those in recovery. The key message at hand? Behavioral health is essential to overall health, prevention works, treatment is effective, and people can and do recover.

This year’s theme is “Recovery is for Everyone: Every Person, Every Family, Every Community.”

~ Faces and Voices of Recovery

The Office of Peer Recovery and Engagement (OPRE) within the New Mexico Department of Human Services Behavioral Health Services Division is a vital component of many multi-disciplinary teams statewide. Due to a shortfall of behavioral health providers in New Mexico, OPRE helps bridge the gap in professional services by offering peer-based support. The Certified Peer Worker Training program engages individuals in successful long-term recovery and mental health maintenance to help others in their own recovery process. Leaning into their lived experience, Peer Workers inspire hope and belief that recovery is possible.

The Behavioral Health Services Division of the New Mexico Human Services Department has also developed a website, https://nmrecovery.org/, with a mission to expand access to substance use treatment, bolster the healthcare workforce and increase access to community-based behavioral health services for children and other underserved populations.

Recovery Month can also be a time of joy and celebration. Throughout the month, the National Association for Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors (NAADAC), and others, will celebrate recovery by sharing success stories from the Faces & Voices of Recovery website. They will also promote new evidence-based treatment and recovery practices, the emergence of a strong and proud recovery community and the dedication of service providers and community members across the nation who make recovery in all its forms possible.To help people turn their desire for recovery into their own success story, Faces & Voices of Recovery has also created a new Recovery Month website that includes links to a toolkit and other recovery resources.

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