Ep. 17: Substance Use Recovery
Justice In Action
Guiding our clients toward recovery from substance use disorder The opioid epidemic has increased the demand for effective recovery services, and Justice Resource Institute’s Mary Chao is leading the organization’s training program for clinicians and other staff members to aid them in helping clients recover. Chao has been with JRI for nine years and works with the agency’s health, training and community-based services divisions, developing and coordinating substance use programming throughout the agency. She works closely with clients ages 12 to 24 and the JRI clinicians who help them...
info_outline
Ep. 16: Mental Heath Treatment for Clients with Developmental Differences
Justice In Action
Mental health clinicians are often reluctant to treat people who have intellectual and developmental differences (IDDs) for fear of doing something that could worsen rather than improve the client’s condition. In this episode of Justice in Action, two JRI clinicians, Dr. Jacquelyn Kraps, Metrowest Area Director and Clinical Director of Outpatient Services, and Bailey McCombs, Licensed Metal Health Counselor and Expressive Arts Therapist, talk about the rewards and challenges of working with children with a range of differences, from autism spectrum disorder to chromosomal differences,...
info_outline
Ep. 12: Permanent Connections are Vital for a Child’s Success
Justice In Action
We all need the people in our lives who know us and care about us, who celebrate our successes and comfort us in hard times. These are the people we call when we get a new job, lock our keys in the car or are facing a big decision.
info_outline
Ep. 11: Children's Advocacy Center
Justice In Action
CAC mental health clinicians Brittannie Moroz and Jillian Allen shared CDC data stating one in four girls and one in 13 boys under age 18 suffer trauma as a result of child sexual abuse. Those children are some of the approximately 75,000 Bristol County children age 16 and younger be-lieved to have suffered trauma from abuse, violence, addiction in their homes or other causes of childhood trauma.
info_outline
Ep. 10: Trauma-sensitive yoga w/ Jennifer Turner
Justice In Action
Trauma-sensitive yoga helps sufferers use their bodies to heal their spirits
info_outline
Ep. 9: The Wounded Healer
Justice In Action
Helping the healer when their work unearths old symptoms of trauma
info_outline
Ep. 8: Caroline Dunlap and the Harm Reduction Team
Justice In Action
It’s easy to find Caroline Dunlap and the Harm Reduction team at JRI’s Program RISE. They’re the ones wearing backpacks while meeting people in downtown Framingham, dispensing care and concern, along with vital supplies, to the region’s active drug users.
info_outline
Ep. 6: Equine Therapy with Meredith Norton
Justice In Action
For a child who has suffered long-term trauma from abuse or neglect, the world doesn’t feel like a safe place. And children who suffer from such complex trauma often face challenges when it comes to forming relationships with others, acting out with anger or suffering silently from depression.
info_outline
Ep. 4: Understanding the Spectrum of Sexualized Behavior in Clinical Work
Justice In Action
Most would agree that we live in a sex-saturated culture. So why do we find it so hard to talk about sex?
info_outline
Ep. 3: Protect children from sexual exploitation online
Justice In Action
Meredith Rapoza, Division Director of Permanency and Latency Services at JRI; Katryn Haley-Little, Clinical Director at My Life My Choice, a program of JRI helping children who have been exploited or who are deemed to be at risk; and Michelle Loranger, Executive Director of the Children's Advocacy Center of Bristol County, were guests on JRI’s weekly podcast series, “Justice in Action: Making a Difference as Leaders in Social Justice.”
info_outlineGuiding our clients toward recovery
from substance use disorder
The opioid epidemic has increased the demand for effective recovery services, and Justice Resource Institute’s Mary Chao is leading the organization’s training program for clinicians and other staff members to aid them in helping clients recover.
Chao has been with JRI for nine years and works with the agency’s health, training and community-based services divisions, developing and coordinating substance use programming throughout the agency. She works closely with clients ages 12 to 24 and the JRI clinicians who help them to address problematic substance use.
Problematic use of substances, including opioids, cannabis and alcohol, often accompanies other problems, including homelessness, sexual abuse and violence that JRI programs also address.
Chao and JRI use ACRA (Adolescent Community Reinforcement Approach), an evidence-based treatment model that focuses on developing relationships with clients to help them understand what motivates them to use drugs or alcohol and looks to increase opportunities for clients to do “social, fun things” with the goal of helping them reduce or eliminate substance use.
But recovery doesn’t necessarily mean lifelong abstinence from drugs or alcohol.
“Abstinence is definitely not the only way to be in recovery,” she said. “Someone with substance use disorder can struggle for years, even decades….It’s important to recognize that relapse doesn’t mean failure.”
In addition, while substance use by youth and young adults can be frightening for friends and family, “Not every person who uses a substance needs treatment.” The need for treatment becomes clearer when substance use has a serious effect on their life or the lives of others. And it is important that treatment for substance use disorder be integrated into a client’s overall care plan.
“Recovery is possible for everyone, and every family, and every community,” Chao said.
Listen here to our conversation with Mary Chao about substance use disorder, treatment and recovery.