Articles
The Temple University Collaboration on Community Inclusion of Individuals with Psychiatric Disabilities is doing a research study to learn more about to support students with mental health issues to help them succeed in school. Students who enroll in the study may have a chance to work with someone who will help them to set goals related to their education, relationships, mental health and campus life, and receive encouragement and support to achieve their goals.
To seek real change in our lives, it is possible when the journey starts with intentionally looking at how we see our self in the world and ends with making some attempt at a deep, critical self-reflection about whether that self exhibits the values you hope to practice in your life. Each person has a choice to evaluate their systems of thought and question whether those systems were explicitly chosen as representative of their personal values, or whether those systems were implicitly inherited from their embedded histories. This is important because there may be habits of mind that are defining wellness in our lives and maybe limiting how we respond to the world in healthy, self-determining ways. We have inherited much of how we see and interact in the world through our culture and change requires a great deal of unlearning.
Before being hospitalized for long periods of time, grocery stores in my town were relatively small and choices were rather limited. When I came out of long-term hospitalization, grocery stores had ‘grown up’. Many stores today sell food, make-up, cleaning supplies, pharmacy items, etc… and choices are practically unlimited. In this environment, choice can be an overwhelming experience. For this reason, going to the store to buy food was, and still is, a complicated process for me.
It is the end of summer in Vermont. The leaves are starting to turn and the mist in the morning air is magical making each dot of color a unique visual meditation. I have been reflecting on the many rich discussions about living WRAP and creating our personal Plans over the years and I wanted to share with you the big lessons learned from creating a Wellness Toolbox for myself.
by Tom Doucette, Assistant Executive Director H.E.A.R.T.S. Peer Support Center in Nashua NH and an Advanced Level WRAP Facilitator
Five of the things I base my life on are the Five Key Concepts of WRAP. I had Hope when I was first diagnosed some fifteen years ago and my life made sense. When I read Kay Redfield-Jamison’s book “An Unquiet Mind” I had more Hope. Then I found WRAP - or I actually feel it found me - and I had real Hope.
Check out Mary Ellen Copeland's keynote speech from the Copeland Center Summit on November 11, 2014 in State College, PA. Mary Ellen stresses the importance of wellness first through WRAP. Taking care of our own wellness allows us to open up to care for others, work on relationships, and improve our health and well being. Hear it straight from the inspirational author about what we each can do for ourselves and change our systems of care.
Recovery to Practice Next Steps training brings together peer support providers from a variety of places (geography, philosophy, training, lived experiences, educational backgrounds, and perspectives) to share the richness of their lived experiences as peer providers, learn with and from each other, and come to a common understanding of how to support people in recovery through some of the current best practices in peer support.
Intentional Peer Support is a framework for thinking about and inviting transformative relationships among peers. Participants learn to use relationships to see things from new angles, develop greater awareness of personal and relational patterns, and support and challenge each other in trying new things. In this highly interactive workshop, we will explore the tasks and principles of IPS, what makes it unique, and how to begin using IPS to create social change.