Authors: Paula Hanlon and Phillip Buckle, NSW
Year: 2008
Event: 2008 TheMHS Conference
Subject: CONSUMER ROLES, ADVOCACY
Type of resource: Conference Presentations and Papers
ISBN: 9780975765340
Abstract: Provencer, Gregg, Mead and Mueser (2002) define recovery as a process “…transcending symptoms, psychiatric disabilities and social handicaps. It involves the re-definition of a sense of self, the emergence of hope, the development of self and collective empowerment, and the establishment of meaningful relationships with others. Recovery is oriented towards the reconstruction of meaning and purpose in one’s life, the performance of significant social roles, the experience of wellness, and satisfaction with life.” The authors of this paper, who are consumer workers, will outline a four stage approach to the achievement of recovery. These stages include ‘Stabilisation’, ‘Settlement’, ‘Resilience’ and ‘Growth.’ The presenters aim to describe these stages as a fluid, possibly overlapping and generalized approach to the key issue of recovery. The practicality of this approach is illustrated by the way in which it has been adopted as the basis for the Area Mental Health Services’ ‘Continuing Care Committee Development Plan’. The presentation will identify tasks and steps that people may take to progress along this journey. These tasks include developing knowledge, understanding and being empowered in relation to rights and responsibilities, identifying and self-managing grief, loss and change as natural life experiences. Rickwood (2004) asserts that “awareness of early warning signs and planning around how to respond to these are key tools for preventing relapse”- tools which are presented as important self-directed tasks in the recovery journey.
This resource is only available for subscribers. If you have a subscription, please log in. Otherwise, click here to purchase a subscription.