PEOPLE IN RECOVERY FROM ADDICTION NEED MORE SUPPORT DURING THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

People in recovery have never needed support more. In addition to the many challenges that they experience, people in recovery are dealing with a change in or lack of support structures that they need and deserve to be successful. They are facing difficult life circumstances that will make it challenging to engage with or stay in recovery. They need support more than ever.

GPS enhances engagement in treatment and supports sobriety while ensuring a high and consistent standard of evidence-based support groups. GPS for Recovery groups provide people with trauma-sensitive spaces where they can explore their personal history with addiction, including personal and family trauma, and feelings of shame, guilt and isolation that can be barriers to sobriety. Participants build communities of mutual respect and reclaim their self-esteem and courage as they travel on the road to recovery. GPS for Recovery groups can be led by peer leaders as well as clinical providers and has been shown to be effective in increasing capacity of programs, ensuring consistent clinical outcomes and enhancing other modalities of care.

GPS is being successfully integrated in residential treatment, out patient programs, methadone/suboxone clinics and other  with diverse populations including men, women, mothers, those living with homelessness, currently or formerly incarcerated, those mandated for treatment and those engaged with child protective services. GPS can be used in programs and with participants who enlist diverse approaches to recovery including medication-assisted and abstinence-based treatments. 

FIND TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES HERE

I was a mom struggling with addiction, attending lots of treatment groups. But GPS was my missing piece. It gave me back my self-respect, helped me maintain sobriety and made me a much better mom. I now lead GPS groups for moms who are working on their recovery.

Erica Napolitan, Maternal Substance Use and Recovery Specialist

What I love about GPS is its structure and adaptability. We can use curricula for the people we serve while maintaining the structure of GPS. It is a trauma-informed model that we use in all of our groups now.

Debra Bercuvitz, Director, Perinatal Substance Use Initiative, MA Department of Public Health