Peer recovery specialists can be a valuable in addiction treatment; several Appalachian examples are cited

                                      Photo: Rudamese/Pixabay

Recovering from drug addiction can be a scary path. "There is no simple roadmap to recovery from a substance-use disorder; no fixed destination toward which to steer. Certainly, there are mile markers in recovery, and there are those who can help navigate from one day to the next, to offer assurance there is a path forward," reports Taylor Sisk of 100 Days in Appalachia.

Kanitha Cox was an addict in recovery, and she was able to lean on other women around her who had successfully recovered from their addictions. “They had good, healthy relationships,” Cox told Sisk. “They had jobs; they were working and going to school; they had their kids back. I saw these women who were genuinely happy on the inside. . . And I just latched on to them and held on for dear life until I could stand on my own two feet and figure it out.”

Jonathan Stoltman, founder and director of the Opioid Policy Institute, told Sisk, "People with addictions have, commonly, grown accustomed to being dismissed, discounted and judged as 'other.' They’ve been mis-assessed and/or mistreated by health care institutions. It can be a life-changing experience for an addict to hear: 'I’m here to help you, I care about you, I value your life'."

While research is still limited, peer recovery support for people living with a substance use disorder has been shown to improve treatment retention, reduce rates of relapse and enhance relationships. The federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration says “Peer recovery support services have become increasingly central to people’s ability to live with or recover from mental and/or substance-use disorders.”

Peer specialists provide understanding and hope. Most specialist use the SAMHSA definition for peer care: “a strengths-based framework that emphasizes physical, psychological, and emotional safety and creates opportunities for survivors to rebuild a sense of control and empowerment,” reports Sisk.

Angela Hagaman, operations director for East Tennessee State University’s Addiction Science Center, explained that addiction recovery treatment is "outside the Western world’s traditional symptom-reduction model of addressing illness. . . . for a substance use disorder, the sources of the issue and the desired outcomes vary from one person to the next. Medication is available to treat the disease, but not every course of treatment works for every person," writes Sisk.

Sabrina Fillers is a peer support specialist in rural east Tennessee for the state Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. Fillers told Sisk she "seeks to make connections with her clients like a favorite song, movie, or hangout spot. . . Finding those little moments with the people you work with where you see yourself in them. . . And when you find those little things that you connect with, you’re going to find those other things that aren’t so fun to talk about."

Niles Comer, director of Roanoke Valley Collective Response, initiative addressing the addiction crisis, has "been talking with some tech folks at Virginia Tech about developing an app that connects a person ready for treatment with an on-call peer. Comer is a strong advocate for peer recovery support services and has high ambitions for more robust, flexible applications of them throughout communities," Sisk reports.

Jessica Stanley, a peer recovery support and overdose-prevention specialist with the Metro Drug Coalition in Knoxville, believes that there is a balance and an openness required between client and peer specialist. Stanley told Sisk: "Perhaps most critical of all, a peer specialist must be sensitive to a client’s vulnerability and willing to . . . be vulnerable, open to sharing their personal journey. The work requires deep empathy; it requires resilience. . . .You can go to all these professional [medical] people, and they’re great at their jobs, but they’re not allowed to talk to you about their own personal life. So you have peer support, where someone is allowed to be vulnerable with you."