RECOVERY MODEL

Narrative

Ruth O. Ralph, Jean Risman, Kathryn Kidder

(The Maine contingent of the Recovery Advisory Group)

May, 1999

The Recovery Model presented in this paper is a work in progress. It has been built upon the ideas and discussion of the Recovery Advisory Group, which has met by teleconference monthly from November, 1998 through May, 1999. The Model also reflects our reading of consumer/survivor written published and unpublished literature on recovery, as well as our own experiences.

The achievement of well-being or wholeness is not linear. In our discussions we agreed that there were stages through which one goes toward well-being. As we began to develop some structure and form of the Recovery model, we named these stages: Anguish, Awakening, Insight, Action Plan, Determined Commitment to Become Well, and Well-Being/Empowerment. We acknowledge that all of these stages may not be experienced by everyone, nor that a person completes one stage before going to another. Also, some people may experience one or more stages in greater depth than others. It has been our experience that there is movement back and forth between the various stages as one heals and grows. These stages reflect the movement toward recovery and healing as described in the literature, in our group discussions, and in our experiences. The graphic model depicts a view of these stages, with movement between stages represented by arrows.

Our conceptualization continued with the idea that recovery (healing, transformation) must be both internal and external. The internal is what happens within oneself, while the external includes interaction with others. To further identify some of the things we believe goes on in recovery, we chose the following dimensions to describe the internal aspects of recovery: cognitive, emotional, spiritual, and physical. Each of the above stages are described in these dimensions in our structural model.

The external dimensions consist of a person’s actions and reactions to external influences, and interactions with people and situations as one moves across and through the stages of recovery. We chose the following dimensions to describe the external aspect of recovery: activity, self-care, social relations, and social supports. These were also used to describe interactions in each of these dimensions in each stage of recovery.

There are external influences on recovery over which the healing person has no control, but which can have a positive or negative effect on recovery or healing. These include the policies, procedures, and actions of the mental health system and the people who fund and provide mental health services; social supports such as financial support, housing assistance and employment support; natural supports such as family, friends, community, religious organizations; and peer supports, both organized and informal.

Finally, we agree that the recovering person must continue their internal journey in the context of the external world and the influences it has on all of us. All of these aspects are involved and impact on the recovery, healing, and transformation of individuals who are cursed or blessed with mental illness.

Graphics

• Recovery Model
• External Influences on Recovery
• External Influences on Recovery - Page 2

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