Conference Promotes Recovery and Civil Rights
Jane W. Christol of San Jose, California, writes:
The 2008 conference of the California Network of Mental Health Clients, “25 Years: Celebrating the Past; Building the Future,” February 8-10, in Sacramento, was a statewide conference given by and for mental health clients. It is a profound experience to be in the company of heroes and leaders in a movement toward recovery from such devastating illnesses as schizophrenia, to name only one.
The President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health in 2002 worked diligently to begin to envision a mental health system driven primarily by the people served. The California Network of Mental Health Clients has worked tirelessly to make the dream of recovery not just a dream, but to endeavor to change the system from the inside out.
One of the keynote speakers, Stephen Pocklington, a former mental health provider, now promotes awareness of the WRAP – Wellness Recovery Action Plan – program begun by Mary Ellen Copeland of Vermont. Some among us are former, and some are current, providers of mental health services. Defining oneself as a client of mental health services can be freeing and akin to what it means to come out.
Distinct voices in the client movement include psychiatrists, pharmaceutical companies, family members, social workers, and clients themselves. There is good news in that each of these voices (with the exception of pharmaceutical companies) could identify in a personal sense with the importance of their mental well-being and self-care.
These are not economically easy times for persons in all strata of society. If we are clients receiving housing and/or monthly income from the government, we have a certain amount of stability. We also have perhaps more time than the average individual, who must spend much of their time working for medical insurance, to keep a roof over their head and dinner on the table.
The last two years, I volunteered serving lunches at a local senior center. Now I am in service at a local meditation center in San Jose, in Santa Clara County. Initially I felt challenged socially, but I continued to show up and now feel welcomed and valued in each of these communities.
How can we use our time in the highest way? How can we keep in mind ways that our activities will be a benefit to others?
A full life includes being in service. Some people choose professions that are focused toward service. When we are involved in these professions, I hope that we maintain our self-care and also choose to serve in the highest way.
Posted by the Clearinghouse
The 2008 conference of the California Network of Mental Health Clients, “25 Years: Celebrating the Past; Building the Future,” February 8-10, in Sacramento, was a statewide conference given by and for mental health clients. It is a profound experience to be in the company of heroes and leaders in a movement toward recovery from such devastating illnesses as schizophrenia, to name only one.
The President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health in 2002 worked diligently to begin to envision a mental health system driven primarily by the people served. The California Network of Mental Health Clients has worked tirelessly to make the dream of recovery not just a dream, but to endeavor to change the system from the inside out.
One of the keynote speakers, Stephen Pocklington, a former mental health provider, now promotes awareness of the WRAP – Wellness Recovery Action Plan – program begun by Mary Ellen Copeland of Vermont. Some among us are former, and some are current, providers of mental health services. Defining oneself as a client of mental health services can be freeing and akin to what it means to come out.
Distinct voices in the client movement include psychiatrists, pharmaceutical companies, family members, social workers, and clients themselves. There is good news in that each of these voices (with the exception of pharmaceutical companies) could identify in a personal sense with the importance of their mental well-being and self-care.
These are not economically easy times for persons in all strata of society. If we are clients receiving housing and/or monthly income from the government, we have a certain amount of stability. We also have perhaps more time than the average individual, who must spend much of their time working for medical insurance, to keep a roof over their head and dinner on the table.
The last two years, I volunteered serving lunches at a local senior center. Now I am in service at a local meditation center in San Jose, in Santa Clara County. Initially I felt challenged socially, but I continued to show up and now feel welcomed and valued in each of these communities.
How can we use our time in the highest way? How can we keep in mind ways that our activities will be a benefit to others?
A full life includes being in service. Some people choose professions that are focused toward service. When we are involved in these professions, I hope that we maintain our self-care and also choose to serve in the highest way.
Posted by the Clearinghouse
posted by clearinghouse at 10:34 AM
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