Latest / Wake Up with Marci / Why Isolation Fuels Addiction and Connection Helps Us Heal | FLACRA CEO Jennifer Carlson

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Why Isolation Fuels Addiction and Connection Helps Us Heal | FLACRA CEO Jennifer Carlson · Wake Up with Marci

0:00
Speaker 1: What does it really take to help someone heal? Is
0:02
Speaker 1: it treatment, information, the right doctor or therapist? Or is
0:07
Speaker 1: it also having someone beside you who sees the whole person,
0:11
Speaker 1: not just the diagnosis? Today, my guest is Jennifer Carlson,
0:16
Speaker 1: and she has learned this from both sides. She is
0:19
Speaker 1: the president and CEO of Flacra. She has spent more
0:22
Speaker 1: than three decades helping people facing addiction, mental health challenges, homelessness,
0:28
Speaker 1: and some of the most difficult moments of their lives.
0:30
Speaker 1: But when Jennifer faced her own life-threatening battle with breast cancer,
0:34
Speaker 1: her understanding of care became deeply personal. Today, we're talking
0:39
Speaker 1: about what happens when we treat the whole person, mind, body,
0:42
Speaker 1: and spirit, and why sometimes our most difficult circumstances and
0:47
Speaker 1: experiences become the very things that teach us how to
0:51
Speaker 1: help someone else. This is a conversation about healing, connection, vulnerability,
0:57
Speaker 1: and hope. This is Wake Up With Marci, a space
1:00
Speaker 1: for honest conversations about healing, recovery, and women's wellness. I'm
1:05
Speaker 1: Marci Hopkins. Take a breath. You're safe here. Let's begin.
1:14
Speaker 1: Welcome all to Wake Up With Marci. I'm your host,
1:16
Speaker 1: Marci Hopkins. I am a woman in long-term recovery. I
1:21
Speaker 1: just celebrated 11 years sobriety, so I'm so excited. And
1:24
Speaker 1: I am a speaker, I am a TV host, an author,
1:29
Speaker 1: and a woman helping others in recovery centers with my
1:34
Speaker 1: seven bricks framework and care method. And I think it's
1:39
Speaker 1: so important that we are here to talk about those
1:42
Speaker 1: raw conversations that are needed to create change in our
1:46
Speaker 1: lives about recovery, mental health, women's health, and what it
1:51
Speaker 1: really takes to create a life you don't need to
1:54
Speaker 1: escape from. So let's meet Jennifer now. Jennifer, welcome to
1:58
Speaker 1: Wake Up With Marci.
1:59
Speaker 2: Thank you so much. I'm so pleased and excited to
2:02
Speaker 2: be here with you today.
2:03
Speaker 1: Yeah, and I got to say, you are doing such
2:06
Speaker 1: amazing work. and Flacra is doing amazing work. And I'm
2:10
Speaker 1: so excited to be working with you. And we're going
2:14
Speaker 1: to talk about that more, but I want to talk
2:17
Speaker 1: about you, Jennifer, and what has shaped you into the
2:20
Speaker 1: woman that you are. And I know you're helping so
2:24
Speaker 1: many people navigate difficult situations, but you yourself also navigated
2:30
Speaker 1: a very difficult, life-threatening illness. So what was that like
2:35
Speaker 1: for you? You had the diagnosis of breast cancer, and
2:40
Speaker 1: then you yourself realized you needed care. You needed to
2:45
Speaker 1: lean on people.
2:47
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think that when we have illnesses of our own,
2:51
Speaker 2: what that experience was like for me was really the
2:54
Speaker 2: ability to understand people, at a defining hour in your
3:01
Speaker 2: own life, just how difficult it can be to really
3:06
Speaker 2: navigate and move through and staying well during a time
3:10
Speaker 2: where you're battling.
3:11
Speaker 3: Any disease or disorder.
3:13
Speaker 2: So much of the treatment I had actually was really
3:17
Speaker 2: just wonderful, right? I landed, because they missed the diagnosis,
3:21
Speaker 2: I landed with a doctor out of Rochester and um,
3:26
Speaker 2: Christopher Codwell that, uh, really put me in the direction
3:30
Speaker 2: of getting the most updated treatment, uh, that really, I
3:34
Speaker 2: think that, you know, he was connected with Sloan Kettering
3:37
Speaker 2: at the time and, um, being in a rural area
3:41
Speaker 2: can be difficult. Um, but, but being able to connect
3:45
Speaker 2: with that doctor, um, and getting the most updated treatments
3:49
Speaker 2: that were available at the time it was 1998. And so, um,
3:53
Speaker 2: really learning, um, that I was getting some of the
3:56
Speaker 2: best care, uh, that, um, uh, was kind of state
3:59
Speaker 2: of the art. Um, and in that, um, I still
4:03
Speaker 2: didn't emotionally, I think is really the struggle, right. Of
4:07
Speaker 2: feeling that you're going to move through this and make
4:09
Speaker 2: it to the other side. And what happened for me
4:12
Speaker 2: in that was I, um, was nudged multiple times by
4:17
Speaker 2: nurse practitioners. to reach out to a support group. And honestly,
4:23
Speaker 2: I was like, no, you know, it's just not for me.
4:25
Speaker 2: And so, so much of what I learned about myself,
4:30
Speaker 2: I could translate really and generalize to other people and
4:34
Speaker 2: how they want to be treated or maybe some things
4:36
Speaker 2: that they are not aware of until you're moving through
4:40
Speaker 2: that recovery journey. And so much of the work we
4:44
Speaker 2: do here around peer services was really I don't know
4:48
Speaker 2: that I would have understood, Marcy, how important that was
4:52
Speaker 2: emotionally is to connect with peers, to connect with people
4:56
Speaker 2: that were experiencing the same problem. And that emotional state
5:00
Speaker 2: then turned to empowerment and really the advocacy for myself,
5:07
Speaker 2: being around others that were able to lift me up
5:10
Speaker 2: and move through that.
5:11
Speaker 3: Yeah.
5:14
Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean, being connected to others that are going
5:18
Speaker 1: through the same thing is, that itself is life-changing, right?
5:24
Speaker 1: Because it can feel so lonely. And you feel like,
5:29
Speaker 1: even though you know you're not the only person going
5:30
Speaker 1: through it, you can feel like you are the only
5:33
Speaker 1: person going through it. Yes. And one of the things
5:36
Speaker 1: that is so important with Flack Run, you speak about
5:40
Speaker 1: no matter what you're facing, is caring for the whole person. mind, body,
5:46
Speaker 1: and spirit. So what does that mean exactly? And how
5:52
Speaker 1: do you teach that or help others through FLACRA? And
5:57
Speaker 1: what did your own experience teach you about that?
6:00
Speaker 3: Yeah.
6:01
Speaker 2: I mean, I think the multidisciplinary approach in which you're
6:04
Speaker 2: describing can sound so medical.
6:07
Speaker 3: A large portion of that.
6:09
Speaker 2: And, you know, I share with you around the peer recovery,
6:12
Speaker 2: because that's really the emotional place, the ability to see
6:16
Speaker 2: yourself on the other side, to connect emotionally. So mind, body, spirit,
6:22
Speaker 2: you know, is something that we do here at FLACRA
6:26
Speaker 2: around meditation, finding other pathways to recovery. So really exploring
6:31
Speaker 2: for yourself, what is the recipe, so to speak, right?
6:34
Speaker 2: For me individually. So, you know, the same thing doesn't
6:36
Speaker 2: work for different people. So that's really an important aspect.
6:42
Speaker 2: But really, I think, you know, connecting with individuals that
6:46
Speaker 2: can help guide and support work, whether it's a therapist,
6:50
Speaker 2: whether it's a case manager, a peer specialist, medical provider,
6:55
Speaker 2: those that are working as nurse practitioners to support the prescribing.
7:00
Speaker 2: We have a combination of services because that's really what
7:03
Speaker 2: it takes, right? In order to offer the best pathway
7:07
Speaker 2: for each individual.
7:09
Speaker 1: Yeah, and that's so true. It is different for each individual.
7:14
Speaker 1: So it's important to know that, right? And to know
7:17
Speaker 1: that when you are walking through those doors, that you
7:22
Speaker 1: are seen where you're at. And the treatment is going
7:28
Speaker 1: to be fitting for you, right? There's a plan that's
7:31
Speaker 1: going to be put together for you. And one of
7:33
Speaker 1: the things you talked about when you were going through
7:35
Speaker 1: cancer is how important it is to have the access
7:39
Speaker 1: to the best information, the treatment, the support, and the
7:43
Speaker 1: people around you. And so that leads me to think
7:47
Speaker 1: about people in treatment. What do people need beyond treatment
7:54
Speaker 1: itself to actually begin the healing process? Yeah.
7:58
Speaker 2: And I think, you know, one of the things that
8:00
Speaker 2: can be an area that we forget about, especially with
8:05
Speaker 2: addiction and mental health treatment, is how important family is
8:09
Speaker 2: in that process. So really, I think, you know, part
8:12
Speaker 2: of that is rebuilding and helping in that family system
8:16
Speaker 2: dynamic of really rebuilding that natural support.
8:20
Speaker 3: That would be there.
8:21
Speaker 2: And that can include different family visits or other work
8:27
Speaker 2: that family may want to participate in outside of.
8:32
Speaker 3: The work that the individual may be doing.
8:34
Speaker 2: And so if we can really work to rebuild those
8:37
Speaker 2: natural supports, that to me is key. That's one of
8:40
Speaker 2: the first things I look at when I'm looking at
8:43
Speaker 2: humans is who's their natural supports. And sometimes family isn't
8:48
Speaker 2: who we started out with, right, in our life, we
8:52
Speaker 2: can bring other people into our lives that become that
8:56
Speaker 2: family for us. And that's a really important area for
9:01
Speaker 2: behavioral health, mental health and addiction is that finding sometimes
9:06
Speaker 2: that new family, that new support is really important. And
9:10
Speaker 2: they can help walk through, right, periods of time where
9:13
Speaker 2: you know, in any recovery path, any one of us, right,
9:17
Speaker 2: can feel alone or isolated or this isn't going to
9:21
Speaker 2: work or I'm not going to make it. All of
9:24
Speaker 2: those aspects of humans and what they feel when they're
9:28
Speaker 2: in the thick of a disorder, a disease or something
9:31
Speaker 2: they're battling, really the help of those people that we've
9:36
Speaker 2: helped form those relationships. It's a lot of what the
9:39
Speaker 2: peer recovery advocates will do. It's really kind of finding
9:42
Speaker 2: each person's pathway. Often that means rebuilding family or friends
9:47
Speaker 2: or new people in your life in order to make
9:51
Speaker 2: that journey happen.
9:52
Speaker 3: It's really important.
9:55
Speaker 1: Yeah, because when we go in for recovery, right, we are.
10:00
Speaker 1: getting the support, we're getting the help. And just to share,
10:05
Speaker 1: I just celebrated 11 years of sobriety.
10:07
Speaker 3: Oh, congratulations. Thank you. Thank you.
10:11
Speaker 1: It's a miracle. It's so beautiful. I'm so grateful. But
10:16
Speaker 1: The thing is, is that one of the things that
10:19
Speaker 1: I talk about a lot and help others in the
10:21
Speaker 1: area of those triggers and cravings and people, places and things.
10:27
Speaker 3: Yes. Right.
10:28
Speaker 1: So we go and we get the help, but then
10:31
Speaker 1: we put ourselves back in that same situation. So what
10:35
Speaker 1: I hear you saying is how important it is to
10:39
Speaker 1: make sure it's important to choose the people that are
10:42
Speaker 1: around you when you come out of recovery. Because if
10:47
Speaker 1: you put yourself right back in the same situation, you
10:50
Speaker 1: are going to be triggered to move on those, you know,
10:55
Speaker 1: old behaviors.
10:56
Speaker 3: Yeah, that's, that's really true.
10:58
Speaker 2: You know, I think that doing that work with your
11:01
Speaker 2: family or, and finding additional support. So, so much of
11:06
Speaker 2: the work out of, we have what's called a recovery
11:08
Speaker 2: center and out of our community recovery centers, you would
11:12
Speaker 2: find peers working on a multitude of skill sets, discovery,
11:20
Speaker 2: places to journey. But again, I think finding who can
11:25
Speaker 2: do that with you. Humans aren't meant to be alone.
11:29
Speaker 2: We are born in a community and rebuilding a community
11:33
Speaker 2: and being able to give back to that community is
11:35
Speaker 2: some of the most healing portions of work. Other areas
11:40
Speaker 2: that are really important is really self-awareness. and really gaining
11:43
Speaker 2: that insight to understanding that is a trigger for me
11:47
Speaker 2: that will not go well for me in my journey
11:50
Speaker 2: or my recovery. And really, we use a technique, motivational
11:54
Speaker 2: interviewing and stages of change. And often, you know, the
11:58
Speaker 2: disease of mental health and addiction, it can be a
12:01
Speaker 2: bit resistant, right? Those symptoms can be what we call
12:04
Speaker 2: a bit, you know, resistant. And so in that we
12:08
Speaker 2: want to be able to apply certain interventions that will
12:12
Speaker 2: respond to treatment, right?
12:14
Speaker 3: So in a medical model where.
12:16
Speaker 2: We can attach that understanding really concretely in the field
12:21
Speaker 2: of behavioral health, it's really a similar process. It's why
12:25
Speaker 2: I share with you my own journey and where I
12:28
Speaker 2: needed to compare and contrast. Although stigma is different for
12:32
Speaker 2: people living with cancer and in recovery for cancer, stigma
12:37
Speaker 2: is feeling very similar in the You'd like to get
12:41
Speaker 2: a job as you recover. So it's like a lot
12:45
Speaker 2: of similarities, I think, with the disease. And really right
12:49
Speaker 2: down to the marginalization of people. When you have a
12:55
Speaker 2: long-term illness or disability you're recovering from, people look at
12:59
Speaker 2: you differently. So a lot of the work we want
13:02
Speaker 2: to do is to be aware of self and our value,
13:07
Speaker 2: no matter what stage or phase we are in our life.
13:10
Speaker 2: And really finding others that can support us and help
13:13
Speaker 2: us along the way. You know, for me, the tremendous
13:16
Speaker 2: support I had from my family doesn't always exist with
13:19
Speaker 2: many of the folks we work with. And that support
13:22
Speaker 2: is immeasurable because they are pushing from behind. They are saying,
13:26
Speaker 2: I'll pull you through the eye of the needle. You're
13:27
Speaker 2: going to get to the other side. That support is
13:31
Speaker 2: imperative for people in recovery.
13:33
Speaker 3: So we fill in in a lot of.
13:35
Speaker 2: Those places with humans that really need That guiding that
13:41
Speaker 2: guidepost that that beacon of light that yes, you can
13:44
Speaker 2: get to the other side and you will as someone
13:46
Speaker 2: walking alongside of you, whether it's a therapist, a case manager,
13:51
Speaker 2: your doctor, a peer advocate, all of those pieces are important.
13:56
Speaker 2: And so really helping people decide what's going to work
13:59
Speaker 2: best here. Oh, you don't like this treatment or therapy. Okay, well,
14:04
Speaker 2: you know, we could we can shelf that we can
14:06
Speaker 2: come back to it, or we may never want to
14:08
Speaker 2: look at it. So it's really Putting the patient, the
14:11
Speaker 2: client in the driver's seat is really, really important to
14:15
Speaker 2: achieving what that recovery pathway will look like.
14:18
Speaker 3: Right.
14:19
Speaker 1: And I love that because I hear you saying that
14:22
Speaker 1: the patient is hurt. Yes. Yeah.
14:25
Speaker 3: That is everything.
14:26
Speaker 1: It really is.
14:28
Speaker 2: You know, to build that trust and support, it's imperative
14:31
Speaker 2: that we put the client, the.
14:39
Speaker 3: What is it that you think you might need? Now
14:41
Speaker 3: we're adding in, right? I didn't have all of the
14:44
Speaker 3: knowledge of what I was going to need.
14:46
Speaker 2: And I sure didn't want the peer recovery community to
14:48
Speaker 2: call me. I was like, no, I don't really need that.
14:51
Speaker 2: But I really did, Marcy. I really needed to arrive
14:55
Speaker 2: with a stage to be almost three breast cancer. I
15:00
Speaker 2: needed to be somewhere with a group of folks that,
15:05
Speaker 2: because my thoughts are everything, right? I think we think
15:08
Speaker 2: about you know, what's going in and what we're thinking about.
15:11
Speaker 2: That really is, we want to vision a clear pathway.
15:16
Speaker 2: We want to vision that healthy person. And so if
15:19
Speaker 2: I can't do that myself, that's a lot of the
15:21
Speaker 2: work we want to include, right? Is really creating that vision,
15:26
Speaker 2: knowing yourself and how you'll get there is really important
15:31
Speaker 2: and putting the client at the center of that and
15:33
Speaker 2: being heard. is really the difference between engagement and non-engagement
15:37
Speaker 2: and can be the difference between life or death to
15:40
Speaker 2: be very frank.
15:41
Speaker 1: So let me ask you, when I was drinking, and
15:44
Speaker 1: I drank for years, I mean, I think the first
15:46
Speaker 1: time I drank, I was 12 years old. It was
15:49
Speaker 1: an escape for me. It felt so good. Addiction is
15:52
Speaker 1: rampant in my family. So really, I learned to push
15:56
Speaker 1: down all the pain of the abuse and the abandonment
15:59
Speaker 1: that was going on in my life. So when someone
16:04
Speaker 1: comes in to Flacra, how important is it for them
16:09
Speaker 1: to understand what is underneath it and that addiction rather
16:13
Speaker 1: than just stop using, right? Because it's not, that's, it's
16:17
Speaker 1: a symptom of something. So how important is that work
16:21
Speaker 1: and how do you address that?
16:23
Speaker 3: Yeah, again, you know, that work is everything, right?
16:26
Speaker 2: I think to create a treatment plan that doesn't involve
16:30
Speaker 2: that understanding, you know, there is a, a process even
16:34
Speaker 2: during evaluation where.
16:35
Speaker 3: You would do what's called the genealogy.
16:38
Speaker 2: And what that does is explore who you are and
16:41
Speaker 2: your family and all of the kind of family system
16:45
Speaker 2: dynamics that are happening in it. And it does tell
16:47
Speaker 2: us often, you know, we can use that with clients
16:51
Speaker 2: to say, these are some of the areas that might
16:54
Speaker 2: be a struggle, a challenge. Reviewing history can be really painful.
17:00
Speaker 2: We work with clients to share, let's use the past.
17:05
Speaker 2: And this is so much easier said than done. Let's
17:07
Speaker 2: use the past for learning, right? And step forward in
17:10
Speaker 2: the future. The more we say that, the more someone
17:14
Speaker 2: has the ability to do that, right? So it's a
17:18
Speaker 2: lot of reinforcing. But again, you can't move into a
17:23
Speaker 2: situation with any human and start where you want to start, right?
17:27
Speaker 3: That doesn't work. And it's so disingenuous.
17:31
Speaker 2: You have to move into a space with people, no
17:35
Speaker 2: matter what we're doing in our work, where we begin
17:39
Speaker 2: with what they know, what they don't know, what they
17:43
Speaker 2: might want to explore. As experts, you're able to kind
17:46
Speaker 2: of add in to the value of the conversation. So
17:49
Speaker 2: much of the work and want and desire to move
17:53
Speaker 2: through that is something that, again, we use with that
17:56
Speaker 2: motivational interviewing and stages of change. And what that means
17:59
Speaker 2: is really exploring, you know, are they pre-contemplative? Are they contemplative?
18:05
Speaker 2: Have we moved to a situation where someone's ready for action?
18:09
Speaker 2: There's a lot there that the clinician, and honestly, every
18:14
Speaker 2: aspect of work that we do in direct care uses
18:17
Speaker 2: motivational interviewing stages of changes. It is an evidence-based practice,
18:21
Speaker 2: and it is the single highest form of engagement for
18:25
Speaker 2: someone to learn about themselves and others around them and
18:29
Speaker 2: how they're integrating.
18:30
Speaker 3: Into the world and what they may want to do differently.
18:34
Speaker 1: So it's the first, let's say 30 days, and I'm
18:36
Speaker 1: sure you have extended programs and we'll talk a little
18:38
Speaker 1: bit more about that. But I think about the person
18:41
Speaker 1: that's in that first 30 days, right? And you're just
18:45
Speaker 1: trying to just get through day by day. And the
18:49
Speaker 1: only thought is not to pick up, right? And to
18:54
Speaker 1: really just understand that what you're going through is normal
18:59
Speaker 1: and that That acute withdrawal, which looks different for everybody,
19:04
Speaker 1: but a lot of the same things are going on
19:06
Speaker 1: in the body, right? And in the things that you're
19:10
Speaker 1: going to face during that time. And then getting to
19:15
Speaker 1: the understanding that it's not just about that alcohol. And
19:20
Speaker 1: that's what you think it is, really. You think it's,
19:23
Speaker 1: I have a problem with alcohol, but really it's more
19:26
Speaker 1: about you had something that harmed you, that hurt you.
19:31
Speaker 1: So it takes it takes time and at different stages.
19:34
Speaker 1: And it's just learning all of the tips and the
19:37
Speaker 1: tools and the clinical side of things. And I like
19:40
Speaker 1: work with people in a holistic way to, you know,
19:43
Speaker 1: as the whole person, because I'll go back to what
19:47
Speaker 1: we've talked about before that. the same thing doesn't work
19:51
Speaker 1: for the next person. Right.
19:53
Speaker 3: Right.
19:54
Speaker 1: But just giving yourself grace and is so, so important
19:58
Speaker 1: and being kind to yourself during that time and just
20:01
Speaker 1: having that support and those people being kind to you also.
20:06
Speaker 1: But I want to go back to that community part because.
20:10
Speaker 1: Addiction is so isolating, right? Shame, with that shame cycle,
20:15
Speaker 1: we stay hidden, right? And we're so fearful to reach out.
20:22
Speaker 1: We think a lot of times people won't understand us
20:25
Speaker 1: and understand what's happening, that we are going to be judged.
20:29
Speaker 1: But there is so much emphasis through FLACRA with the
20:34
Speaker 1: community-based support. So let's talk a little bit more about
20:39
Speaker 1: that peer-led recovery and what really is that connection doing?
20:46
Speaker 1: Because I always say when we stop drinking, we get
20:50
Speaker 1: the blessing of beginning to rebuild our lives. But underneath
20:56
Speaker 1: that sturdy foundation that finally we have that stable foundation
21:00
Speaker 1: is community. That is everything. And you can't do it alone.
21:06
Speaker 1: So what exactly does peer-led recovery look like through FLACRA? Yeah.
21:12
Speaker 2: So, you know, each of our programs has peer recovery
21:16
Speaker 2: services embedded. And then we have, I was sharing before,
21:20
Speaker 2: Recovery Community Center. So anywhere along the way that someone
21:25
Speaker 2: would choose to enter into recovery or connect to recovery,
21:31
Speaker 2: there is a peer available.
21:33
Speaker 3: And again, I think the sharing... of the experience has
21:38
Speaker 3: that bonding. It has it. I mean, what better place
21:42
Speaker 3: to find judgment, right? You've been there.
21:46
Speaker 2: Please, you've lived it. You understand why someone's doing the
21:50
Speaker 2: things they do. You understand their emotionality, where they are.
21:54
Speaker 2: You kind of easily align with the thoughts of you're describing,
21:59
Speaker 2: you know, those first steps or those first stages. I mean,
22:03
Speaker 2: early recovery is one to three years. And so we
22:06
Speaker 2: want to assure that we keep peers, the lives of
22:10
Speaker 2: our folks. Not everyone wants to work with a peer.
22:13
Speaker 2: And I really understand that. But so much of the
22:16
Speaker 2: service is the reach out. It's why I shared with
22:19
Speaker 2: you earlier. I don't know that I would have started
22:23
Speaker 2: to feel better emotionally had that NP not asked me
22:28
Speaker 2: three times, three different occasions. So it's that repetitive knowing,
22:33
Speaker 2: but asking. And finally saying, could I have them reach
22:37
Speaker 2: out to you? And I'm like, okay, yeah, I guess.
22:41
Speaker 2: But Marcy, it changed my life. And why it changed
22:44
Speaker 2: my life is it really started to empower me, not
22:47
Speaker 2: in the way. There were people in the recovery group
22:49
Speaker 2: that I was in, peers that I really needed to
22:52
Speaker 2: kind of cut off from myself because they were not healthy.
22:56
Speaker 2: And it didn't mean they weren't going to live from
22:58
Speaker 2: the disease. It meant it wasn't conducive to my needs.
23:03
Speaker 2: And so I think that's a lot of, the self-advocacy
23:06
Speaker 2: and support that we want to give along the way. Yes,
23:11
Speaker 2: recovery community center. Yes, peer advocacy support, because they do
23:16
Speaker 2: that work so well. They may even say, you know,
23:18
Speaker 2: there's going to be people in your world during recovery
23:22
Speaker 2: that you don't agree with and you don't want.
23:24
Speaker 3: Around because it's still, it's triggering you. It isn't, it
23:27
Speaker 3: isn't helpful. But the push, Marcy.
23:30
Speaker 2: And the ability to ask, would it be okay if
23:33
Speaker 2: I bring it up again in a few weeks? And
23:35
Speaker 2: I was like, yeah, we can talk about it again.
23:39
Speaker 2: That pre-contemplation for me, I was stuck there. And I
23:43
Speaker 2: didn't know it was going to be the part of
23:46
Speaker 2: the spirituality or the sense of self and the ability
23:49
Speaker 2: to heal in the most profound place. I can get
23:53
Speaker 2: all the medication. I can have all the treatment, the
23:56
Speaker 2: whole medical model. But if I am not recovering a
24:00
Speaker 2: whole person's spirituality, caring for myself from where I must
24:05
Speaker 2: have caused this for myself, you know, all of those
24:07
Speaker 2: things that really align with the disease of a disease, right?
24:12
Speaker 2: You always go back to what did I do wrong?
24:15
Speaker 2: You know, the shaming of I have this and people
24:18
Speaker 2: must be thinking these things that relate is so easy
24:23
Speaker 2: to understand for me. in the shared experience of disease.
24:28
Speaker 2: So I have a person who works for us and
24:31
Speaker 2: he's an amazing man. His name is Guy Morris and
24:34
Speaker 2: he's been in recovery, I think almost 30, past 30 years.
24:39
Speaker 2: And he is one of our biggest recovery peer advocates.
24:42
Speaker 2: He also has a KSAC and has that credential and
24:46
Speaker 2: truly understands about how to be with people. And it's
24:49
Speaker 2: so much of what we're talking about here. He once
24:52
Speaker 2: said to me, I only want to work for people
24:56
Speaker 2: that have had a spiritual awakening, right?
24:58
Speaker 3: And are in recovery.
25:00
Speaker 2: And I made the mistake of saying, well, guy, you
25:03
Speaker 2: and I work so well together. You love working with me.
25:05
Speaker 2: I haven't, I'm not in recovery. And he said, I
25:09
Speaker 2: said a spiritual awakening and recovery. I didn't say from addiction.
25:13
Speaker 2: And so what he was sharing is that ability to
25:18
Speaker 2: really connect human to human and and understand the differences
25:23
Speaker 2: and similarities to not disparage the difference between cancer and addiction,
25:28
Speaker 2: but also the likeness of really working with people when
25:31
Speaker 2: they're not well, and how to best do that and
25:34
Speaker 2: support that. It's an amazing experience, but I too, very early,
25:40
Speaker 2: at a very early age of five years old, had
25:43
Speaker 2: a profound spiritual awakening that leads me on a path
25:48
Speaker 2: of easily putting my feet in someone else's shoes. And
25:51
Speaker 2: that is what resoundingly peers do because they can, they've
25:57
Speaker 2: been there.
25:58
Speaker 3: So me being able to relate illness, disease.
26:02
Speaker 2: You know, I lost a daughter at 39 years old
26:06
Speaker 2: and being able to relate to that horrible loss. And
26:10
Speaker 2: then the spiritual awakening that happens from that with all
26:14
Speaker 2: the beautiful things that came next, It's an oxymoron.
26:18
Speaker 3: But it isn't.
26:19
Speaker 2: That work has really propelled me to have so much
26:22
Speaker 2: passion in our workplace to really motivate other people.
26:27
Speaker 1: I love that. And thank you for sharing that. I mean,
26:30
Speaker 1: I can't even imagine going through that. But the fact
26:35
Speaker 1: that you shared that with us, thank you. And the
26:39
Speaker 1: spiritual awakening, and this is something I just was thinking
26:44
Speaker 1: about recently because while very different, I'm not comparing at all.
26:51
Speaker 1: I'm going through some stuff with my senior dog and
26:54
Speaker 1: it just made me think in recovery and the spiritual
26:58
Speaker 1: awakening that I've had and the work that I've done,
27:02
Speaker 1: you're just able to get through life in a very,
27:05
Speaker 1: very different way, right? Because life is still going to happen.
27:09
Speaker 1: These bad things are going to happen. Some worse for others.
27:14
Speaker 1: but it helps you to navigate life in a different
27:17
Speaker 1: way and know that you're not alone and you're able
27:23
Speaker 1: to feel that you can lean on others. And that's
27:27
Speaker 1: so beautiful. And I don't know, just having faith for
27:31
Speaker 1: me and whatever faith that is for you, whatever your
27:34
Speaker 1: higher power is, for me, it's just literally an extension
27:38
Speaker 1: of energy of love. And that's what you were talking
27:41
Speaker 1: about before, that's that human connection. You can have all
27:46
Speaker 1: of the clinicians, the doctors, the plans, but it's that
27:51
Speaker 1: human connection, that love that we all desire and need
27:55
Speaker 1: as human beings. And that's beautiful that you offer that.
28:01
Speaker 1: One of the things though, that when people, they go
28:04
Speaker 1: through your program, they have to return to that same environment,
28:08
Speaker 1: the stress, the people, the same circumstances that How can
28:13
Speaker 1: we expect someone to build a new life if they
28:16
Speaker 1: don't have a safe place to build it?
28:18
Speaker 3: Yeah.
28:18
Speaker 1: And I know that you have your housing, right? So
28:22
Speaker 1: how does Flackra's approach to that fit in for somebody?
28:28
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think that's such a great observation, great connection.
28:31
Speaker 2: So many people don't have a place to go back to.
28:35
Speaker 2: They have really in their world and in their pathway,
28:38
Speaker 2: they've really closed a lot of those doors, if you will.
28:42
Speaker 3: Whether it was inadvertent or, you know, intentionally.
28:46
Speaker 2: And I think that's a lot of the work really
28:48
Speaker 2: when we create a new community for ourselves.
28:51
Speaker 3: And again, you know, the description, I.
28:53
Speaker 2: Think here in New York, the Department of Health, DOH,
28:58
Speaker 2: once described addiction as a lack of social connection. And
29:02
Speaker 2: so one of the reasons we called very, very early
29:06
Speaker 2: on our recovery centers connections is because it is about
29:10
Speaker 2: rebuilding that space there really isn't a disconnect wholly from
29:15
Speaker 2: past and present and future, right? I think that any
29:19
Speaker 2: one of us traveling, there is parts of our past
29:23
Speaker 2: that we still have to go back to, whether that's
29:26
Speaker 2: a physical place or it's an emotional place, you know,
29:31
Speaker 2: wanting to integrate that in a healthy way. Otherwise that
29:35
Speaker 2: travel back there, you know, can often happen in places
29:39
Speaker 2: where we become either so guilt-ridden or so remorseful or so,
29:44
Speaker 2: you know, that the emotionality becomes unbalanced and we can
29:48
Speaker 2: live in that space. So, but as you're going home
29:51
Speaker 2: from treatment and let's say you are moving back into
29:55
Speaker 2: a very similar or the same space, We really offer
29:59
Speaker 2: those services, Marcy, that you would see continuing care as.
30:05
Speaker 3: One of those services.
30:06
Speaker 2: Like we don't want to stop the connection. We don't
30:10
Speaker 2: want to stop the treatment. I would say this, right?
30:13
Speaker 2: Happened to stay with my oncologist for 20 years. So
30:16
Speaker 2: who does that? Somebody who wants to know that if
30:20
Speaker 2: there's a problem, right? But the worst part about recovery
30:24
Speaker 2: up until even probably 10 years ago, is we would
30:28
Speaker 2: provide treatment and that was it.
30:30
Speaker 3: That's not realistic. It doesn't work. So when we're.
30:33
Speaker 2: Moving back into spaces, we want to keep a close
30:36
Speaker 2: eye on people in early recovery, most especially. So remember
30:39
Speaker 2: my doctor saying, nope, for the next five years, we're
30:43
Speaker 2: going to watch this disease. 10 years ago, and even
30:46
Speaker 2: today in many areas, we don't see recovery for addiction
30:51
Speaker 2: and mental health in that same way. We should watch
30:54
Speaker 2: for any reoccurrence, anything problems that are happening. And oftentimes
30:59
Speaker 2: in the healthcare system, it's treatment and then let go.
31:02
Speaker 2: So it is why we've designed our programs as you're
31:05
Speaker 2: describing so well. In aftercare, we would like to watch
31:10
Speaker 2: over the next five years for you to stay in
31:12
Speaker 2: remission and full recovery, right? So really mirroring a very
31:16
Speaker 2: similar design that we have not traditionally viewed addiction and
31:21
Speaker 2: or mental health in. Why would we watch for cancer?
31:25
Speaker 2: when I could have a relapse and use something, whether
31:29
Speaker 2: it's alcohol or fentanyl, whatever it is, and I could
31:33
Speaker 2: be gone tonight or I could take someone else's life tonight, right?
31:37
Speaker 2: Why don't we treat the disease so similarly? So here
31:42
Speaker 2: at Flapro, I remind everyone, this disease and behavioral health
31:49
Speaker 2: really isn't any different than other medical issues. Some of
31:53
Speaker 2: the symptoms are different Some of the treatments are different,
31:57
Speaker 2: but the ability to maintain health over a long period
32:03
Speaker 2: of time is key.
32:05
Speaker 1: Yeah. So share with us what makes FLACRA different.
32:14
Speaker 2: There's quite a bit that I think makes FLACRA different.
32:17
Speaker 2: Our mission is to serve all of those who come
32:20
Speaker 2: to us in need, right? It's part of our mission,
32:23
Speaker 2: part of our vision and design mission. We see clients
32:28
Speaker 2: as clients long-term. So if someone needs to come back
32:32
Speaker 2: in seven years, that is our client. Kind of embracing
32:36
Speaker 2: that recovery doesn't end and the work should continue. The
32:42
Speaker 2: other thing that's unique, again, is we have a really
32:45
Speaker 2: large peer recovery system. That's very different than a lot
32:50
Speaker 2: of the work because of my experience and knowing how
32:54
Speaker 2: important that was for my well-being and long-term recovery, I
32:59
Speaker 2: would say that was one of the biggest things for
33:01
Speaker 2: me for long-term recovery was to have people around me
33:05
Speaker 2: who understood what that looked like.
33:07
Speaker 3: And so.
33:09
Speaker 2: Not everyone that is running programs like ours, Marcy, has
33:13
Speaker 2: built an enormous peer system and has embedded it in
33:18
Speaker 2: every entity or fiber that we can think of. And
33:23
Speaker 2: I think that we stand out very uniquely. We were
33:27
Speaker 2: recently certified at a national level, accredited, I should say,
33:30
Speaker 2: at a national level through Capris for our peer recovery services.
33:35
Speaker 2: And that standard stands out in all the things that
33:38
Speaker 2: we're describing today. It sounds simple, but it isn't. There's
33:43
Speaker 2: a lot of work behind the scenes to create such
33:46
Speaker 2: a passionate, large system of peer recovery services and care.
33:52
Speaker 2: That is a massive feat. So we also stand out
33:55
Speaker 2: differently because we will touch.
33:58
Speaker 3: Out with our employees.
34:00
Speaker 2: And I really would be remiss in not saying anyone
34:03
Speaker 2: who works in behavioral health care knows that a portion,
34:08
Speaker 2: fairly large portion of people in recovery will often move
34:12
Speaker 2: into the space of mental health and addiction treatment services,
34:15
Speaker 2: supports and recovery services. For the very reason peer services
34:19
Speaker 2: makes total sense, right? I just had, I would say,
34:23
Speaker 2: the luxury of insight, Marcy, of understanding. That model took
34:28
Speaker 2: a long time to launch. It took most people around,
34:33
Speaker 2: but my hypersensitivity to understanding peer recovery and its value,
34:38
Speaker 2: breathing the life and passion into that was easy for me.
34:41
Speaker 2: It was just so easy. So we absolutely stand out
34:44
Speaker 2: differently now. supporting employees, supporting the mental health and wellbeing
34:49
Speaker 2: as much as we possibly can. And also, you know,
34:52
Speaker 2: there's a line there, right? Because we expect you to
34:54
Speaker 2: be healthy enough to work with our clients and patients.
34:59
Speaker 2: And so that is another area we strive and spend
35:02
Speaker 2: a lot of time managing and nurturing.
35:05
Speaker 1: I love that. And it's, it is true. When you
35:09
Speaker 1: get the gift of recovery, you do want to give
35:12
Speaker 1: it back, right? You continue to to be of service, right?
35:16
Speaker 1: Because it's so important. This work is so important. There's
35:20
Speaker 1: no better feeling than giving back in this area. And
35:26
Speaker 1: I just want to share real quick. We're going to
35:27
Speaker 1: take a quick break because I want to share about
35:32
Speaker 1: my book, Wake Up, You're Not Broken, a companion for
35:34
Speaker 1: your first 30 days of sobriety. And I wrote this
35:37
Speaker 1: because it was something that I wish that I had.
35:40
Speaker 1: when I was getting sober because I wanted to understand
35:43
Speaker 1: what was happening inside of me. And I needed to
35:46
Speaker 1: believe that life could be different. So it's a gentle
35:50
Speaker 1: companion for anyone who's ready to stop drinking, take their
35:53
Speaker 1: life back and move from chaos to peace one day
35:57
Speaker 1: at a time. So we'll be right back. Are you
35:58
Speaker 1: in the first 30 days of sobriety or wondering if
36:01
Speaker 1: now is your time to start? Hi, I'm Marci Hopkins
36:05
Speaker 1: and I wrote Wake Up, You're Not Broken just for you.
36:08
Speaker 1: It's a real raw guide to those first 30 days,
36:12
Speaker 1: what no one tells you, what you will feel, and
36:14
Speaker 1: how to keep going. This isn't about perfection. It's about progress.
36:20
Speaker 1: Order your copy now on Amazon. Remember, you're not alone.
36:25
Speaker 1: You're not broken. You're waking up. Welcome back. I am
36:29
Speaker 1: talking with Jennifer Carlson, President and CEO of Flacra, about recovery,
36:34
Speaker 1: behavioral health, And why healing requires us to see the person,
36:38
Speaker 1: not just the problem. So Jennifer, you said you've become
36:43
Speaker 1: really comfortable asking other people for help because we don't
36:48
Speaker 1: know all the answers, right? And we think it's simple.
36:52
Speaker 1: It sounds simple. I mean, I remember when I asked
36:55
Speaker 1: for help, it was the hardest thing that I ever did.
36:57
Speaker 1: You're like getting vulnerable. We think getting vulnerable is so weak.
37:04
Speaker 1: But can you help us to see that it is
37:07
Speaker 1: the strongest thing we could do?
37:10
Speaker 3: Yeah, I think.
37:11
Speaker 2: So I do think most folks are raised, right, not
37:15
Speaker 2: to ask for help, to think that we should do
37:17
Speaker 2: something on our own, to think that we should just be,
37:21
Speaker 2: you know, different or better. In my case, right, with recovery,
37:26
Speaker 2: it was, oh, I just can't be bothered. I'm not
37:28
Speaker 2: going to spend the time, right, because I have all
37:30
Speaker 2: these other things I'm concentrating on. And the lack of
37:34
Speaker 2: recognizing the disconnect from my emotional state and really needing
37:40
Speaker 2: to ask for that help. But I couldn't, Marcy, right?
37:43
Speaker 2: So much of our work here at Flackra is reaching in.
37:47
Speaker 2: So many other people sit in the same place where
37:51
Speaker 2: sometimes people will come to the realization, I want.
37:53
Speaker 3: To change my life and I'm going to ask for help.
37:56
Speaker 2: But we like to, you know, that might be two
37:59
Speaker 2: in 10 people that are suffering or struggling with addiction.
38:03
Speaker 2: And we'd like to penetrate that, right? So a lot
38:06
Speaker 2: of that work is reaching in, working with families who
38:09
Speaker 2: need a reach in sometimes. But really, I think coming
38:13
Speaker 2: into that space of recognizing in those first 30 days
38:16
Speaker 2: when someone does want to get that help, really honing
38:22
Speaker 2: in on really the positive reinforcement of seeking that, really
38:27
Speaker 2: exploring with someone you know, the wants and desires and
38:31
Speaker 2: finding kind of that hook or that glue of what's
38:33
Speaker 2: going to keep you moving, right? What do you think
38:36
Speaker 2: we can explore or talk about together? The isolation, discussing
38:41
Speaker 2: with clients often, there's trauma that happens in that first space, right?
38:47
Speaker 2: And they don't want to relive those things. They don't
38:50
Speaker 2: want to tell the story for all of what you described,
38:52
Speaker 2: the judgment, the not feeling like people are going to
38:55
Speaker 2: understand that. Um, and, and really, I think starting to
38:59
Speaker 2: create a space for people to understand that part of
39:03
Speaker 2: that journey has to be themselves. So when you're, you know,
39:06
Speaker 2: you're sharing, uh, the things in your book, um, that
39:10
Speaker 2: worked for you, uh, they will work for so many
39:13
Speaker 2: other people. It will, but it may not be everyone,
39:15
Speaker 2: but I think the premise of, uh, your work is, um,
39:19
Speaker 2: let's find out about ourselves and what will work and
39:22
Speaker 2: explore that space and time in that first, increment of,
39:26
Speaker 2: of coming to the realization of, I need to do
39:30
Speaker 2: something different. That's a huge step and asking for help
39:34
Speaker 2: in that. We are, again, I think raised as a,
39:36
Speaker 2: as a society that thinks, you know, pull yourself up
39:40
Speaker 2: by your bootstraps, right.
39:41
Speaker 3: And just do it. And it is not, it has
39:44
Speaker 3: nothing to do with that.
39:45
Speaker 2: Um, We could all do something like that, but it's
39:49
Speaker 2: not true recovery, right? It's not that true work around
39:54
Speaker 2: self that you're describing.
39:56
Speaker 1: And also just we're taught, especially as women. I mean,
40:00
Speaker 1: I can only speak to women, right? We are taught
40:03
Speaker 1: to care for others. Yes. And I think about the
40:07
Speaker 1: woman because I think about myself and I was that
40:10
Speaker 1: woman that looked like I had it all together. You
40:14
Speaker 1: saw me from the outside. It looked good. But I
40:17
Speaker 1: had brought into my relationship the trauma of my past.
40:21
Speaker 1: I brought in the trauma of my childhood in my parenting.
40:26
Speaker 1: I was always in survival mode. And I always felt
40:29
Speaker 1: like I had those walls up around me. I was strong.
40:33
Speaker 1: I could do it. I could make it all happen.
40:36
Speaker 1: So it's like really allowing those walls to come down.
40:41
Speaker 1: And for me, it was my husband, those three words,
40:45
Speaker 1: I need help. And for him to embrace me. So
40:50
Speaker 1: go into that right person. And actually, but I didn't
40:53
Speaker 1: know how he would respond, honestly, but he gave me
40:56
Speaker 1: that unconditional love that I had always been seeking. And
41:01
Speaker 1: it's just knowing that you think sometimes we go into
41:05
Speaker 1: denial that it's other people. I mean, I lived in
41:08
Speaker 1: that victim hood. But what would you say to someone
41:12
Speaker 1: that's like sitting in that right now? And I think
41:16
Speaker 1: about the middle of the night, I'm searching, how can
41:19
Speaker 1: I help myself? How can I drink normal? How can
41:22
Speaker 1: I change? I'm not doing this again tomorrow. But then
41:25
Speaker 1: the same cycle happens over and over. What do you
41:29
Speaker 1: say to that person?
41:30
Speaker 2: Again, I think for me, depending on each person, really
41:34
Speaker 2: establishing a very quick rapport to know what that level
41:38
Speaker 2: of engagement is going to look like. I can't say
41:43
Speaker 2: the same things to you, Marcy, that I might say
41:45
Speaker 2: to the next person. So really to capture that in
41:48
Speaker 2: that moment, you know, reading a little bit and hearing
41:51
Speaker 2: some other podcasts that you've done, what a huge gift,
41:54
Speaker 2: you know, to have your husband with that unconditional love.
41:57
Speaker 2: And I was thinking about that. That is not the
42:00
Speaker 2: response that everyone can expect. And I think that can
42:03
Speaker 2: be really scary and overwhelming because changing that alone, Like
42:09
Speaker 2: all of a sudden you share with someone, you're nervous,
42:12
Speaker 2: but you're hoping there's going to be that response.
42:16
Speaker 3: That is what we would call recovery capital, right?
42:19
Speaker 2: And so one of the things that our peers will
42:21
Speaker 2: do is they'll work with folks right away to start
42:24
Speaker 2: to build that war chest, right? Or that capital, that
42:28
Speaker 2: recovery capital that you can bank and make sure it's
42:31
Speaker 2: right there and pull it back out. So I would say,
42:34
Speaker 2: you know, that was huge recovery capital. I would start
42:37
Speaker 2: to use with you immediately. in order to move through
42:41
Speaker 2: and say, remember these things, right? So I think for me,
42:44
Speaker 2: it's always establishing what pieces and parts. So, you know,
42:49
Speaker 2: I share with you, you know, the loss of a child,
42:52
Speaker 2: a stage three breast cancer, and having someone in my
42:54
Speaker 2: life with unconditional love, that could be a reminder physically
42:59
Speaker 2: for me, right? Or a reminder emotionally for me, not
43:02
Speaker 2: everyone has it. So one of the things that we
43:04
Speaker 2: would start to do is look at what is the
43:07
Speaker 2: recovery capital that you have specifically for the individual and
43:11
Speaker 2: start to build that in and make sure that that's
43:16
Speaker 2: riding with people, right?
43:17
Speaker 3: We have it still. It didn't fall off the wagon.
43:19
Speaker 2: It's not, you know, over, you know, off the back
43:22
Speaker 2: trunk and we left it on the car when we
43:24
Speaker 2: pulled away. You know, we don't want that to fall
43:26
Speaker 2: off for folks. I think, you know, making sure that
43:31
Speaker 2: folks don't have those things go wrong.
43:36
Speaker 3: It's really important.
43:37
Speaker 1: So FLACR also works with healthcare, government, law enforcement, education,
43:42
Speaker 1: community organizations. Why are those collaborations so important? Yeah.
43:49
Speaker 2: So, you know, for folks with certain symptomology, they will
43:54
Speaker 2: interface often before we get to maybe meet them or
43:59
Speaker 2: they seek treatment formally. all of those partners, wherever somebody
44:04
Speaker 2: might be entering in and working to discover, I do
44:10
Speaker 2: have some problems, right? So at times law enforcement will
44:14
Speaker 2: connect with us to make a referral, right? Or to
44:18
Speaker 2: divert away from a hospital system when they're not really
44:23
Speaker 2: in full-blown crisis, but they know, you know, they're in
44:26
Speaker 2: an emergent situation that FLACRA can assist with. And also
44:31
Speaker 2: just leveraging, I think, partnerships throughout the whole community and
44:35
Speaker 2: working together and how to best support people that are.
44:39
Speaker 3: Struggling in recovery.
44:41
Speaker 2: So whether that's, you know, partners at the county level,
44:45
Speaker 2: law enforcement, again, is often a first entry point for
44:48
Speaker 2: people because at times, you know, those symptoms will present
44:53
Speaker 2: in a way that they're doing something that, you know,
44:56
Speaker 2: leads down to that path of, interfacing with law enforcement
45:00
Speaker 2: rather than I need to do this before I get there.
45:03
Speaker 2: So at any juncture, we also work with some of
45:07
Speaker 2: the county jails and really have a beautiful therapy program,
45:12
Speaker 2: therapy pod program in the Ontario County Jail that really
45:15
Speaker 2: sets to do that work, Marcy. It starts to explore
45:19
Speaker 2: who I am. How did I get here? Where do
45:22
Speaker 2: I want to go? What life do I want? And
45:24
Speaker 2: there's a lot of time there to do that work.
45:28
Speaker 2: people can recover. Recovery is possible for all people. That
45:31
Speaker 2: is absolutely something I would share with anyone I'm meeting with.
45:35
Speaker 2: But there are some things that, you know, people are
45:38
Speaker 2: going to have to let go of. So that space that,
45:41
Speaker 2: you know, sometimes in those early days, we don't want
45:44
Speaker 2: to let go. We don't want to stop something that's
45:48
Speaker 2: keeping us, we perceive as keeping us well. It's really
45:52
Speaker 2: hard to give those things up and decide I'm going
45:54
Speaker 2: to do this and moving forward. So those partners can
45:59
Speaker 2: assist and support really that same motto, that same ability
46:04
Speaker 2: to say there's a better solution, right? Facilities and treatment
46:09
Speaker 2: centers and all sorts of different resources that we can
46:13
Speaker 2: connect you with. But for them to be knowledgeable about
46:17
Speaker 2: our work and for us to be available for them
46:20
Speaker 2: has been an incredible experience all the way around. And,
46:24
Speaker 2: you know, Ontario County Sheriff's Department has been nothing but
46:29
Speaker 2: respectful of people and respectful of our relationship, helpful.
46:35
Speaker 3: In times where, you know, it could.
46:37
Speaker 2: Be this big thing and we've been able to minimize
46:40
Speaker 2: it in order to keep people moving on the right
46:42
Speaker 2: track as an example.
46:43
Speaker 3: So, yeah.
46:44
Speaker 1: Incredible work, incredible work. So for those out there that
46:49
Speaker 1: want to learn more about FLACRA, they're hearing about you
46:52
Speaker 1: for the first time, how can someone connect with you
46:57
Speaker 1: and find more of the resources and the help that's available?
47:01
Speaker 3: Yeah.
47:01
Speaker 2: So, you know, we have a hotline for, it's kind
47:06
Speaker 2: of a warm line or crisis. If you're experiencing some
47:09
Speaker 2: level of crisis, it's 1-833-4-FLAPRA.
47:15
Speaker 3: Pick up the phone and dial that number.
47:17
Speaker 2: On the other end, we would have an intake staff
47:21
Speaker 2: and ability for peer to be on site at your home,
47:26
Speaker 2: as long as you're in this region, right, or virtually
47:30
Speaker 2: at your home, if needed. It can connect you to
47:33
Speaker 2: resources that might be closer. But the first establishment of
47:39
Speaker 2: work is, as you're describing, the first time we're on
47:41
Speaker 2: the phone with someone, we want to find out what
47:44
Speaker 2: might be the crisis, what is the urgency. Sometimes it's not.
47:49
Speaker 2: It's just this was the place easy for us to
47:51
Speaker 2: give that one number out. have availability at any stretch,
47:55
Speaker 2: any of the services we offer here, and someone that
48:00
Speaker 2: is knowledgeable in knowing what that looks like.
48:04
Speaker 3: We can also be reached at www.flacra.org.
48:10
Speaker 2: So that's another place for people to find resources, all
48:15
Speaker 2: of the things that we're offering.
48:18
Speaker 3: And we do have connectivity that way as well.
48:21
Speaker 2: If there's messages left, if we'll answer in a short
48:24
Speaker 2: period of time and really direct people if they need
48:27
Speaker 2: additional resources. Yeah.
48:29
Speaker 1: And just tell us real quick where the region is.
48:32
Speaker 3: Yeah.
48:33
Speaker 2: Our region is what's called Finger Lakes region, beautiful region
48:35
Speaker 2: here in upstate New York. Our catchment area, we really
48:39
Speaker 2: primarily work in six counties, Schuyler, Wayne, Seneca, Yates, Ontario,
48:45
Speaker 2: and Monroe.
48:46
Speaker 1: Okay.
48:47
Speaker 3: But we do stretch out even a little further.
48:49
Speaker 2: Some of the grants that are coming down from the
48:51
Speaker 2: state level are really regional by economic development region and
48:54
Speaker 2: can include nine counties. So it's a wider region in
48:58
Speaker 2: some respects. But again, I think, you know, we don't
49:01
Speaker 2: want the region to be a barrier. Like, I don't
49:04
Speaker 2: know which region, who should I call? We can absolutely
49:07
Speaker 2: redirect to our counterparts in other regions. But primarily it's
49:11
Speaker 2: that rural east end of Finger Lakes County and Monroe County.
49:17
Speaker 3: That we are serving.
49:18
Speaker 1: And also the virtual aspect is amazing. So Jennifer, you
49:22
Speaker 1: have a very special event coming up and I get
49:25
Speaker 1: to be a part of it as a speaker. And
49:28
Speaker 1: I'm so grateful to be there with you at the
49:32
Speaker 1: fourth annual Transformation Through Connection Gala. So can you give
49:36
Speaker 1: us the details about the event?
49:38
Speaker 3: Yes.
49:39
Speaker 2: No, we really look forward to seeing you at our gala.
49:43
Speaker 2: It is October 22nd. It is 530 at what's called
49:48
Speaker 2: Club 86. And our work is really about celebrating transformation
49:54
Speaker 2: through connections. And we're really super excited to bring awareness to.
49:59
Speaker 3: Addiction and mental health.
50:02
Speaker 2: And really that whole person care that Flackra provides and
50:06
Speaker 2: really loves. For tickets, you can reach out to www.flackra.org.
50:14
Speaker 2: And you could send a message straight there to purchase tickets.
50:19
Speaker 2: And we'd love to see everyone at the event. But
50:22
Speaker 2: if people are not able to make it that day,
50:26
Speaker 2: We have opportunity to give in other ways.
50:30
Speaker 3: The best way to get that information is off our website.
50:33
Speaker 2: And Stephanie Smeldone is our director of fundraising and we
50:37
Speaker 2: can direct those messages to her and she can get
50:40
Speaker 2: back with folks if they need more assistance.
50:43
Speaker 1: Okay, well, fantastic. Looking forward to the gala and celebrating
50:48
Speaker 1: the work that you all are doing. So thank you
50:51
Speaker 1: again for being on Wake Up With Marci and I
50:54
Speaker 1: will see you October 22nd.
50:56
Speaker 3: Thank you so much. Thank you.
50:58
Speaker 2: And we look forward to seeing you as well. And
51:01
Speaker 2: an exciting evening we're going to have.
51:03
Speaker 3: 100%.
51:03
Speaker 1: All right.
51:05
Speaker 3: Bye.
51:06
Speaker 1: Bye. Thank you all so much for tuning in today's episode.
51:10
Speaker 1: And remember, we are more than the hardest thing that
51:13
Speaker 1: we have been through. So if you need information, support, connection,
51:19
Speaker 1: looking to see yourself and help yourself as the whole person,
51:23
Speaker 1: Please reach out to Flacra and learn more about Flacra
51:27
Speaker 1: at flacra.org. And you can also learn about me and
51:32
Speaker 1: my book and my program at wakeupwithmarci.com. Thank you so
51:36
Speaker 1: much for being here today. If this resonated with you,
51:39
Speaker 1: please share with someone who needed this message or like
51:43
Speaker 1: and comment. Let's create a ripple effect to help others.
51:47
Speaker 1: Please know that you are not broken. You are beginning
51:51
Speaker 1: and it's time to wake up to your worth. This
51:53
Speaker 1: is Wake Up With Marci. I'm Marci Hopkins, and I'll
51:56
Speaker 1: see you next week with an all new episode on Thursday.