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Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

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Page 1: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Lessons Learned from a

27 Year Recovery WalkMichele Alexander Bibby

Page 2: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Who Am I

• 51 year LWBIA

• 27 years managing my Bipolar Disorder

• Married for 27 years, recently widowed

• Parent of 2 children

• 5 years of experience parenting a child with a mental health diagnosis

• I am the EVIDENCE

Page 3: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

My Story

• About Me

• Only child

• College graduate

• Mom, 2 kids

• Diagnosed while in Law School

• Medication Compliant for many years

• 20 plus year successful career in Human Resources

• Pregnancy, age 40 … hormonal shift

Page 4: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

More About Me

• Change in medication

• Four years of seasonal cycling, • 4 summers of crisis hospitalizations• 2 inpatient commitments

• Inability to work

• Acceptance of the illness

Page 5: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

More about me

• Education about bipolar disorder

• Re-claiming my life

• Giving back• Volunteering, DBSA support groups

• Telling my story for the 1st time 2007

• Trained as a certified peer specialist

Page 6: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

More About Me

• Worked part-time as CPS at Austin State Hospital (previous patient)

• Worked full-time as a consultant with Via Hope

• Worked myself off disability

• Grief of recent loss

• Supporting children through their loss

Page 7: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Recovery

• I believe recovery is a process, not a destination. My recovery journey has spanned 27 years

• SAMHSA working definition of recovery. A process of change through which individuals improve their health and wellness, live a self- directed life, and strive to reach their full potential.

Page 8: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Childhood Experiences Matter

• Childhood trauma leaves scars

• Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study – CDC and Kaiser Permanente, www.acestudy.org

• ACE study says the more adverse experiences in childhood, the greater likelihood for struggling in adulthood

• Childhood experiences can be a critical starting point of reference for counseling therapy

Page 9: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Sick children ….. Sick

families• Emotionally distressed children are the

outcome of sick family systems

• In my case, after my diagnosis I began a journey of 27 years of counseling therapy

• No one in my family participated in or received any type of therapy

• I believe if you give counseling to a child from a distressed family and the child begins to improve, the benefits are diminished when they are returned to a sick family dynamic

Page 10: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

When The Illness Shows Up Matters

• In my case, I was in Law School

• The later the onset of the illness, the more a person is likely to have accomplished

• We must acknowledge the difficulty children and adolescents have when they are diagnosed so early

• Childhood and adolescent diagnoses can impair the potential a person’s life may hold

Page 11: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Dreams Deferred

• As MH Consumers we have life goals and we have dreams

• Does the dreaded “D” – diagnosis mean the death of our dreams?

Page 12: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Impact of Race on Diagnosis

• The vestiges of slavery have left a legacy of anger in our community

• Anger should not result in a diagnosis

• Being black male should not increase the likelihood for special education or diagnoses

• We have to be very discerning about the labels put on us, on members of our community and our children

Page 13: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

MH Service Trauma

• MH consumer diagnosed in the 1980’s, I experienced• Straight Jackets• Rubber Isolation Rooms• Mistreatment when you are the most

vulnerable

• There is a problem in our society when a person has to recover from the “therapeutic” services they received

Page 14: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Fear, Blame and Shame

• In my family, no one wanted to acknowledge any presence of mental illness in the family. There appeared to be a lot of fear related to my diagnosis

• Different sides of the family were blamed

• No one wanted to talk about the illness, consequently I felt a lot of shame

• We have to open up the dialogue in our families to normalize the conversations about the presence of mental health issues in our families

Page 15: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Language Matters

• Crazy

• Odd

• Troubled

• Mental Health Consumer

• Distressed

Page 16: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Medication Compliance

• I was blessed in that the first med I was prescribed was the right med

• I learned early on that the medication management was key to managing my symptoms

• Many consumers are not so fortunate and spend years trying to find the right cocktail

• Years of productivity can be lost spent adjusting and changing meds

• This is compounded for children and adolescents with constantly changing brains

Page 17: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Disability

• In 2002, I had a baby and had to change a med I had been taking for 20 years

• I began seasonal cycling

• I had 4 summers in crisis. Four hospitalizations

• I had to reorder my life

• Disability was a life saving option

Page 18: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Acceptance

• Once on disability, I came to terms with my illness

• I accepted that I had an illness that had to be managed and could become unmanageable

• Being on disability afforded me the poor treatment many MH consumers experience everyday

Page 19: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Self Awareness

• During a hospitalization at ASH, I was exposed to Mary Ellen Copelands Wellness Recovery Action Program (WRAP)

• WRAP allowed me insight that has become critical in managing my illness. I now know how to gage• Early warning signs• Signs that things are breaking down• What are my triggers• Who are my supporters

Page 20: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Support System

• As a MH consumer, having a circle of caring, loving people is key

• A loving support system ensures you are not isolated

• Having a supportive and loving family has been one of my success strategies

Page 21: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Relationships Matter

• We are meant to be in relationship one to another

• My greatest desire is to be engaged in healthy relationships with positive people

• Sometimes we do and say things in crisis that can strain or damage relationships

• I believe just as we can work on our recovery, we can work to recover relationships when they are worthwhile

Page 22: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Peer Support

• There is nothing like the mutuality of a relationship between people with lived experience

• DBSA tag line, “We’ve been there, we can help”

• I became a certified peer specialist. This is a career opportunity for MH consumers

• The authenticity of relating and sharing that PS provide in clinical settings is incomparable

Page 23: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Wonderfully Made

• People living with mental illness are extra sensitive and I believe a little extra human

• We are especially sensitive to light, season, hurt and pain (our own and others)

• We can relate

• Perhaps MH consumers are “extra” human

• There is a lot of pain and darkness in this world

• MH consumers are uniquely equipped to detect and support the distress of others

Page 24: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Shift of FocusIllness to Wellness

• What you focus on you give power to

• I began to focus on the things I do to stay well

• These are my wellness strategies• Meds• Heart Healthy Diet• Exercise • Healthy Relationships• Spirituality• Under committing• African American Therapist• Wicked smart Psychiatrist• Integration of physical and mental health care

Page 25: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Giving Back

• I learned that Giving Back is also a key wellness strategy for me

• I learned to be a support group facilitator with DBSA. I became DBSA chapter President

• It has been said to those whom much is given, much is required. So, I have moved my efforts to advocacy

• MLK said “Injustice Anywhere is a Threat to Justice Everywhere”

• There is still a lot of injustice that plays itself out with MH consumers on many different system levels

Page 26: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Adaptability

Page 27: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Priorities Change

• Career

• Family

• Managing the Illness

• Maintaining Wellness

• Me

• Advocacy

Page 28: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Resilience is Key

Page 29: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Face of Resilience

Page 30: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Face of Resilience

Page 31: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Face of Resilience

Page 32: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Re-Invent Yourself

Page 33: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Failure Is a Part of Growth

• Failure can actually put you on the path to the next great chapter in your life

• Recovery is non-linear. The non-linearity of it includes dead ends and detours

• The key is staying on the path

Page 34: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Life Throws Curve Balls

• Emotional Distress

• Situational Distress• Catastrophic Events• Death/Loss• Chronic Illness

• Key is overcoming

Page 35: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Fully Recovered

• Decision Making

• Major Social Supports

• Social Role / Identity

• Role of Medication

• Emotional Intelligence

• Global Assessment of Functioning (GAF)

• Sense of Self

Page 36: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

My Responsibility

• My words, actions

• Be a loving parent

• Maintaining my own wellness

• Continuing education about mental health matters

• Supporting & inspiring my peers. Informing folks about mental health issues from a consumer perspective

Page 37: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Resources• Books

• Visible Darkness, William Styron• Unquiet Mind, Kay Redfield Jemison• Brilliant Madness, Patti Duke

• Via Hope, www.viahope.org. Certified Peer Specialist training and certification

• Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP), Mary Ellen Copeland, www.mentalhealthrecovery.com

• Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE Study)

• FacingUs, www.facingus.org - Wellness Tracker

• Depression Bipolar Support Alliance, DBSA. www.dbsalliance.org - Support Groups and other resources

• SAMHSA Working Definition of Recovery. http://store.samhsa.gov/product/SAMHSA-s-Working-Definition-of-Recovery/PEP12-RECDEF

• National Empowerment Center, ECPR Training, www.power2u.org

Page 38: Lessons Learned from a 27 Year Recovery Walk Michele Alexander Bibby

Summary