Recovery Initiative

Recovery is the Process of Overcoming the Negative Impact of a Mental Illness or Substance Use Disorder Despite its Continued Presence

A Recovery-Oriented System of Care (ROSC) is one which supports a person’s rights and abilities to take charge of their own lives, including their illness and disabilities and their strengths and capabilities. Such a system contains effective services based on best clinical practices in sufficient quantity and accessible to those who need and want them. Recovery is much more than Clinical Care, which usually involves seeing a psychiatrist or therapist and taking medication. A recovery system also considers persons in recovery to be "drivers" of their life plans, to be equal partners in their service planning and provision, and to be essential contributors in planning, designing, providing, and evaluating the system's services.

A recovery system is strongly built on community support and integration of peers to enable them to rely not on the services system, but to become a part of the community. In addition to Community Involvement, other components of Recovery include: Education, Peer Support and Relationships, Work and Meaningful Activity, Power and Control, Family Support, Access to Resources, and Stigma and Discrimination. In addition to these components, research indicates that for many people, developing a healthy sense of spirituality also promotes recovery.

The Mental Health and Recovery Services Board promotes the development of activities, groups, services, and individual leaders to encourage peers to become active partners in their recovery process and service development, and active contributors to their communities.

The Mental Health and Recovery Services Board supports the following Recovery Principles:

• Recovery can occur with or without professional intervention.
• People can recover with the help of self-help groups, families, or friends.
• Critical to one's recovery is a person or persons in whom one can trust to be available in times of need.
• Recovering is a deeply human experience, built on trust and understanding, and can be everybody's business.
• Recovery can occur even with individuals who experience intense symptoms.
• Being in the process of recovering helps to reduce the frequency and duration of symptoms.
• People can get better.
• Recovering from the consequences of the illness is sometimes more difficult than recovering from the illness itself.

Growing in Recovery

Mental illnesses and substance use disorders are chronic illnesses which can be successfully treated. Recovery is a realistic expectation for all people with substance use issues and mental illnesses. Columbiana County has plenty of opportunities for individuals in recovery to learn new skills, develop hobbies, get more involved in the community, make new friends, get support from others who are recovering, have fun, and participate in making decisions that affect mental health and substance use disorder services.

Published monthly, the Friends of Recovery newsletter highlights these opportunities. If you would like to get on the mailing list, please contact Recovery Coordinator Maureen Waybright at (330) 424-0195, ext. 106.

Friends of Recovery Newsletter

Recovery is Beautiful

We want people to know and understand that mental illness and addiction are chronic diseases and can be successfully treated: Treatment Works and People Recover.

Recovery is to be celebrated. Individuals in recovery become active and contributing members of their communities. Check out all that is available in Columbiana County to help people in recovery.

Welcome to Recovery in Columbiana County

Peer Recovery Services

Peer recovery services are community-based services for people with a mental illness or substance use disorder. Services are activities that promote recovery, self-determination, self-advocacy, well-being and independence.

In Ohio, peer recovery supporters become certified by taking an in-person training or by having three years of work or volunteer experience as a peer navigator, peer specialist, peer supporter, or peer recovery coach. Regardless of the pathway to certification, individuals must also have completed 16 hours of online E-Based Academy courses, which include topics such as ethics, human trafficking and trauma-informed care, pass the OhioMHAS Peer Recovery Services exam, sign and agree to the OhioMHAS Peer Recovery Services Code of Ethics and pass a Bureau of Criminal Investigations (BCI) background check.

Those interested in becoming a certified peer supporter must submit an application to the Columbiana County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board. Click here for an application packet.