Woman’s Voice: The Lenawee Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition is a diverse group of dedicated community members united around the goal of reducing substance use in Lenawee County. LSAPC members work collaboratively to engage and educate the community in order to promote a healthy Lenawee.
Kathy Williams: This is Kathy Williams and with me on tonight’s program is Stefanie Fite. And we’re going to be talking about the fact that this month is National Recovery month and Stefanie has a history with some substance abuse stuff, you know. First off, we appreciate your being here and sharing your story with us.
Stefanie Fite: Oh, yes, definitely glad to be here. Thank you.
Kathy Williams: So, tell me about how things went wrong for you. When did this all start?
Stefanie Fite: You know, I started drinking at the age of 15. A couple years, you know later I started with other drugs. I ended up in rehab at the age of 23.
Kathy Williams: Wow.
Stefanie Fite: After rehab, you know, I got clean and sober, then started drinking again, probably for the next 12 years, but I only stayed with the alcohol. So, I thought that I was living a life in recovery because I was away from my drug of choice but continued to drink.
Kathy Williams: Okay.
Stefanie Fite: Became an alcoholic.
Kathy Williams: Oh gosh.
Stefanie Fite: At the age of 32, I went back to my drug of choice. Used heavy with my drug of choice and alcohol, in and out of recovery, all the way till the age of 40. What I started to notice was I distanced myself from my children, my parents, lost relationships, made poor choices. Ended up in two hospitals, four rehabs, you know, and ended up finally finding recovery.
Kathy Williams: Okay. Well, and you know, your story is similar to a lot of other people, so can you tell me what exactly is considered recovery?
Stefanie Fite: Well, you know, I have something here that I kind of put together on what recovery is because a lot of people, you know, have different views on what recovery is. Recovery is a process, a change, you know, in which individuals they improve their health and their wellness. You know, they live a self-directed life and they strive to reach their full potential. People, you know, find their full potential in recovery.
Kathy Williams: Right.
Stefanie Fite: Recovery is living a life and recovering from something that is no longer impacting their life like old trauma, having lifestyle changes. Recovery is gaining your self-confidence, you know, getting a support system, recovering from your substance abuse. Sobriety or abstinence from alcohol and other drugs.
Kathy Williams: Right.
Stefanie Fite: Recovery may be the best word to summarize all the positive benefits: the physical, mental, social health that can happen when alcohol and other drug dependent individuals get the help that they need. And that’s where we come in.
Kathy Williams: Exactly. And so, you are a peer recovery coach and now, why did you decide to become a coach then?
Stefanie Fite: You know, because there is life after addiction.
Kathy Williams: Right.
Stefanie Fite: You know, people need to see that you are worth it. You do have value. You know, people do love you: you know your family, your children, your… whether it’s your aunt, your uncle, it’s just you know, your family, people like that. And sharing your story is important because you see that you can relate to somebody.
Kathy Williams: Right.
Stefanie Fite: And educating people on the different pathways to recovery: you know, there’s, there’s AA, there’s NA, there’s SMART Recovery…
Kathy Williams: So much help out there.
Stefanie Fite: So much help and when you become a coach and you talk to people, when they see that you’re relating to them and they’re like “Oh. You can see what I’ve been through” and you know… the trauma you know, whichever situation whatever, that got that person to use or to drink or whichever path that they took, and you relate to them, it helps them to see that recovery is possible.
Kathy Williams: You know, I totally agree to that. It’s, you know, similar situations. They can see you made it through…
Stefanie Fite: Yes.
Kathy Williams: It helps give them a little more encouragement that they can probably make it through it also. So, if our listeners are interested in finding out more information, or maybe they’re interested in becoming a coach as well. How can they get that information?
Stefanie Fite: Okay, we do have a few different ways. There is some training. So, we have a Facebook page through Pathways. If you go to Pathways Recovery Engagement Center Facebook page, there will be a listing of trainings available which is called the CCAR. It’s C C A R which actually stands for Connecticut Community for Addiction Recovery. Also, the LCMHA.org which is Lenawee Community Mental Health Authority. There’s also a listing of training of the certificates for the CCAR, on Catholic Charities of Lenawee County. We have tons of resources, resources, excuse me, for the State of Michigan training for the Certified Peer Support Coach.
Kathy Williams: Okay.
Stefanie Fite: Different trainings, there’s so much training you can take for this. You know, there’s Motivational Interviewing, just different ways to help you communicate with people, you know, cuz some people just want someone to listen.
Kathy Williams: Well, I think that tends to be the most important part.
Stefanie Fite: Yeah.
Kathy Williams: And by having a listening ear who has had the similar struggles, they probably feel validated a little more in what they’re saying.
Stefanie Fite: Exactly.
Kathy Williams: And so, you know, we definitely want to encourage people to reach out, you know, if you, whether it’s you or you have a friend or family member that needs some help, these are great resources to help put you or them on a path to recovery.
Stefanie Fite: Exactly.
Kathy Williams: Well, we really appreciate your spending your time with us, Stefanie and we want to wish you of course, we’ll pray for your continued success.
Stefanie Fite: Oh, thank you very much. I’m so glad to be here. Thank you.
Kathy Williams: You’re welcome.
Woman’s Voice: Thank you for listening. This information has been provided by the Lenawee Substance Abuse Prevention Coalition. Supported by funding from the Health Resources and Services Administration. New messages air on the first and third Monday of each month at 6:15 p.m. You can listen to this program as a podcast under the audio tab on WLEN.com and listen and gather more information at DrugPreventionLenawee.com.
