OutReach LGBTQ Community Center
The Road Forward: Recovering Our Mental Health
In the spring of 2021"OutReach through its ROAD FORWARD project put on a series of workshops to provide a a post-pandemic road forward.
One of the Workshops was "Recovering Our Mental Health" moderated by OutReach's LGBTQ+ AODA Advocate, Linda Lenzke.
The Workshop was led by Tanya Kraege (she/her/hers)
Tanya is the Drug Poisoning Prevention Recovery Coach Team Manager at Safe Communities MDC and a mental health clinician at Journey Mental Health in the crisis unit. She specializes in working with people with substance use challenges, women using substances while pregnant, trauma, relationships and mental health challenges. Tanya has worked in the field of mental health and substance use for 13 years and currently oversees Recovery Coaches and Certified Peer Specialists who work in a variety of environments in Dane County to support people with SUD, MH and families affected by SUD and MH challenges.
Tanya played a role in the Health Care Task Force on Safe Opioid Prescribing by participating in the academic detailing program for working with clinicians on co-prescribing Naloxone with opioid prescription medications. In addition to being a Clinical Social Worker, Clinical Substance Abuse Counselor, and a community advocate, Tanya has experience as a Recovery Coach, a Recovery Coach Trainer, a Certified Peer Specialist and Certified Peer Specialist Trainer, using her story of addiction and recovery to support all communities to discover hope and insight into new ways of living. https://safercommunity.net/
Synopsis of Workshop:
Have you found yourself having more alcoholic beverages than usual over the past year? Have you felt like you lost hope and had difficulties getting the motivation to get out of bed over the past year? Were tasks that used to be simple and routine become more of a burden? Do you feel more isolated and disconnected from our community? Has the use of other substances that numb increased in isolation? You are not alone, even if it feels like it! I want to hear from you what you think would be the most helpful in moving forward to getting back to feeling more like ourselves, finding a renewed or newly found sense of purpose in spite of all the other challenges we had prior to COVID 19. Please share with us how the healing can begin and what areas it would be most beneficial for you! The intent of this workshop would be to discuss what would be the most impactful for healing in our community and then coming back together to talk about the resources, advocacy or support our community would need in order for that to occur.