SEPTEMBER 17 • 2020 | 37

Health

Recovery Month: 
Be Sure to Connect
S

eptember marks the start 
of National Recovery 
Month, an international 
observance held each year to 
honor and celebrate the mil-
lions of people 
in recovery from 
mental health 
and substance 
use issues. It 
serves as a crit-
ical reminder 
that behavioral 
health is essen-
tial to overall health. 
This year’
s theme is “Join 
the Voices for Recovery: 
Celebrating Connections” 
 
and it could not be timelier 
as we are several months into 
the COVID-19 situation and 
many of us are struggling to 
make or maintain connections 
that had once been so easy.
Since mid-March, I and 
the rest of the staff at Jewish 
Family Service have been 
working hard to maintain 
connections, not only with our 
clients and each other, but also 
with our family and friends. 
My primary work is with 
people who have addictions, 
usually to alcohol or drugs, 
but also to non-chemical 
behaviors such as disordered 
eating, exercise or gambling. 
Many people I work with 
have been doing fairly well 
with their recovery programs 
in that they’
ve maintained 
sobriety, are engaged in pro-

ductive, meaningful activities 
and have made (sometimes 
even repaired) connections 
with others. These people have 
been able to roll with the ear-
lier restrictions placed on us 
by COVID-19 by participating 
in online or phone-in 12-step 
fellowship groups.
Yet, I know of others who 
went into shelter-in-place 
mode believing that they could 
manage on their own and 
didn’
t need those connections 
instrumental to recovery. 
 Research has shown a pos-
itive link between satisfaction 
with life and feeling connected 
to other people. These connec-
tions can be a simple “hi” to 
a neighbor out for your daily 
walks, a phone call, or a Zoom 
conference with co-workers. 
People often fear reaching 
out to others. They fear rejec-
tion or worry that their friends 
are too busy. But it’
s clear that 
we are social animals. We 
crave interaction with others, 
with feeling supported, val-
ued and, for those struggling 
with addiction and/or mental 
health issues, such interaction 
is critical to recovery. 
No one, even you, needs to 
suffer alone. Celebrate connec-
tions by making new ones. 

Maureen Lyn Bernard, LMSW, 
ACSW, CADC is a Clinical Therapist 
and Continuing Education and 
Enrichment Specialist at JFS.

Maureen Lyn 
Bernard

IF YOU’
RE LOOKING TO STAY CONNECTED during this challeng-
ing time of COVID, join Jewish Family Service’
s community-wide 
support group Wednesdays at 1 p.m. Register at jfsdetroit.org/sup-
portgroups. For information on other ways JFS can support you or 
a loved one, contact (248) 592-2313 or resourcecenter@jfsdetroit.
org. For a listing of local AA meetings, visit aa-semi.org.

May the coming year be filled with 
health and happiness and pr
 osperity 
for
 all our Family and Friends.

Happy New Year

DeVinney Czarnecki Physical Therapy

6020 W. Maple, Suite 500, W. Bloomfi
 eld 

248-851-6999

www.dcptonline.com

DANIEL SHERBERT, M.D. F.A.C.S.
Certifi
 ed by The American Board of Surgery, 
The American Board of Plastic Surgery & Fellowship 
Trained in Aesthetic & Reconstructive Breast Surgery

Specializing in Cosmetic Surgery &

Aesthetic & Reconstructive Breast Surgery

W est Maple
Plastic Surgery

(248) 865-6400

5807 W. Maple Suite 177 West Bloomfi
 eld

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