Dawn Farm Addiction and Recovery Education Series

“Spirituality in Recovery: The Many Paths to Spiritual Fitness” was presented on June 28, 2016; by Jerry Fouchey, BS, MA, SpA, CADC; Dawn Farm Personal Medicine and Outpatient Therapist. Spirituality can play an important role in recovery initiation and maintenance. Research has demonstrated that self-identification as a “spiritual” person correlates positively with successful abstinence regardless of whether the person self-identifies as a “religious” person. Twelve Step recovery programs challenge participants through the Eleventh Step to “seek through prayer and meditation to improve their conscious contact with God as they understood Him, praying only for knowledge of His will and the power to carry that out.” The literature points out that recovering people have "tread innumerable paths" in this process. This presentation will discuss ways for recovering individuals to clarify their personal understanding of a Higher Power, examine the quality of their relationship with that Power, and explore vehicles to build their conscious contact.

This program is part of the Dawn Farm Education Series, a FREE, annual workshop series developed to provide accurate, helpful, hopeful, practical, current information about chemical dependency, recovery, family and related issues. The Education Series is organized by Dawn Farm, a non-profit community of programs providing a continuum of chemical dependency services. For information, please see http://www.dawnfarm.org/programs/education-series

Jerry Fouchey has extensive experience in the field of education as an administrator, facilitator, strategist, teacher and practitioner in the areas of educational administration, curriculum, instruction and staff development, and has played leadership roles in many initiatives in various public school districts. Following his career in public education, Jerry spent several years serving as a Dawn Farm Spera Recovery Center Counselor. Jerry is currently a Personal Medicine and Outpatient therapist for Dawn Farm. He earned his BS, MA, and Sp.A. from Eastern Michigan University, has received additional training in substance use disorder prevention and treatment procedures, and is a Certified Alcohol & Drug Counselor (CADC). Jerry was instrumental in the implementation of Dawn Farm’s Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) program.

“Grief and Loss in Addiction and Recovery” was presented on March 26, 2019; by Jerry Fouchey, BS, MA, SpA, CADC; Dawn Farm Personal Medicine Therapist and Didactic Group Facilitator; and Barb Smith, author of “Brent’s World.” Unresolved grief and loss frequently accompany people throughout the process of moving from the culture of addiction to the culture of recovery. Families of people with addiction experience grief and loss as well. This program will explain various theories of grief and grief recovery, describe losses that people with substance use disorders and their families experience throughout the addiction and recovery processes, and discuss how recovery program tools can help individuals cope with grief and loss. The presentation will include a powerful personal story of grief, loss and recovery.

This program is part of the Dawn Farm Education Series, a FREE, annual education series developed to provide accurate, helpful, hopeful, practical, current information about substance use disorders, recovery, family and related issues. The Education Series is organized by Dawn Farm, a non-profit community of programs providing a continuum of substance use disorder treatment and recovery support services. For information, please see http://www.dawnfarm.org/programs/education-series.

ABOUT THE PRESENTERS:

Jerry Fouchey, BS, MA, Sp.A., CADC

Jerry Fouchey has extensive experience in the field of education as an administrator, facilitator, strategist, teacher and practitioner in the areas of educational administration, curriculum, instruction and staff development, and has played leadership roles in many initiatives in various public school districts. After several years as a Dawn Farm Spera Recovery Center Counselor and later as an Outpatient therapist, Jerry Fouchey currently serves as a Personal Medicine therapist and didactic group facilitator for Dawn Farm. He earned his BS, MA, and Sp.A. from Eastern Michigan University, has received additional training in substance use disorder prevention and treatment procedures, and is a Certified Alcohol & Drug Counselor (CADC). Jerry was instrumental in the implementation of Dawn Farm’s Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) and Personal Medicine programs.

Barb Smith

Barb Smith is the author of “Brent’s World,” a book about the life and death of her oldest son. Barb is a frequent speaker at community, school and church functions.

“Does Addiction Treatment Work?” was presented on March 19, 2019; by Carl Christensen, MD, PhD, D-FASAM. Recent publications claim to define research-supported definitive truths about the root causes of addiction and efficacy of treatment modalities; however, conclusions are conflicting and have been subject to divergent interpretations. Feel confused? Dr. Christensen will review the recent criticisms of treatment for addiction including Twelve Step, residential, and medication assisted therapy, the scientific studies that do and do not support their use and other controversial issues. The presentation will include a short discussion of naloxone (Narcan) resuscitation.

Dr. Christensen obtained his MD and a PhD in Biochemistry at Wayne State University School of Medicine and completed his residency in Obstetrics and Gynecology at Hutzel Hospital. He then completed a Fellowship in Gynecologic Oncology at Duke University Medical Center in 1988. He returned to Wayne State, practicing both Obstetrics and Gynecology and Gynecologic Oncology, and was Associate Residency Director of the OB Gyn Residency until 2012. He retired from WSU in 2012 and continues as a Clinical Associate Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and OB Gyn. While working with the late Dr. James Wardell, one of the first obstetricians to treat pregnant addicted women, he became certified in Addiction Medicine in 2004 and later Board Certified in Addiction Medicine in 2009. He served as the Medical Director of the Eleonore Hutzel Women’s Recovery Center, founded by Dr. Wardell in 1969, an outpatient program dedicated to caring for pregnant, chemically dependent women from 2004 to 2018, as well as the Medical Director at the Tolan Medical Research Clinic in the Department of Psychiatry at WSU from 2009 to 2018. He continues his work with pregnant chemically dependent women at SJMH in Ann Arbor. He is the past president of the Michigan Society of Addiction Medicine and the current Medical Director of the Michigan Health Professional Recovery Program, which monitors impaired nurses, pharmacists and doctors. He was elected as a Distinguished Fellow of the American Society Addiction Medicine in 2013. He is also the Medical Director for Dawn Farm Treatment Center in Ypsilanti and Ann Arbor, returning to that job when Dr. Pat Gibbons passed in 2014. Dr. Christensen also specializes in the treatment of chronic pain patients who are trying to detox or taper off opioids and works at SJMH at Recovery Specialists. He also sees chemically dependent patients at Packard Health in Ann Arbor. He has received numerous teaching awards. He has been named one of the “Top Docs” in Addiction Medicine in Hour Magazine for 2006 through 2018. Dr. Christensen currently works with the US Attorney’s office, the DEA, and local law enforcement as an expert witness for opioid prescribing cases. He lives in Canton with his wife Cathy, a Nurse Practitioner also specializing in chronic pain and addiction, their therapy dog Olive, and 3 rescue cats.

This program is part of the Dawn Farm Education Series, a FREE, annual education series developed to provide accurate, helpful, hopeful, practical, current information about substance use disorders, recovery, family and related issues. The Education Series is organized by Dawn Farm, a non-profit community of programs providing a continuum of substance use disorder treatment and recovery support services. For information, please see http://www.dawnfarm.org/programs/education-series.

“In the Doctor’s Office: Recovery Friend or Foe? ” was presented on Tuesday March 21, 2017, by Dr. Mark A. Weiner, MD, DFASAM; Internal Medicine and Addiction Medicine; and Matthew Statman, LMSW, CAADC; University of Michigan Collegiate Recovery Program Manager. Addiction is widely recognized as a chronic illness best treated with long-term monitoring and support. Primary health care settings are natural places for this care to be provided. However, it's been said that the doctor's office can be a dangerous place for people in recovery from addiction. It's also been said that recovering people can be terrible patients. This program will discuss whether these statements are fair, and why healthcare providers are essential allies for long term recovery. The program will provide a basic overview of the neurobiology of addiction and its implications for health care consumers and providers, list specific concerns related to medications, describe ways in which people in recovery from alcohol/other drug addiction can take responsibility for their health and discuss how health care providers can assist with sustaining recovery.

This presentation is part of the Dawn Farm Education Series, a free, annual education series developed to provide accurate, helpful, hopeful, practical, current information about chemical dependency, recovery, family and related issues. The Education Series is organized by Dawn Farm, a non-profit community of programs providing a continuum of chemical dependency services. For information, please see http://www.dawnfarm.org/programs/education-series.

About the presenters: Mark A. Weiner, MD, DFASAM Dr. Weiner is the Section Chief of Addiction Medicine and serves as the Medical Director of Substance Use Disorders at St. Joseph Mercy Hospital Ann Arbor. He is also the Medical Director of IHA Pain Management Consultants. He is the chair of the planning committee of the American Society of Addiction Medicine course, “Pain and Addiction: Common Threads” and is a member of the planning committee for the American Society of Addiction Medicine Annual Meeting. He is an editor of the upcoming ASAM Pain and Addiction Handbook planned for publication in 2017. Dr. Weiner is the current Chair of the Board of Trustees of Dawn Farm Treatment Centers. . Matthew Statman, LMSW, CAADC Matt Statman is the Manager of the Collegiate Recovery Program at the University of Michigan and faculty adviser to the University of Michigan Students for Recovery. He is an adjunct lecturer at Eastern Michigan University school of Social Work and a Board Member of the Association of Recovery in Higher Education. Matt worked with Dawn Farm from 2004 through 2012, first as a House Manager and Resident Aid and later as a Detox Counselor and Detox Team Leader. After obtaining his MSW, Matt worked as an Outpatient Therapist and an Administrator and Therapist in Dawn Farm’s Correctional Programs, and as a Residential Therapist at Dawn Farm Downtown. Matt was the Dawn Farm Education Series coordinator from 2007 through 2012. He graduated from Eastern Michigan University in 2009 with his BSW and received his MSW from the University of Michigan in 2010.

“The Intersectionality of Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Substance Use” was presented on October 18, 2016; by David J.H. Garvin, LMSW; Chief Operating Officer, Catholic Social Services of Washtenaw County and Founder, Alternatives to Domestic Aggression, Catholic Social Services of Washtenaw County; and Barbara Niess May, MPA, MSW; Executive Director, SafeHouse Center. There is a strong correlation between domestic violence/sexual assault and alcohol/other drug use – and correlation does not equal cause/effect nor does it define personal responsibility. Intoxication does not explain abuse or assault, excuse a perpetrator’s behaviors, or justify a person being assaulted or abused. Domestic violence/sexual assault offender and survivor alcohol and other drug use/abuse will be central to this discussion. The listeners will be provided with a primmer regarding perpetrator tactics, strategies, and core beliefs which hold the perpetrator accountable for abusive/assaultive behaviors while maintaining and promoting survivor safety. The program will help participants to recognize the critical importance of understanding the relationship between domestic violence/sexual assault and alcohol/other drug use/abuse in order to safely and effectively intervene and/or interrupt the perpetrator's behaviors and support the survivor.

This program is part of the Dawn Farm Education Series, a FREE, annual education series developed to provide accurate, helpful, hopeful, practical, current information about chemical dependency, recovery, family and related issues. The Education Series is organized by Dawn Farm, a non-profit community of programs providing a continuum of chemical dependency services. For information, please see http://www.dawnfarm.org/programs/education-series.

About the presenters:

This course material was developed and is presented by David J.H. Garvin, LMSW; Interim CEO/President, Chief Operating Officer, Catholic Social Services of Washtenaw County, and Founder and former Director of the Alternatives to Domestic Aggression Program, Catholic Social Services of Washtenaw County; and Barbara Niess May, MPA, MSW; Executive Director, SafeHouse Center.

David J. H. Garvin is the Interim CEO/President and the Chief Operating Officer of Catholic Social Services of Washtenaw County. For many years prior to his appointment to COO, David served as the Senior Director at Catholic Social Services of Washtenaw County. During this tenure David was responsible for the management of the Alternatives to Domestic Aggression (ADA) Program, and served as the Clinical Director for the Behavioral Health Services program and Substance Abuse Treatment Services, and was Program Manager for the Supervised Parenting and Exchange Program and the Adoption and Pregnancy Programs. David has been directly involved in the anti-domestic violence movement since 1986 when he founded the ADA Program. He is a co-founder and current Chair of the Batterer Intervention Services Coalition of Michigan (BISC-MI). David was selected to serve as the co-chair of the Michigan Governor’s Taskforce on creating standards for batterer intervention programs. He has conducted trainings, consultations, conferences, workshops and in-services around the country and has been featured on local, state and national television, in magazines, professional journals and newspapers. David earned the prestigious honor of being named the 2009 National Association of Social Workers-Michigan (NASW-MI) Social Worker of the Year for his work in the areas of domestic violence, mental health and adoption.

Barbara Niess May is the Executive Director of SafeHouse Center, a supportive service and social action agency which provides help to approximately 5,000 Washtenaw County residents who are impacted by domestic violence and sexual assault annually through its 50-bed emergency shelter and its counseling and advocacy programs. Barbara has worked toward supporting survivors of sexual assault and domestic violence since 1996 in various micro- and macro-system capacities. This has included agency management as well as state-wide level advocacy and support. In addition to these activities, Barbara has also been very involved in legislative work and has provided expert testimony in a variety of venues, including various levels of court and at the state and federal legislative level. She is also involved in her community in a variety of ways as a member of Rotary International, and as an adjunct lecturer at Eastern Michigan University. Barbara has served on several boards and committees, is a member of several national honor fraternities and is active in her church. Barbara holds Master’s degrees from the University of Arkansas at...