I’ll never forget my first hours, days and weeks in sobriety. While ultimately filled with hope that was entirely overrun by fear, emotional highs and lows, and uncertainty of what comes next. I felt alone, lost and discouraged as to the gravity of the task ahead. Today’s recovery community is a much different landscape than it was for me at the beginning. A new beginning of social acceptance has sprung things like; Sober friendly bars, sober social gatherings, a burst of new treatment facilities and sober living. The most impactful, in my opinion, are the peer recovery coaches. Gaining a huge following from people in recovery wanting to dedicate their time to helping others through the journey and new businesses dedicated to employing these individuals. Peer recovery coaches come with extensive lived experience and professional training with the backing of state funding ,to help individuals through the journey to recovery.
Let’s look at what a Peer Recovery Coach is and how to select the right one for you!
A peer coach is someone who has personally experienced addiction and is on their own journey of recovery. These individuals have found their footing in a life of sobriety and now dedicate their time to ensuring others have the same success as themselves.
Your peer recovery coach is going to be there to help guide you in the early days of uncertainty into the long-term stability that comes with recovery…and everything in between. They are your cheerleader, mentor and guide through all of this.
They can help you with simple things like getting yourself established with a bank account, applying for jobs all the way up to navigating through legal and financial hardships. A Peer coach not only helps you gain footing back in the world but find success in recovery. Assisting you with finding support groups and communities, different types of recovery programs and finding healthy coping mechanisms to deal with hardship in a healthy way.
Finding the right peer coach is vital in your success. There are a number of qualifications that a Certified Peer Recovery Coach needs to have, as well as some that are above and beyond to make them more useful. Finding an ethical organization employing certified coaches is a very important first step.
Qualifications:
Personal background:
Your coach will be with you to help establish goals in both your recovery and life. They will be there to hold you accountable to these goals and help you achieve them
Bringing their own lived experience these coaches know first-hand how hard this process is. They will empathize with your struggles and help you deal with the sense of aloneness.
Sometimes in recovery the help we need is crucial, maybe even crisis is always there. Peer coaches offer a lifeline to support at all times and in all moments.
Your coach will be there to help push you through the hard times and lift you up when you stubble. They are a cheerleader and will support you to continue taking the right steps.
With their lived experience and professional training, the peer coaches know exactly what to do, how to do it and who you can reach out to for help with it.
A peer recovery coach isn’t just a professional relationship; they are someone that you will share some of your lowest lows with and highest highs. They will engage in a personal journey with you and ultimately/hopefully become a long-term friend and confidant in your journey. Recovery is not a solo journey; it is not something you accomplish alone, and you never have to struggle in slices. Peer recovery coaches are just one of many support resources that should be considered as a part of your “tool box” of sobriety assets.
