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CT SMART Recovery Groups

SMART Recovery(R) support groups are popping up all over Connecticut! SMART Recovery has been around for more than 25 years, but it’s pretty new to CT. Thanks to state funding, there are now free SMART Recovery support groups for teens, young adults, and Family & Friends throughout CT.

Furthermore, we are big fans of this support group model. Our young adult staff here at TurningPointCT get trained to be facilitators. As part of the training, we had to try the skills out on ourselves–and the skills worked!

So what is SMART Recovery?

“SMART” stands for Self Management And Recovery Training. SMART Recovery is a peer support group run by trained facilitators. It helps you cope with any struggle: substance abuse, anxiety, depression, bullying, fighting, etc. But it’s more than your average support group! It also helps you develop coping skills like analyzing your behaviors, triggers, and reactions.  If you’ve attended 12-step meetings, this is different. There’s no language about a higher power, and there is cross-talk allowed. You get to take control of your issues and figure out ways to make positive changes.

What about SMART Recovery Family & Friends?

SMART Recovery Family & Friends groups provide mutual support for people who are affected by a loved one who is dealing with some kind of addictive or negative behavior. It could be anything: substance abuse, gambling, hoarding, self-harm, an eating disorder, mental illness. If your friend, roommate, or family member is struggling and you don’t know what to do, this group can help you. You’ll get support from people who are dealing with similar struggles. You’ll also learn skills to handle their behaviors better and help get them into treatment. (SMART Family & Friends is based on the CRAFT model.)

How can I find a SMART Recovery Group near me?

  • In-person SMART Recovery groups right here in Connecticut: SEE MAP HERE.  (Please note that most groups in CT are for teens (up to age 18), young adults (18-25), or Family & Friends.)
  • Online meetings: www.smartrecovery.org

CT SMART Recovery Groups

SMART Recovery support groups for teens and for young adults and SMART Recovery Family & Friends groups are popping up all throughout Connecticut! Find out which ones are near you and check them out with a friend!

Our TurningPointCT staff are running a SMART Recovery teen group in Fairfield and about to start one in Norwalk. To find a SMART group near you, click here, or to find other cool spots to check out in your area, visit our map here. Join in on the conversation here.

So what exactly is SMART Recovery?

SMART Recovery is a peer support group run by trained facilitators. It is for people seeking support with any struggle they may have: substance abuse, anxiety, depression, bullying, fighting, etc. But it’s more than your average support group–it also helps you develop coping skills by analyzing your behaviors, triggers, reactions, etc.  When our TurningPointCT staff got trained to facilitate SMART groups, they tried the skills out on themselves–and the skills worked! Check out our “What We Like About SMART Recovery” discussion about it on our Videos page.

For more information on SMART Recovery in CT, click here or to find an online meeting visit www.smartrecovery.org

So what exactly is SMART Recovery Family & Friends?

SMART Recovery Family & Friends groups help those who are affected by substance abuse (drug abuse, alcohol abuse) or other addictions of a loved one. If your boyfriend, sister, parent, friend or child is dealing with any type of addiction, this group will not only give you social support from people who have been exactly where you are, but it will also help you develop skills, based on the CRAFT model, to help you handle their behaviors better and also to help you get them into treatment.

For more information on SMART Recovery Family & Friends visit: https://www.smartrecovery.org/family/

 

Wallpapering

Sometimes throughout our lifetime, we may experience things that are less than appealing, things that can cause us a great deal of pain, hurt, and can bring back so many negative emotions whenever we think about it. For me, every time I have endured a negative experience in my life, I have been pretty good at stuffing it down and “forgetting” about it until I can no longer push it down further enough or until some external factor such as a scent, noise, etc. brings me back to that same painful moment.

A few nights ago was the anniversary of a very painful event. Needless to say, I had stuffed it down so much I didn’t realize what day it was until I was laying in bed trying to go to bed and I started to hear fireworks go off. Immediately my mind brought me back to the same painful place I had been in just a few years before. All of the same overwhelming feelings and fears had taken over my body. It’s as if I was trapped although a part of me knew that I was still okay and I just had to remind myself that I was in a safe place now.

Moving forward, I remembered something that a therapist of mine once told me. She had mentioned that I should try to “wallpaper” my negative experiences. In a nutshell, if I had a bad experience on a 4th of July previously, I should create a good memory on a 4th of July now so that I will be able to remember the day in a better way. This can work for anything negative, not just specific days. For example, if you have had a negative experience at the beach, go to the beach again and do something completely different than when you had the bad experience. “Wallpaper” over the bad experiences with positive ones and take control of your life again. You’d be surprised at how much this actually works!

What do you guys think about this? Have any of you guys tried this or something similar?