International Facilitator Spotlight August 2024

Jan Frederiksen Psychotherapist-SMART Recovery Denmark

Thank you, Jan, for taking the time to teach us about yourself!

Introducing Jan Frederiksen! Denmark’s SMART Recovery One-Man Army.

·      When and how did you hear about SMART? 

I first learned about SMART Recovery in 2010 from my collegue, Psychologist Bendt Skjold Hansen who I worked together with in a Recovery house under the municipal treatmentcenter in Copenhagen. Bendt had been considering reaching out to SMART Recovery US and bringing the SMART program to Denmark. He was very passionate about it and was looking for a facilitator team to help him in the process of starting SMART meetings in Denmark.

·      What made you decide to start facilitating a SMART meeting? 

I was a very impressed with the 4-point program and loved how it focused on solutions and nurtured self-management while creating a healthy way of thinking leading to a balanced life. I was impressed with the whole package Joe Gerstein; Tom Horvath and the whole SMART organization had put together in this beautiful self-empowering program. I was fond of CBT and as a psychotherapist I was especially fascinated to learn that REBT by Albert Ellis was a part of the program.

I agreed with Bendt that SMART was what we needed in Denmark as a way of offering a scientific based alternative to the other self-management programs in Denmark. I also wanted to learn how to facilitate meetings with the focus on the individuals’ process rather than the usual counseling and psychoeducation in a more authoritarian role. The combination of CBT, REBT, MI and the toolbox combined with the Stages of changes and SMART’s very laid-back approach was very interesting to me, and I wanted to be able to deliver this to people who wanted to change their lives in a positive balanced way. Bendt, a couple of others and I signed up for the facilitator training and met at 4:00 AM in an office for the duration of the facilitator course and soon after we opened the first SMART meeting in Denmark and began an exciting journey of expanding SMART Recovery to the north.

·      Why do you think there's a need for SMART in your area of the world? 

The Danish culture has its roots in the Vikings and unfortunately that attitude has lasted. at least in the sense of intoxication as a traditional practice. I think many a Dane has this identity in some extension or has confronted with this behavior at least in some form throughout their life. We have a very unfortunate alcohol culture in Denmark and not seldom do children learn how to drink from their parents in their own home. It’s not rare to hear the phrase” They might as well learn about alcohol and how to drink, in their home in a safe environment and surrounded by their family” which is such an unfortunate attitude with serious negative implications. In Denmark, the youth has record high abuse of alcohol and unfortunately also rank very high on cannabis, cocaine and other party drugs.

·      What is the biggest challenge for people wanting to recover from addictions in your nation? 

As mentioned earlier we have an extensive cultural history of intoxication and the whole “Viking” identity doesn’t exactly help. Furthermore, and this I think is a global problem of vital importance, stress, uncertainty, anxiety, loneliness and isolation are major contributors in poor wellbeing and distress which again coupled with poor management skills easily leads to self-medication and escapism of all sorts.

International Facilitator Spotlight July 2024

Let meet Kasia Stubba and see why she decided to share SMART Recovery with her native Poland and beyond

• When and how did you hear about SMART?

First time I heard about SMART Recovery was about 7 years ago. A friend, who went to SMART Recovery meetings, told me about it.

However, it wasn’t until I read SMART Recovery handbook that I got really interested in the programme. At the time I worked in Ireland, with people experiencing difficulties because of their addiction. I really liked the language used in SMART Recovery- without labels, supporting self efficacy and empowering people on their journey to recovery. That made me decide to become a SMART Recovery facilitator.

• What made you decide to start facilitating a SMART meeting? 

At the time I was employed in a Community Based Drug & Alcohol Initiative and wanted to support people I worked with. The SMART Recovery programme offered practical tools and approach that was nonjudgemental and based on acceptance. I started practicing in the facilitator role at SMART Recovery meetings among homeless community at the centre.

I remember how nervous I was facilitating my first meetings, but what helped was being part of a team of facilitators. We were supporting each other along the way.

In time, I started SMART Recovery meeting in the local area so the population I worked with would have had an easy access to it both inside and outside of the centre.

• Why do you think there's a need for SMART in your area of the world? 

There is no “one way” to recovery. I believe that people experiencing addiction deserve a choice. At the moment, in Poland, there aren’t many alternatives for people attending self help groups.

Waiting lists to treatment centres can be long and SMART Recovery is a programme that provides easy access, people can attend meetings without signing in, without waiting lists and requirements that traditional treatment centres might have.

• What is the biggest challenge for people wanting to recover from addictions in your nation? 

I think one of the biggest challenges for people wanting to recover from addiction, not only in Poland but in general, is stigma attached to it. It’s difficult to confront yourself with some of the labels associated with addiction, people are often slow to look for help because of it.

I like that in SMART, that we don’t use labels and that you don’t need to have that identity of an “addicted person”.

• What are your plans for SMART moving forward? 

We (as a Polish team of facilitators) started polish speaking SMART recovery meetings over 1.5 years ago. We now have two online meetings, two face to face meetings (in Poland) and a Polish speaking meeting based in Dublin, Ireland.

I would like to see SMART Recovery meetings being available in every part of Poland, the ones for people with problematic behaviours, as well as the Family & Friends ones. That’s the plan!

PORTUGAL BOUND!

SMART Recovery to Be a Featured Component During Fall E.U. Recovery Conference

From the outset, the European Conference on Addictive Behaviors and Dependencies has been about stimulating and promoting high-quality scientific debate, showcasing leading European addiction research in the specialist areas of illicit drugs, alcohol, tobacco, gambling and other addictive behaviors. Lisbon Addictions is a multidisciplinary conference that provides a forum for networking across the addictions field.

The event is organized by: the Portuguese Institute on Addictive Behaviors and Dependencies, P.I. (ICAD, I.P.); the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA); the journal Addiction/Society for the Study of Addiction (Addiction/SSA); and the International Society of Addiction Journal Editors (ISAJE).

SMART Recovery is honored to be given the opportunity to show the recovery community & mental health professionals of Europe, the benefits a program such as ours has to offer for the workforce of the future and beyond. The European Conference on Addictive Behaviors and Dependencies will take place in Lisbon on 23-25 October 2024 under the overarching theme ‘Empowering the workforce of the future’.

Intrested in attending? Check out the link for registration information: Lisbon Addictions 2024 (abreu.pt)

Lisboa Conference Centre Lisbon, Portugal. Venue for The European Conference for Addictive Behaviors & Tendencies October 2024

International Facilitator Spotlight for June 2024

June 2024 Meeting Facilitator Features Majorie Ramos Salcedo of Colombia

Opening New Doors For Recovery & Fellowship

When and how did you hear about SMART? 

I heard about SMART while I was studying for my master's degree in psychology at Purdue University Global about 4 years ago. I was reading the textbook Clinical Textbook of Addictive Disorders from Avram H. Mack, Kathleen T. Brady, Sheldon I. Miller, Richard J. Frances 4th ed. In their book, they recommend having support groups to people recovering from addictions as a complement to therapy or to their treatment.  

What made you decide to start facilitating a SMART meeting? 

When I graduated from Purdue University back in 2022, I continued working as a mental health counselor and addiction counselor. I received many calls from family and friends of people with addictions, so I was looking for a place to refer them to find support and to find a place where they could have the feeling that they could do something for their loved one with addictions. I found that I could refer mostly people whose first language was English. Then, I found out that SMART recovery had a Spanish group in New York, so I thought it could be important to have other group in Spanish in South America because of the cultural environment. It is different to be Latin and immigrant in the US than being Latin be living in Central or South America. I also found out that there are many English-speaking population living in South America and or married with people from South America whose first language is English. So, I decided to open a group for English Speaking Population living in South America. This made me become a SMART Recovery facilitator. I also think that when we become a group of people under a brand, we are more powerful rather than being on my own trying to do the same thing, now that I am an independent practitioner in mental health.  

 What is the biggest challenge for people wanting to recover from addictions in Colombia? 

I agree with the authors of the book that I mentioned already Clinical Textbook of Addictive Disorders. It is necessary to have support groups for people with addictions in different parts of the world. SMART recovery brings information and tools for people with all types of addictions which make it important for people of my country.  

I found out about its importance when I finished my thesis called “Mental Health First Response (MHFR) Program: Assessing the Mental Health First Response in the Colombian Population in Terms of Prevention and Intervention of Substance Use Disorder” that is published in Proquest and in the university, you can find it at https://purdueglobal.dspacedirect.org/items/835327dc-1227-4b47-9706-5bb5d6540b89 

People in Colombia who have addictions are more addicted to alcohol, and marihuana. There are other behavioral problems too, like gambling. Young people start drinking alcohol when they are children. There are some good programs in my country and in South America, SMART recovery is a good complement for those who started with a program already as well as for those who are not sure how to start with treatment.  

What are your plans for SMART in Colombia? 

My plans are to keep inviting people with addictions to come to join online SMART recovery groups for people with addictions, family and friends in English and in Spanish. As well as making SMART growing in Colombia and South America with other facilitators who want to become part of this international project to help other under the motivational interview model and help them to have tools to change their behaviors.   I have a Facebook for our group called SMART Recovery South America - Sur América as well as some information in Youtube that you can find in the following link https://youtube.com/shorts/qCKcWdYSdUI?feature=share 

You can also find more information about SMART Recovery groups and the facilitator at https://www.psychologytoday.com/co/psicologos/marjorie-ramos-salcedo-bogota-dc/825290 

I have openings for those who want to join our groups, you can send me a message to marjorieramossalcedo@smartrecovery.org.es 

Join us in celebrating the amazing people around the world making a difference within the SMART Recovery Global Community!

International Facilitator Spotlights Are Here!

Join us in celebrating the amazing people around the world making a difference within the SMART Recovery Global Community!

May 2024 Meeting Facilitator Features Mel Du Toit of South Africa

Opening New Doors For Recovery & Fellowship

When and how did you hear about SMART? 

In January 2023. I was very disillusioned with NA and knew it wasn't the right path for me but was totally unaware that there were alternatives. I did a Google dive and came across SMART Recovery after about an hour, attended one meeting, and knew I had found the right program for me! I still remember, it was the day that I was going to tell my father about my addiction, because I needed his help to pay for rehab, and the facilitator did a role-play with me on how it may go, and this really helped! 

What made you decide to start facilitating a SMART meeting? 

SMART is a huge part of me staying clean, first attempt, and I wanted to share this with as many other people as I could who were struggling with addiction. I knew not everyone who is as vulnerable as you are at the start, will go to American meetings, so I thought, let me start my own one. I did not expect it to do as well as it did! It took about 2 months to get over 4 attendees and we now have over 20 members who attend most meetings.

Why do you think there's a need for SMART in South Africa? 

Addiction is rife in South Africa, and access to rehabilitation is only for those who have medical insurance (or medical aid as it is called locally), which is sadly not the case for the majority of South Africans (only 15.8% of the population is on medical aid). And to give you context as to the cost of medical aid - it is 25% of my monthly salary. In addition to that, only 2 rehabs in the Western Cape (where I am) are non-12 step.  I ended up doing an outpatient program which my insurance wouldn't cover, but I am privileged that my father could pay for it. VERY few South Africans have this luxury.  We have a young lady who lives in a homeless shelter who joins our meeting when she has data to do so. She is in recovery from meth and mandrax addiction (these drugs are very common amongst the homeless population). She was the recipient of one of the donated SMART Recovery handbooks.

 What is the biggest challenge for people wanting to recover from addictions in South Africa? 

I would have to say finances, and lack of knowledge of the options. Very few rehabs do more than 3-week programs (the maximum insurance will pay for).

This is why I pay to run Facebook campaigns for our meetings, to reach far and wide. This is how Tintin (who is currently on the waiting list for a bursary) learnt about SMART. 

What are your plans for SMART in South Africa? 

My plans, in the ideal world, are by the end of 2023 to have at least 4 qualified facilitators including myself and Derek. 

Ross will take over my Wednesday meeting when he finishes his studies, and I am currently doing the family and friends course, so when I am ready, I will start a F&F meeting in South Africa as well. Eventually, I'd love to have 5 weekly meetings at least running in South Africa, to the point where we can have an African meeting finder on our website :) And then scaling on from that, I would love to have another female facilitator who can start a women's meeting, and also an LGBTQ+ meeting.  I have also reached out to the very few government rehabilitations and offered to teach SMART Recovery to their staff for free, so we can get this incredible, self-empowering alternative to become the new norm in treatment in South Africa.

Our meetings (Derek and I) are also attended regularly by members in Germany, Italy, Kenya and Tanzania, as the times work well for their time zones :) 

Pathways to Harm Reduction Drug Policy in Hong Kong and East & Southeast Asia: Principles, Process and Practices

Over the past 25 years, Hong Kong has witnessed a dramatic change in illicit drug use, from the predominant use of heroin to a broader range of psychoactive drugs. These shifts are similar to elsewhere in the world, including East and Southeast Asia. At the same time, policies and rehabilitation around drug use locally and regionally are based on the abstinence principle – that one must cease all use. Although this may be an end goal, drug policy must also respond to the risks and needs of people who use drugs. This project seeks to develop and implement research informed policies and program strategies that are based on the principles of harm reduction and wellbeing.

This three-year project builds on the team’s impact-oriented research and includes two components. Component one focuses on Hong Kong and seeks to develop and implement research informed policy and program strategies for frontline workers. The team will first develop a baseline of drug user trends and associated problems based on interviews with users and frontline workers. This information will form the basis for developing and delivering a harm reduction training program for frontline workers. The team will revisit users and frontline workers to assess whether and how practices have changed having had the training and knowledge gained about harm reduction, and to revise the training package for others working in the sector.

Component two is regional in focus and builds on our harm reduction and drug policy trainings over the past seven years. From these trainings, we have established a network of policymakers and practitioners in East and Southeast Asia who have the knowledge and experience of working on drug policy issues and are well situated in working collectively. This component’s aim is to develop a regional research impact hub on drug policy. We will first host professional training events, drawing on our established networks to reach out to others in the region. These events will focus on key priority issues in regional drug policy and assess what is known (or not known) and begin capacity building to promote change. These events will then form the basis for a research innovation hub with  members collaborating to develop a research agenda, collect data from their respective countries, and collectively establish an overall regional profile and suitable action plans.

A multi-methods yarn about SMART Recovery: First insights from Australian Aboriginal facilitators and group members

SMART Recovery is a popular mutual support group program. Little is known about its suitability or perceived helpfulness for Indigenous peoples. This is the first study to explore the cultural utility of SMART Recovery for Aboriginal peoples in Australia. Western and Indigenous research methodologies were synthesized to explore the experiences and perceptions of Aboriginal facilitators and group members and to observe three Aboriginal-led SMART Recovery groups. We found that Aboriginal-led SMART Recovery groups were operating as culturally customized versions of the original program. Customizations included a yarning circle style of facilitation, deliberate omissions from the core program ‘tools’, supplementation with Aboriginal-specific program resources and (for groups run within Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organizations) integration of groups with a holistic model of care. These differences, together with recommended program improvements, offer SMART Recovery practical ways to enhance their cultural utility for Aboriginal Australians.

Dale, E., Lee, K., Conigrave, J.H., Ivers, R., Clapham, K, and Kelly, P.J (2021). A multi-methods yarn about SMART Recovery: First insights from Australian Aboriginal facilitators and group members. Drug and Alcohol Review 

You can access the full article via this LINK

The use of Australian SMART Recovery groups by people who use methamphetamine: Analysis of routinely-collected nationwide data

Mutual support groups (e.g. SMART Recovery) are an important source of support for people experiencing addictive behaviours. Little is known about the use of mutual support groups by people who use methamphetamine, or the factors that may influence group cohesion.

This study improves current understanding of service utilisation by people who use methamphetamine. SMART Recovery groups offer an avenue for supporting a diverse range of people who use methamphetamine, outside the formal treatment system. This provides an important foundation for improving community support options for people who use methamphetamine.

Beck AK, Larance B, Deane FP, Baker AL, Manning V, Hides, Sharkeshaft A, Argent A, Kelly, PJ. (2021) The use of Australian SMART Recovery groups by people who use methamphetamine: Analysis of routinely-collected nationwide data. Drug Alcohol Dependence, 225, 1 August 2021. 

 You can view the full article via ScienceDirect

Developing a mHealth Routine Outcome Monitoring and Feedback App (“SMART Track”) to Support Self-Management of Addictive Behaviours

Routine outcome monitoring (ROM) has been implemented across a range of addiction treatment services, settings and organizations. Mutual support groups are a notable exception. Innovative solutions are needed. SMART Track is a purpose built smartphone app designed to capture ROM data and provide tailored feedback to adults attending Australian SMART Recovery groups for addictive behaviour(s).

This paper provides a pragmatic example of how principles embedded in published frameworks can be operationalized to address these priorities during the design and development of the SMART Track app.

Beck AK, Kelly PJ, Deane FP, Baker AL, Hides L, Manning V, Shakeshaft, A., Neale, J., Kelly, J., Gray, R., Argent, A., McGlaughlin, R., Chao, R & Martini, M. (2021). Developing a mHealth Routine Outcome Monitoring and Feedback App (“Smart Track”) to Support Self-Management of Addictive Behaviours. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 18 June, 2021.

You can access the full article via Frontiers in Psychiatry

WEBINAR: Methamphetamine and Mutual Support

Methamphetamine and Mutual Support

Presented by Dr Alison Beck

Methamphetamine and mutual support: A mixed methods exploration of SMART Recovery participants’ characteristics and opportunities for enhanced referral pathways

Dr Alison Beck is a Clinical Psychologist & Trial Coordinator at the University of Wollongong. Dr Beck is also a member of the SMART Recovery Australia Research Advisory Committee.