CM spotlight: Drug Treatment Court Enhancement Project ...

In a city that has seen firsthand the negative effects that drug addiction can have on individuals and communities, CMM and CM have partnered with BSAS to provide recovery mediation services and conflict management trainings to clients in the Drug Treatment Court Program Enhancement Project. Recovery mediation services can be a strong supporting factor in sustaining recovery from substance abuse and rebuilding relationships with families within the community.

There have been many great experiences to be shared in my time as the Drug Court Partnership Specialist. ?There are two stories that come to mind that really speak to the heart of what this service is all about. ?In our most recent conflict management training, we had ten participants that came into the training from the Drug Court program. Initially, many of the participants seemed as if they really didn?t want to be there and that they were being forced to come to something they really had no need for. One of the participants stated, ?I have no need for conflict management training. I don?t have conflict and conflicts don?t have me.?? However, as they moved into the gathering you could see their minds stimulated deep in thought. They had an engaging discussion about positive things that can be done during conflicts that carried over into an open discussion about ways to address your adult children, but have a sense of entitlement as a consequence of their parents? addiction. In addition, they even provided us valuable feedback on how to recruit clients for the trainings. ?Put free food in big letters on the training flyer and everyone will come?, said a couple participants in unison. The best thing about the training was that you could see a dramatic shift in their perception about how recovery mediation could benefit their interpersonal relationships. The complete one hundred eighty degree turn in their thoughts was evident. They had been educated on a different way to handle conflict and were now empowered to take that knowledge back to the other clients in the Drug Court Program.

In addition, I was blessed to mediate a session with a young man who was in the ACT-SAP program at the Baltimore City Detention Center. He had been struggling with his addiction for years and set-up mediation with his father and mother so he could let them know that he was ready to get the help that he needed to get clean and stay clean. His father worked for the state, so during the mediation he often mentioned how corrupt the system was and how treatment facilities and transitional houses were not to be trusted. As a family, they were very unsure of how realistic it was for him to recover in a setting where many of the places where he would get treatment are a stone?s throw away from where he could get his next high. ?How do they expect anyone to get clean when the place where they are sending him is right around the corner from where the dealers and addicts are? Have you heard all of the stories about clients getting their money and possessions stolen while at the transitional houses? I have serious doubts about whether my son can thrive in this sort of environment.? The father said. As the mediation drew to a close, they made plans about what it would take for him to stay clean in a difficult setting. They said their goodbyes and we thanked them for coming to mediation and left out of the facility. The image that I remembered from that mediation was how broken down and rough that the son looked. About seven or eight months later, I went to court for my first day as the Partnership Specialist for the Drug Court program. As I listened to the clients update the judge on their progress, I noticed a well groomed, well spoken man in a conversation with the judge. He looked noticeably different from the other clients that came up to the front before him. He spoke about the great job he had, how good he felt and expressed the gratitude to the judge for the program and treatment that he had received. I couldn?t remember where I saw him before and then it hit me. THIS WAS THE YOUNG MAN THAT WAS IN THE MEDIATION THAT DAY! Not only did he look great but he is getting ready to graduate the program in a few months. I looked around the courtroom and saw his mom sitting about 4 or 5 rows from me. She was smiling from ear to ear. I went over to her and tapped her on the shoulder. I asked her if she remembered me and she said that she did. She said, ?Thank you so much for all that you all did for our family. Without mediation we wouldn?t have had a plan in place to help him along the way. We are so thankful for what you all did for us.? That was the most humbling and rewarding day that I have had in all my years at CM. It?s great to see everything come full circle.

Source: http://communitymediation.org/2013/01/02/cm-spotlight-drug-treatment-court-enhancement-project/

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