Reduce the Stigma by Straight Up Care
Reduce The Stigma the podcast that raises the voices of individuals with lived experience and the organizations and people who support them.. Too often, stigma creates barriers and restricts access to services. Our hope is that by spreading the stories of individuals with lived/living experience with substance use, mental health and all stigmatized life experiences we can break down barriers and build bridges. Reduce The Stigma has three series: Meet the Peer, Recovery Conversations, and Unfiltered. Hosted by Whitney Menarcheck and occassional co-host, Dr. Mo., Reduce The Stigma is brought to you by Straight Up Care. Meet the Peer is a series where we shine the spotlight on peer specialists. Peer specialists are individuals with mental health and/or substance use lived experience who have received special training to support others along their recovery journey. Straight Up Care uses the term peer specialists to cover the various titles and certifications that can be held by an individual with lived experience helping others, such as Certified Recovery Specialist (CRS), Certified Peer Specialist (CPS), Certified Family Recovery Specialist (CFRS), Certified Peer Counselor (CPC), Peer Support Specialist (PSS), Recovery Coach (RC), and more! All peers interviewed on Meet the Peer are providing peer support services through the Straight Up Care Platform. To find a peer support specialist, visit https://straightupcare.com/members/. New episodes are available most Mondays. Recovery Conversations, with new episodes every Friday, is a series of discussions with people and organizations who are serving individuals with lived and living substance use and/or mental health experience. Through Recovery Conversations, we hope to spread awareness of the numerous resources, initatives, and programs available to support individuals with substance use and/or mental health needs. Unfiltered: The newest addition to the RTS family, Unfiltered is a once-a-month livestream discussion where Whitney and Dr. Mo are joined by two peer specialists on the Straight Up Care platform. Together, they discuss the hard topics that everyone needs to hear about but no one else is willing to take on. With live audience engagement, Unfiltered is a conversation you won't want to miss. Join the unfiletered audience the last Tuesday of every month at 8pm ET via Straight Up Care's YouTube Channel. Whitney Menarcheck: Whitney is the Chief Innovation Officer at Straight Up Care. Whitney is a trained professional counselor who recently completed training as a peer specialist. With over 12 years of experience serving individuals with substance use and/or mental health needs, Whitney is passionate about reducing stigma and elevating the voices of those with lived experience. Whitney's personal lived experience is with depression, grief, and trauma. Dr. Mo: Melissa Dittberner, PhD, lovinly known as "Dr. Mo" is a person in long-term recovery from methadmphetamine and alcohol. Having dropped out of highschool, Dr. Mo's recovery journey has progressed from gaining her GED to obtaining her PhD. A true inspiration to all and hardcore advocate for recovery, Dr. Mo inspires us all while putting in the work to make this world a better place. Straight Up Care is a comprehensive platform ecosystem that provides all the administrative, compliance, and marketing tools for peer specialists to work for themsevles. Our hope is that by eliminating the barriers peer specialists encounter we can accelerate the connection between peers and the individuals who seek their services. Learn more about Straight Up Care: https://straightupcare.com
Episodes
A fascinating discussion about the power of data in driving change, especially in the context of addiction recovery. Guest David Whitesock, founder and CEO of Commonly Well, reveals how data, technology, and content can power the pursuit of purpose and well-being for everyone. Discover the Recovery Capital Index and how it measures individual recovery...
Dr. Angela Colistra is a dedicated therapist, professor, researcher, and consultant in addiction and behavioral health. Dr. Colistra shares her incredible journey, highlighting her work in co-occurring care, advocating for integrated treatment systems, and her personal experiences that fueled her passion for this field. We discuss the importance of ad...
Talk to Mikayla: https://straightupcare.org/consultant-profile/445
Mickayla, a certified peer speci...
Community support and advocacy are making a real difference in battling stigma. Let's learn how Raven and his colleagues are bringing communities together to find ways to serve the community member needs while spreading empathy. Plus, don't miss the messages from four attendees at the conference who share their thoughts on stigma.
Takeaways
- Breaking down barriers and challenging stereotypes is crucial for cre...
Takeaways
- Reduce the Stigma Unfiltered is a new segment of the podcast that aims to have tough conversations and reduce the stigma around taboo topics.
- Mindset is the starting point for exploring and discussing difficult subjects, as it shapes how we think, understand, and perceive things.
- Cultivating a positive mindset involves practices such as gratitude, motivation, and self-care.
- Biases and limiting beliefs can hinder...
Join us as we dive deep into their story, from Claire's experiences with intergenerational trauma and her fight against domestic violence to Amaranthia's battles with bullying and health issues. Learn how they turned their personal struggles into a mission to empower others through art. Discover the importance of accessibility in the arts and ...
Join us in this heartfelt episode of "Meet the Peer" as Whitney Menarcheck sits down with Brandi Eastman, a certified peer specialist from South Dakota. Brandi shares her powerful journey through addiction and recovery, her experiences with drug court, and how she has turned her past struggles into a source of inspiration for others. Learn a...
In this episode of Recovery Conversations, Whitney Menarcheck sits down with Joe Soel, author of The Broken Mirror of Memory, Iraq and Other Tales. Joe opens up about his experiences in Iraq, the process of writing his book to cope with the trauma, and the importance of recognizing veterans' struggles beyond Memorial Day and Veterans Day.
Talk to Angel: https://straightupcare.org/consultant-profile/453
In this inspiring episode of "Meet the Peer," Whitney Menarcheck interviews Angel Fuller, a certified peer support specialist from North Carolina. Angel shares her remarkable j...
Join us in this powerful episode of Recovery Conversations as we sit down with Whitney Menarcheck Elizabeth Kipp, a stress management and historical trauma specialist, to explore her incredible journey of healing from over 40 years of chronic pain, anxiety, and addiction. Elizabeth shares her expertise in addiction recovery coaching, ancestral clearin...
Welcome to "Meet the Peer," a special series by Straight Up Care, where we shine the spotlight on peer specialists making a difference. In this episode, host Whitney Menarcheck sits down with Tom DeCoteau Jr., a Peer Support Specialist from South Dakota. Tom shares his powerful journey from childhood trauma and addiction to 21 years of sobri...
In this episode of Recovery Conversations, Whitney Menarcheck sits down with Dr. Danielle Dick, Director of the Rutgers Addiction Research Center and renowned author of "The Child Code", to explore the profound impact of genetics on substance use disorders, mental health, and parenting. Dr. Dick delves into the myth of super-parenting, the p...
Mental health, addiction, drug use, recovery, struggle... these topics can be heavy, confusing, and shrouded in stigma. Reduce The Stigma, your favorite podcast for recovery stories, peer specialists, and recovery-oriented organizations, is taking a bold step forward with a brand new series.
Why A New Series?
Meet The Peer and Recovery Conversations have been well-received and we're so grateful to our audience. We fo...
In this episode of "Meet the Peer," host Whitney Menarcheck sits down with Toni Morrison, a Certified Peer Specialist from South Dakota. Toni shares her powerful journey from battling addiction and facing legal challenges to embracing recovery and becoming a beacon of hope for others. Discover how Toni's lived experiences and resilience ...
In this episode of Recovery Conversations, Whitney Menarcheck interviews Jonathan Lewis, the co-founder and CTO of Straight Up Care. Jonathan shares his inspiring journey and makes a significant announcement about the launch of Syndicate 12, a revolutionary platform designed to support mental health and substance use recovery. Join us as we discuss the features of Syndicate 12, including anonymous conne...
Connect with Melissa: melissasaady.peerspecialist.us
Melissa Saady is a certified peer recovery specialist from Virginia. Melissa shares her inspiring journey of recovery from addiction, overcoming a decade of substance use triggered by a severe injury and subsequent painkiller prescription. With six years in recovery, Melissa discusses how her lived experiences help her connect with and support others in their recovery journeys. ...
Joy and the recovery journey aren’t usually synonymous, but if Ken Dunn, Chief Joy Facilitator has his way, that won’t be the case for much longer. With an emphasis on the importance of joy and play when pursuing a goal, learning something new, or taking on a challenge, he delivers a message of hope and inspiration. Sharing his lived experience with substance use, work, and video game addiction, Ken discusses the import...
ADD/ADHD has received a lot of attention in recent years for the over-prescribing of medications. In fact, the US is experiencing a nation-wide shortage of medications used to treat ADD/ADHD. While the diagnosis has been in existence since the 1960s, albeit under a different name, the prevalence of ADD (now known as ADHD) and its medications surged in the 1990s among elementary-aged children. Decades later, we’re now able to ...
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