Introducing Roads to Recovery with Jim Russell | Vermilion County ROSC

Roads to Recovery Introduction

Jim Russell welcomes viewers to the “Roads to Recovery” video series, a community effort to encourage people struggling with substance use disorder to seek help and to reduce overdoses and ER visits in Vermilion County.

The series features real individuals sharing their personal stories of addiction, often triggered by childhood trauma, pain, peer pressure, or untreated mental health issues, along with the challenges, relapses, and victories they’ve experienced on their unique paths to recovery.

Things to remember: 
 - No two recovery journeys are the same
 - Different treatments and supports work for different people
 - Relapse is common but doesn’t mean failure
 - With the right help, lasting recovery is possible.

If you’re struggling with Substance Use Disorder, there is hope. Recovery is possible. You're not alone.

This series is sponsored by the Vermilion County ROSC.

Episode Transcript

Intro (00:01):
It's a true story.
My negative choices startedreally, really young.
I didn't have any friends thatwere sober.
I didn't wake up one day andsay, hey, I think I'm gonna be a
drug addict today.
I didn't want to feel the painI was feeling anymore.
Immediately.
I'm not in control.
It's never enough.
He's like, here, try this.
I almost lost my life.

(00:21):
That is my main motivator.
I don't want to go through thisnow.
We do recover in VermontCounty, but nobody can tell me
any different.

Disclaimer (00:30):
Viewer discretion is advised.
The content in this videoaddresses sensitive topics
related to drugs and alcohol andmay not be suitable for all
audiences.
This content is intended forinformational and educational
purposes only and should not beconsidered as personal medical
advice, diagnosis, or treatmentrecommendations.
Always consult with a qualifiedhealthcare professional or a

(00:51):
substance use disorderspecialist for personalized
guidance.
The views and opinionsexpressed are those of the
individuals presenting them anddo not necessarily reflect the
views or opinions of VermilionCounty Public Health or the
Vermilion County Mental Health708 Board.

Jim Russell (01:06):
Hi, my name is Jim Russell, and I want to welcome
you to Roads to Recovery.
We are producing this videoseries to encourage people who
are dealing with substance usedisorder to get help.
We want to see the number ofpeople who are dealing with
substance use disorder reduced.

(01:26):
We want to see the number ofpeople who are visiting
emergency rooms because ofsubstance use disorder reduced.
We want to see the number ofoverdose fatalities in Vermine
County reduced.
Through this video series,you're going to be introduced to
some people who are on theirown personal roads to recovery.

(01:49):
We're going to see some oftheir individual stories, some
of the challenges that theyface, some of the
disappointments, but also someof the victories.
We'll talk to some people whohave gotten into substance use
disorder as a result ofsuffering childhood trauma or
abuse.
Others who've gone throughother traumatic events in their

(02:10):
lives that resulted in themturning to a substance to try to
help with that situation.
Others started using some typeof substance in order to fit in
and just be a part of the group.
Everybody's road to recovery isdifferent.
None is exactly alike.
For some people, one particularapproach to treatment works.

(02:33):
For others, it's a differentapproach.
For some people, support groupsare really helpful.
For others, it really doesn'tdo any good at all.
And it it doesn't matter whichroad you follow, as long as you
get on a road that leads toultimate recovery.
Recovery is possible.
It can be a long and difficultroad.
It can have its challenges.

(02:54):
It can have its potholes androadblocks from time to time.
But recovery is possible.
Funding for this effort camefrom two different government
sources, the City of Danvilleand Vermont County Board.
Both of those governmententities recognize that the
challenge that we're facing inVermont County due to substance

(03:18):
use disorder and the overdosefatalities that are happening in
our communities.
And we put together a ROSC,which is a recovery-oriented
system of care council, to tryto provide the supports that
people who are in recovery need.
It's not just treatment thatsomeone needs for their

(03:38):
substance use disorder, but insome cases they need education
and training.
They need good jobs, they needstable housing, they need the
other supports that enable themto continue on that, on that
road to recovery.
And we want to try to point outsome of those roads as well as
we develop this series ofvideos.

(04:01):
So what happens when someonedevelops a substance use
disorder?
Of course, at first there'sgoing to be exposure to that
substance.
Then their body adjusts to itand develops a tolerance.
So it's necessary for thatindividual to use more and more
of the substance to get the samelevel of temporary relief that

(04:22):
they were getting before.
And then they develop adependence upon whatever that
substance is.
They get to the point wherethey have to have it.
A lot of times when you'relooking at substance use
disorder, you can also see adual diagnosis.
For example, a person may havean undiagnosed mental health
issue, a mental illness that'suntreated, but they don't like

(04:45):
the way it makes them feel.
So they start looking aroundfor something that makes them
feel better.
Relapse is almost always goingto happen.
And our response as friends andfamily to a relapse in a
person's life will go a long waytoward either helping that
person or discouraging them ontheir own personal road to
recovery.

(05:05):
We're not responsible for thechoices that they make, but we
can certainly be supportive ofthem as they try to overcome the
challenges and the strugglesthat they face.
One of the things thatresearchers are looking at is
why are some people moresusceptible to developing a
substance use disorder thanothers?

(05:26):
Not everybody who takes painmedication gets addicted to it.
Not everybody who takes thatfirst drink develops an alcohol
dependence.
Not everyone who uses thatfirst recreational drug becomes
dependent upon it.
So why are there differences inpeople's response?
We're not going to get into alot of details of that in this

(05:46):
series, but we're going to betalking to real people with real
stories and real successes,real challenges, and in some
cases disappointment, who arefollowing their own individual
roads to recovery.
We want to thank the people whohave decided to take part in
this series.
This effort could not have beendone without their

(06:07):
participation and theirvolunteering.
If you haven't found yourparticular road to recovery yet,
please keep looking.
Don't give up.
Because it is possible torecover.
It is possible to put thebroken pieces of your life back
together again.
Recovery is possible, andrecovery is possible for you.