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This episode takes a deep dive into the stigma people with, or in recovery from, substance use disorders encounter in the healthcare system. Our panel includes three people in recovery: Ryan Gorman, a counselor and client rights advocate at Community Medical Services; Luke Fuszard, a patient ambassador and a lecturer in the Department of Political Science at the University of Wisconsin–Madison; and Hillary Kreutz, a recovery coach. They are joined by Ritu Bhatnagar, an addiction psychologist at University of Wisconsin–Madison and Cindy Burzinski, Director of Wisconsin Voices for Recovery.

In this episode, Wisconsin Voices for Recovery Director Cindy Burzinski hosts a second panel on harm reduction related to substance use. Members of the panel for part 2 include three representatives of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa: Philomena Kebec, Economic Development Coordinator; Lisa Whitebird, Harm Reduction Leadership and Administrative Coordinator; and Eli Corbine, Harm Reduction Coordinator. Also joining the panel is Tahira Malik, the founder and Chief Operations Officer of Samad’s House located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Megan Morshead, Peer Support Specialist at Tellurian and House Manager for Chandra's House of Hope in Madison, WI. You can find more information and resources through the links below:

https://www.badriverharmreduction.org/

https://nextdistro.org/

https://samadshouse.org/

https://www.tellurian.org/chandra

https://211wisconsin.communityos.org/

In this episode, Wisconsin Voices for Recovery Director Cindy Burzinski hosts a panel on harm reduction. Members of the panel for part 1 are Dr. Elizabeth Salibury-Afshar, a board-certified doctor in family medicine, addiction medicine, and preventive medicine/general public health; Ryan Gorman, a substance use disorder counselor for Community Medical Services (CMS), Amanda DeLeon, a community impact manager for CMS; and Chief Brian Chaney, chief of the city of Monona police department.

In this episode, Wisconsin Voices for Recovery Director Cindy Burzinski talks with Julie Smith, founder of Onyx, peer-supportive housing for people in early recovery in Western Wisconsin. The goals of Onyx are to provide safe, sober housing and connect people with resources in the community, including outpatient treatment, Alano clubs, food shelves, churches, therapy, and good medical care. Residents are counseled to complete a minimum 4-month stay because everyone's recovery path is unique and takes time. In the podcast, Julie discusses some of the Onyx expectations, including maintaining 100% sobriety, as well as the challenges residents and Onyx face, including ongoing stigma and the shortage of sober and transition housing in Wisconsin. Nevertheless, she emphasizes the importance of approaching recovery with compassion and considering each member a part of the Onyx family.  Onyx is continuing to build and expand across the Western Region of Wisconsin while maintaining the integrity of safe, supportive recovery residences. You can find the Onyx website at www.letsrecovertogether.org.

In this episode, Wisconsin Voices for Recovery Director Cindy Burzinski is joined by Brian Bainbridge, Chief Executive Officer of the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Council (GLITC) and Jacob Riemer, Public Health Specialist; and Christina Denslinger, Program Director of the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Epidemiology Center (GLITEC).

GLITC was formed over 60 years ago to create a collective voice for the 11 federally recognized tribes in Wisconsin and the upper peninsula of Michigan. Its mission is “to enhance the quality of life for all Native people.” Among the host of departments in GLITC is the Great Lakes Inter-Tribal Epidemiology Center (GLITEC), one of the 12 tribal epidemiology centers in the United States. GLITEC strives to improve the health of American Indian/Alaska Native people by developing solutions for disease prevention and control and strengthening public health capacity through funding and technical assistance for tribes working on health projects.

Bryan, Jacob, and Christina highlight several GLITC and GLITEC projects related to substance use, including the annual Great Lakes Area Opioid Conference and the building of an adolescent recovery and wellness center grounded in Native values for culture and nature.

Byron is Regional Partnerships Manager for the Phoenix. The Phoenix is a national non-profit that brings people in recovery from substance use disorder together through physical and social activities. He is also owner of the Rebound Recovery House, a ten-bed sober living home in Milwaukee. Prior to his work with the Phoenix, Byron worked in affordable housing for 8 years in Milwaukee. His duties included locating and housing homeless veterans. In 2008 he started Rebound Basketball, a sober men’s basketball program, which later led to his current position with the Phoenix. He also had a ten-year career at JP Morgan Chase. Byron has served on the board of Milwaukee Alano Club and Historic Milwaukee. He loves travel, food, his dog, and participation in local recreational team sports.

On this episode, Wisconsin Voices for Recovery director Cindy Burzinski talks with Heather Rose from Badger Recovery. Badger Recovery is a program for University of Wisconsin students in or considering recovery from substance use. Badger Recovery helps create a community where students can access resources and support through a variety of meetings, events, and services. Their mission is to provide a welcoming and inclusive collegiate recovery community that offers resources, connection opportunities, and support for students, and they envision cultivating a campus environment where students in recovery can thrive.

You can learn more about Badger Recovery through their website at https://www.uhs.wisc.edu/prevention/substance-misuse-prevention/badger-recovery/ or Instagram at badgerrecovery. The can be contacted via email at [email protected].

In this podcast, we speak with Kathleen Maher, Outreach Specialist and Dr. David Leinweber, Assistant Professor, both from the PROTEA group, which focuses on working with clinical providers to better prepare them to treat patients with substance use disorders, whether through harm reduction strategies or to help people seeking recovery.

The PROTEA group is part of the Department of Family Medicine and Community Health at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Its mission is to "improve systems of prevention and treatment for substance-related issues and, thereby, improve health and well-being in patients and communities."

For more information, please check out the PROTEA website: https://www.fammed.wisc.edu/protea/

Matthew Traver is the president of Never Give Up Inc. (NGULU, www.nguluinc.com), a non-profit organization based in Northeast Wisconsin. NGULU helps people in the community find resources not only for addiction but anything that hinders people from stepping into their power and becoming the best versions of themselves. Matt proudly says, “I now have over 5 years of absolute sobriety and spend my volunteer time driving the mission of David John Peters, founder of NGULU.”

Matt is a success story and spends much of his time giving back to the community. Matt struggled with drug addiction for 25 years. After several arrests, he completed heroin treatment court in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Matt’s drive and dedication pushed him to complete the program in 18 months. After graduating from the program, Matt became the president of the Oxford Sober Living House for over a year and found his passion to be a voice in the field of recovery. Matt strongly advocates for the resources needed to help people get their lives back.

Matt reports: “I try my best to make this world a little bit better than I found it. I wish to see everyone be the best versions of themselves as humanly possible. There is hope no matter how hopeless it may seem. Never give up on yourself and each other! ”

Aaron Clayborn is the Outreach Specialist for the Engagement to Recovery program for Wisconsin Voices for Recovery. Aaron has been involved with the recovery community since 2005. He began his formal education by attending the Recovery Coach Academy presented by WIRCO and CCAR in February of 2018.

Aaron is a Recovery Coach trainer and a state Certified Naloxone Trainer.

He began his recovery mission in order to improve his understanding about the harmful effects of drugs and alcohol in all aspects of life and he loves to inspire others who are seeking a healthy lifestyle.

Because of Aaron’s passion to help change the lives of those individuals who struggle with substance use disorder and mental health, Aaron continues to remain active in the recovery community by advocating for peers and helping to increase outreach with members of the recovery community and recovery-focused, agencies and organizations to foster health, wellness and addiction recovery.