When a person initially seeks help with an addiction, it’s important for someone who has went through it to be there to offer support.
Mike Krafick understands addiction from a personal standpoint. His mission in life is to assist others as they go through their recovery process.
That’s the job of Mike Krafick. He is a Certified Recovery Specialist at the Armstrong-Indiana-Clarion Drug and Alcohol Commission (AICDAC).
“It (Certified Recovery Specialist) is a peer,” Krafick explained. “Somebody that has experience with drug and alcohol recovery who can help somebody that’s new to treatment in the recovery process so we can use our experience that we’ve been through to try to help guide somebody through the process.”
Krafick described his role in assisting those who are reaching out to change their lifestyle.
“We get to work with people before, during, and after treatment So, if somebody comes in and they want some help maybe going to their first AA or an NA meeting, we can do that with them. We can help them identify goals on a recovery plan and decide what it is what changes they want to make in their life to help them move forward. Often times, that will involve formal treatment, sometimes it won’t. Sometimes some people just need to make a few changes and get on a new direction.”
The AICDAC doesn’t have a treatment center, but partners with area agencies that offer that type of service.
“The actual treatment would be at another location, another facility, somewhere like Family Services or Arc Manor, the Open Door in Indiana County. So, whether it’s residential treatment or outpatient treatment, there’s a lot of different levels of care that people can access and we’re going to work with them throughout the process. So, if they go somewhere for a 14 or a 28 day stay, we’re going to work with them while they’re there to help them transition to come back home to help them connect with some positive people in the recovery community so they can maintain those changes.”
Krafick said that not everyone is ready to accept treatment.
“I think we see a mix. I think we see some people come in the door that they fully are ready to start and engage in the recovery process. Then, other people are a little more resistant. They’re at the beginning at their addiction process and maybe the consequences aren’t as severe as others so they’re still struggling with that decision about what they want to do about their recovery and what they’re willing to do, what they’re able to do.”
“I think that’s one of the advantages of having Recovery Specialists available because from my perspective, I can share the process that I went through, some things that I did in the past that worked for me, some other things that I’ve tried that maybe didn’t work out so well. And, our Recovery Specialists are able to share that hope that people can and do recovery and get better because quite often, you only hear about the negative stories about people that have to go to treatment multiple times and they’re just not making the changes. Our Recovery Specialists are able to show that people do recover and get well and provide that hope and optimism to the people that we’re working with.”
Addiction isn’t limited to just drug and alcohol. AICDAC also offers assistance with smoking and gambling addictions.
AICDAC has a local office in Kittanning at 354 Vine Street (behind the old Jr. High School) as well as Shelocta, Indiana, and Clarion. For more information, call 724-354-2746.