Community Fairbanks Recovery Center is renaming its Family Support Center to ‘Family Connections’. The new name reflects free services offered to families of those known or suspected of having substance use disorder.
The program ‘connects’ family members to education, information, and help for their loved ones.
These services extend to the community at large. This includes clergy, teachers, or others who may have concerns about individuals they’re connected to through their roles.
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The program offers help to families in making well-informed decisions on how to best support their loved one.
Dawn McCord, Certified Family Peer Recovery Specialist, understands the need for this support. Her son, Carson, is in recovery after discovering substance abuse as a teen.
She wrote a book about her family’s journey called “Chasing Carson: A Family’s Journey through Adolescence, Addiction and Recovery.”
This experience led her to change careers to help other families.
“I want them to know they’re not alone,” says McCord.
Patrick King, Ph.D., says the support of family and friends is important to a patient’s recovery.
“The research shows when a family is involved in treatment it can greatly reduce recurrence rates sometimes by up to 50%,” says Dr. King.
To receive Family Connection services, there is no obligation for the loved one to go to Community Fairbanks for treatment.
Help from Family Connections is available by contacting the center at (800) 255-4673.
The program is free, easy to access and available to individuals ages 18 and older. More information is available here.
