THE PERFECT STORM: THE GOOD, THE BAD, AND THE UGLY OF IN-PATIENT MENTAL HEALTH RECOVERY (TRAUMA AND SUBSTANCE-USE): A NARRATIVE EXPLORATION

Abstract

Given the marginalizing effects of a mental health diagnosis, individuals with a mental health diagnosis, more specifically those in early recovery of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and substance-use disorders (SUDs), are not provided opportunities to share their stories. This comes from a long-held view of the dominant medical model that currently operates within our societal systems. PTSD and SUDs were once considered to effect a small, concrete population, but has since grown to represent the greatest number of individuals accessing mental health resources (Muskett, 2014). To address this concern, complementary therapeutic modalities have begun to emerge including the field of outdoor experiential programming, nature experiences, and modalities pulled from the field of psychotherapy (Ewert, McCormick & Voight, 2001). Outdoor therapeutic practices utilize an outdoor setting to enhance an individual’s physical, social, and psychological well-being through the application of structured experiential activities (Ewert et al., 2001). Yet what is not as well understood is how this type of complementary therapeutic practices can be used in an in-patient care setting. To bridge a needed understanding of the lived experiences of individuals’ living with PTSD and SUDs while engaging in an outdoor experiential psychotherapy workshop, I used narrative inquiry as a platform for the ‘voice in the cracks’ to be heard (Jackson & Mazzei, 2005). This project describes my narrative experience of engaging in the workshop with individuals currently attending the in-patient care program for integrated alcohol and drug addiction and trauma at Homewood Health Centre in Guelph, Ontario. Focus groups and in-depth semi-structured narrative life-story interviews were used to story individuals’ lived experiences of engaging in an outdoor experiential psychotherapy workshop in early recovery. Positioning this research within a pragmatic worldview, I worked towards understanding the use of complementary forms of therapeutic practices, including outdoor experiential psychotherapy, within an in-patient care setting. In turn, this will continue the conversation around the rising issues in the field of mental health recovery and in-patient care and illuminate a dialogue that brings forth the stories of individuals living with a mental health diagnosis to create positive social change.