Over the last months we have had a unique opportunity to talk to each other and to listen to each other. What have you learned as you have had the time to listen?

While going through our Too Good for Drugs curriculum I came across a valuable lesson I want to share.

"Active listening is a deliberate action to take to learn and understand. It is not just waiting for our turn to speak. It is based on the desire to see another’s point of view. Active listeners show the speaker they have been heard and understood."

"An active listener engages in conversation to receive the speaker’s message as it is intended. Active listeners communicate respect through positive feedback and open receipt of information."

"Active listening requires humility and a willingness to listen to ideas that conflict with our own. When we really listen to each other, we learn what matters to others, what they need to feel heard, and how to work towards solutions together. Together, we can build stronger relationships and communities when we listen to each other with open hearts and minds."

This month I challenge you to actively listen and take the time to learn what's on the hearts of your children and those you are closest to. You may be just who they need!

"The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently released survey data on adult mental health, looking at a national sample of adults during the last week in June. Unsurprisingly, the stress level is high, with 40.9 percent overall reporting at least one “adverse mental or behavioral health condition."

The young adults also reported the highest levels of symptoms of anxiety and depression — 62.9 percent reported either or both. Their rates of having started or increased substance use to cope with pandemic-related stress or emotions was way up there as well at 24.7 percent (it was equal or higher only among the essential workers and the unpaid caregivers).

It’s important to identify the populations at increased risk, Ms. Lane said, to provide them with services and support, and also to recognize that many people fall into more than one risk group — some young adults are also essential workers, members of the minority groups that are disproportionately bearing the brunt of the pandemic or people with pre-existing mental health conditions.

“Our college students are emerging adults,” said Betty Lai, an assistant professor of counseling psychology in the Lynch School of Education and Human Development at Boston College. At this age, you are still learning, still figuring things out as you go, she said, including what career you are going to pursue, and “who are the people you are going to have as part of your life long-term? All of these important developmental tasks come up.”

The pandemic is changing their opportunities to figure out those issues, and also, of course, changing their opportunities to go to school, to see their friends, to live away from home.

Some college students are going to be on campus this fall, but much of their learning will be remote, and they face strict safety rules limiting social activity. Other students face another semester of staying home. Either way, parents should be alert for signs of stress and isolation. Stressors are heightened, Dr. Vinson said, and many people find themselves without their usual coping strategies.

“The most helpful thing you can do for somebody who might be struggling is ask them,” Dr. Lai said. “Parents often don’t have as good a sense as they think they might of how their child is doing.”

"Even in ideal circumstances, addiction recovery can be difficult. Add a pandemic into the mix, and things can start to feel overwhelming.

It’s understandable to feel challenged by these worries, but they don’t have to derail your recovery process. Here are eight tips to help you navigate the road ahead.

Reminding yourself why you choose recovery can help.

It might feel especially challenging to maintain recovery when your process involves things that are currently on hold — whether that’s work, spending time with loved ones, or hitting the gym.

You can — and absolutely should — make a point of staying in touch with loved ones by phone, text, or video chat. You can even try virtualizing some of your pre-pandemic social activities, like a remote dance party. A little awkward, maybe, but that might make it more fun (or at least more memorable)!

You might also find it harder to hunt down your usual groceries, but if you can, try to eat balanced, nutritious meals with fruits and vegetables to boost happy hormones, fuel your brain, and protect immune health. (Tip: If you can’t find fresh, frozen is a great option.)

Keeping your free time occupied with enjoyable activities can distract you from unwanted or triggering thoughts that might negatively affect recovery. Doing things that interest you can also make the time you spend at home seem less bleak.

While it’s often easy to offer compassion and kindness to others, you might have a tougher time directing those same feelings inward. But you deserve kindness as much as anyone else, especially during uncertain times.

You may have never experienced anything so stressful or life-altering as this pandemic and the physical distancing it’s brought about. Life isn’t proceeding in a usual way. It’s OK to not feel OK right now.

September is National Recovery Month.

The 2020 National Recovery Month theme, “Join the Voices for Recovery: Celebrating Connections,” reminds people in recovery and those who support them, that we all have victories to celebrate and things we may wish we had done differently. This is true of everyone and, as in most cases, we cannot do it alone.

To learn more about National Recovery Month Click here.

For help finding a rehab or treatment center Click here.

For more information on the mask mandate.

We're also working on Zoom lessons if parents, teachers or students are interested in joining please email coalitionrx@gmail.com and we will get some class times set up!