New counselor to the Care Campus brings much-needed help

RAPID CITY, S.D. — In the phrases of Sheriff Kevin Thom:

“Fighting medication is a three-legged stool: Arresting, Educating, and Treating.”

And amongst a bunch of six trainees, University of South Dakota graduate pupil Maria Lehnan can be serving to care campus residents throughout the therapy course of.

“You run into individuals all through your life, whether or not it’s associates or household, which have substance use issues and also you simply need to make a distinction,” Assessment Counselor Lehnan mentioned. “You simply need to not be part of the hindrance of this stigmatizing illness, however you need to have the ability to help.”

She joins the Sheriff’s Office with a aim of ending her Master’s and changing into an authorized counselor.

The means of changing into an authorized counselor just isn’t as tasking as it might appear. With a highschool diploma or G.E.D, and approval from a board of dependancy and prevention professionals, residents taken with serving to others battle dependancy can start coaching.

Once employed, they’ve 5 years to full a sequence of educational programs earlier than certification.

And with the new trainees, officers are excited at this new perspective.

“There’s one thing completely different about these people which are simply popping out of faculty or proper in the center of faculty which are bringing so much to the desk,” Clinical Supervisor Amanda Whelchel mentioned. “That individuals which were in the area for many years don’t have.”

And as Lehnan will get prepared to start, she is concentrated on ensuring individuals perceive the reality behind dependancy and dependancy therapy.

“We want individuals to see it for what it actually is, which is a chemical illness of the mind,” she defined. “And we’d like to cease stigmatizing it in order that these individuals really feel comfy getting help and utilizing sources.”