YouTube as a recovery resource?
An interesting thing happened on the way to developing some training on functional assessments.
I discovered that a lot of public-sector behavioral health clients are sharing their experiences on YouTube. That’s right. YouTube.
What an amazing resource! Here, in their own words, clients are talking about their successes, the things they are proud of accomplishing, and how they are experiencing their life that just happens to include a serious mental illness.
Some of the videos are clearly intended as training resources, like the ones from Julie Fast and HealthyPlace.com. But many were straightforward self expression, unfiltered by the lens of the mental health system.
I used a few short clips in a training for clinicians, case managers, and rehabilitation providers in Minnesota. The clips were powerful for helping the professionals hear and see the clients in a different way. Many responded first to the vignettes in a human way (”I am so proud of what she has accomplished”) and only then with their professional lens and assessments. Most of the professionals were quick to recognize how many inferences and assumptions they can make when listening to clients, and were able to more to a more neutral, and thus more strengths-based, orientation.
Who knew that a free, open-sourced solution could be so powerful in changing practice and promoting recovery?
Lee Ann Slayton
President, Slayton Consulting, LLC
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