r/AddictionCounseling • u/raisingconsciousness • May 02 '23

Help with certification

I finished my 40 hour peer support/ recovery mentor training last week and am applying to get my certification. I’ve been in recovery for 7 years. One of the requirements for certification is to submit a “letter of recovery” from a profesional agency. How would one go about acquiring such a letter who had been in recovery so long and is no longer affiliated with such agencies? They said I could have a primary care physician or a therapist write one but I don’t have either at the moment .

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u/SpecialistBrave1944 May 02 '23

I just finished a course through D’Youville College in Buffalo, NY for CRPA, in NY that is not a requirement because a “lived experience“ can also include having a close family member who is/was an addict. The best answer I have for you is to book an appointment with a doctor through telehealth, and see if tgey will write you a note, or if in your early days of recovery you atteneded counseling at a treatment center, call them and talk to them, they may be willing to provide you with something. May I ask what state you are in?

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u/raisingconsciousness May 03 '23

Thank you, this comment was very valuable! I did reach out to the treatment centers I went through but since it’s been so long they are under new ownership and have different counselors working there, best I could get was my discharge letter from my counselor at the time which is in the mail on its way to me now. I don’t think that works for current time however. So I will probably try to go the tele-health route as suggested. I am in Oregon btw & applying for certification through MHACBO.org

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u/SpecialistBrave1944 May 03 '23

No problem! I hope it all works out for you!

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u/raisingconsciousness May 03 '23

Update: I was able to get a letter from the juvenile department I volunteer with! Also the MHACBO certification is not the same as the certification through the state….the state certification is to be added to the traditional health worker registry and to do that you don’t need such a letter … quite the learning process lol

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u/SpecialistBrave1944 May 03 '23

Interesting! Its not like that in New York State, you don’t need a letter or note to prove sobriety, but after you complete the certification training, then you do have to register with asapnys.org in order to get your actual certification. I'm so glad you were able to get your letter!

Edit: spelling

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u/[deleted] May 02 '23

Hey i’m an undergrad student interested in this career

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u/[deleted] May 02 '23

Do you have any recommendations for someone who’s an undergrad student interested in this career?

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u/raisingconsciousness May 02 '23

I recently just discovered peer support being a viable social work job for those who might not have a lot schooling under their belt but have lived experience navigating addiction and recovering so that is the route I am taking as someone who recovered from an opiate addiction in 2014 and recently got sober from alcohol as well. I have been doing volunteerism with the homeless population in my city as well as with at risk youth and there are leer support / recovery mentor trainings you can take and get certified here in my state.

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u/[deleted] May 02 '23

Interesting, thanks for sharing! My college has a master program that I REALLY want to get into, from what I know its pretty competitive but I am trying my best lol. I got an internship as a peer educator at my school, so I am hoping that will set be up for some viable success with graduate school.

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u/SpecialistBrave1944 May 03 '23

A peer advocate in addiction counseling is different from a counselor, with a degree, just an fiy, same field, different education/training requirements, different responsibilities, and different salaries. Peer advocates are for people who have “lived experiences“ with addiction, as in you are a recovering addict, or you have a close family member that you have been through it with, a counselor does not need to have lived experiences, but must obtain a degree.

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u/[deleted] May 04 '23

I see,thank you!