A WRAP Valentine The best Valentine you can give yourself this Valentine’s Day is the Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP)! If you already have a WRAP, this may be the perfect time to check to see if you have enough LOVE in your Wellness Tools, Daily Maintenance Plan, Action Plans, and even in your Crisis Plan and Post Crisis Plan. Are you doing the same Wellness Tools over and over again? Are they losing some of their effectiveness from repetition? Add a little LOVE to your Wellness Tools list with some challenging and fun activities. Ask other people what they do for enjoyment and relaxation. Liven up your Wellness Tools and your Wellness Tools will liven you up! One of my favorite parts of WRAP is “What I’m Like When I’m Well” – I wonder what my list would look like if I described myself LOVINGLY from my heart. Is your Daily Maintenance Plan getting boring? In your Daily Maintenance Plan you can LOVE yourself up a little with a new kind of tea or coffee, adding meditation to your mornings, getting in a refreshing walk, starting a new journal or whatever LOVING activities strike your fancy! The Action Plans you have devised for Triggers, Early Warning Signs, or Things Breaking Down don’t all have to be serious – many can be fun and creative! When you are feeling off-kilter, you appreciate the LOVING help of your supporters. They will be able to help you much more effectively if you have devised a WRAP plan that validates you in many positive and caring ways. And who needs LOVE more than a person in crisis? You can review your Crisis Plan and make sure that it takes care of all your important details so you can get the LOVING care you deserve, if necessary. Ask yourself: how will you “feel the LOVE” if you are in crisis? Would that mean having one of your supporters bringing you chocolate chip cookies, or art supplies, or pen and paper? Or maybe you would just like someone to sit with you for a while? In the Post Crisis Plan, the LOVING assistance of your supporters will ease this transition in many different ways. Look over your plan and be sure that you have included some fun and relaxing activities to do as you continue your journey back to wellness. So whether you are just about to create a WRAP, or have one already — remember Valentine’s Day is not the only day that LOVE is important! During this season of love, remembering to love ourselves is sometimes the greatest challenge of all. Remember to breathe in the LOVE and LOVE up your WRAP, too! Not to worry if you’re not feeling in the LOVE zone right now. Developing a WRAP and keeping yourself in active rhythm with it is a really great way to build self-confidence, empower yourself, raise self-esteem, and help you to see yourself for the amazing person you are. “The most important thing in life is to learn how to give out love, and to let it come in.” — Morrie Schwartz For information on WRAP and other materials by Mary Ellen Copeland and her co-authors and online courses (some for CEU credit): www.mentalhealthrecovery.com Love, love, love! Carol Carol Bailey Floyd Director of Programs Mental Health Recovery and WRAP P.O. Box 301 West Dummerston, VT 05357-0301 Phone: 330-836-4456 (Ohio) or 802-254-2092 (Vermont) Fax: 802-257-7499 Email: in**@me******************.com Website: www.mentalhealthrecovery.com Book Orders Phone: 802-425-3660 Fax: 802-425-5580 Email: bo***@me******************.com Order online: mentalhealthrecovery.com Copeland Center for Wellness and Recovery Stephen Pocklington, Executive Director PO Box 6464 Chandler, AZ 85246 Toll Free: 866 I DO WRAP (866-436-9727) Phone: 480-855-3282 Fax: 480-855-5118 Email: in**@co************.com Website: www.copelandcenter.com Mental Health Recovery and WRAP Trainings, Workshops and Consultation Toll Free: 866 I DO WRAP (866-436-9727) in**@co************.com