89.9 FM Live From The University Of New Mexico
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
The KUNM news team's coverage of the 2020 legislative session and its impacts

YNMG & COVID: Sober In A Shutdown

Marisa Demarco / KUNM
Rio Arriba County's Health and Human Services Department

 

Episode 53 is all about re-entering the world from jail or prison during the pandemic, and holding onto your recovery from addiction during quarantine. What does the world feel like right now if you've spent some part of your last years inside a prison? And what do you do if a requirement of your probation or parole is that you find a job when there isn't one to be found? How are folks managing their sobriety during a time of isolation or social distancing? What's keeping them on track? 

We hear from Cory Lee, executive director at Crossroads For Women about the fast-thinking changes they're making down at their program for women exiting incarceration. 

Lazarus Letcher, Peace Studies instructor at UNM, talks about about having years of recovery under your belt, but in the time of the pandemic, treating it like it's day one again.

Lauren Reichelt, director of Health and Human Services in Rio Arriba County, explains the interlocking problems of homelessness, incarceration, unemployment and addiction—and how the teams up North are trying to figure out how to tackle them all at once.

And Pat Romero, a mechanic and kick-boxing champion, gets into communication, meditation and making sure you don't find yourself with too much anxious, idle time on your hands as you fend off addiction.

We're keeping a complete list of the resources and volunteer opportunities that we find for each episode at bit.ly/YNMGhub. And here's what we got from today.

Resources:

  • Online recovery meetings: Recovery Dharma, AA, NA, In The Rooms ... there are so many.
  • You can also call into many online meetings with your phone, and your local AA can point you in the right direction. 
  • Find Crossroads for Women at crossroadsabq.org or call 505-242-1010.
  • Or, check in with Maya's Place: 505-266-0110
  • CARE Detox center in Albuquerque is still taking folks: (505) 468-1555
  • Find Health and Human Services in Rio Arriba County through rio-arriba.org or call (505) 753-3143
  • New Mexico Crisis and Access Line can hook you up with mental health or substance abuse resources: 1-855-nm-crisis.
  • If you are not having an emergency but want to connect with someone, check out the Peer-To-Peer Warmline: 1-855-4nm-7100. They’re ready to take your call between 3:30 p.m. and 11:30 p.m. daily, or you can text someone there between 6 p.m. and 11 p.m.

How are things going for you? We want to know. Share your quarantine stories by calling: (505) 218-7084 and leaving us a message. We could roll them into a future episode.
*****

Your New Mexico Government is a collaboration between KUNM, New Mexico PBS, and the Santa Fe Reporter. Funding for our coverage is provided, in part, by the Thornburg Foundation, the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and the New Mexico Local News Fund.

Marisa Demarco began a career in radio at KUNM News in late 2013 and covered public health for much of her time at the station. During the pandemic, she is also the executive producer for Your NM Government and No More Normal, shows focused on the varied impacts of COVID-19 and community response, as well as racial and social justice. She joined Source New Mexico as editor-in-chief in 2021.
Related Content