September ‘radio hour’ highlights two approaches to addiction recovery

The Maine Monitor Radio Hour is a monthly program in which reporters and editors from The Maine Monitor discuss the newsroom’s recent reporting.

This month, deputy editor Stephanie McFeeters was joined by health care reporter Emily Bader to talk about Bader's reporting on two unique approaches to recovery — one in Machias and one in Millinocket.

Bader first told listeners about the work that went into her story on Safe Harbor Recovery Home in Machias, including her fact-checking process. Of the approximately 80 homes in the state certified by the Maine Association of Recovery Residences, Safe Harbor is one of just two that allow women and children.

Maine’s Office of Child and Family Services identified substance use as a risk factor when removing a child from their parents’ care 55 percent of the time in 2022, up from 53 percent in 2021, according to a report released earlier this year. That’s well above the national rate, which was 42 percent in 2021.

She also spoke about her story on the Healing Lodge in Millinocket, a center for Indigenous people recovering from substance use disorder and healing from trauma. The Healing Lodge is one of several treatment and recovery facilities run by Wabanaki Public Health and Wellness, an organization that works to provide culturally sensitive health care and social services to the four federally recognized tribal nations in Maine.

According to the National Survey on Drug Use and Health , an estimated 1 in 10 Mainers 12 and older struggled with substance use disorder in the past year.

You can listen to the episode here. Tune in to listen live the first Thursday of every month at 4 p.m. on WERU 89.9 FM.