December 21, 2022

(Left to right) Howard Yazzie (Indigenous Peer Recovery Elder), Frankiana Tsosie (Lead Indigenous Peer Recovery Coach), Imo Succo (Program Manager/Indigenous Peer Recovery Coach), and lastly, Elton Beletso (Indigenous Peer Recovery Coach). (KSUT/Clark Adomaitis)

Indigenous Wellbriety Program in Cortez

A new addiction recovery program in Cortez is using traditional Native approaches to healing, and bridging the gap between addiction recovery and Native communities.

KSUT | By Clark Adomaitis

The Indigenous Wellbriety Program offers free addiction recovery services. The program serves primarily Native people with alcohol addiction issues. Non-native people are invited to participate as well in weekly talking circles, Healing Through Art Classes, and Zumba Classes. It’s an effort to incorporate Native American spirituality into addiction recovery and sobriety.

The program is run by the Southwestern Health Education Center and serves primarily Native people with alcohol addiction issues.

Imo Succo is a Navajo social worker and a certified Peer Recovery Coach.

"And a lot of it involves languages around creator and Mother Earth, and the natural elements in our world. And we utilize that to balance ourselves out. And so in our Navajo culture, Harmony means a lot."

Succo started the program earlier this year. She has some training through other addiction recovery programs that incorporate Native cultural and healing practices. But she saw the need for this type of treatment when she was in grad school.

"In my internship working for a mental health outpatient facility, I just noticed through observations that a lot of our indigenous clients were having trouble in accessing services that are unique to them and their population."

(Left to right) Elton Beletso (Indigenous Peer Recovery Coach), Howard Yazzie (Indigenous Peer Recovery Elder), Imo Succo (Program Manager/Indigenous Peer Recovery Coach) and lastly, Frankiana Tsosie (Lead Indigenous Peer Recovery Coach) (KSUT/Clark Adomaitis)

Indigenous Wellbriety has four employees who are all Native. Weekly talking circles are held at the Cortez Cultural Center. Meetings are available to attend via Zoom.

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