Natural Highs: Healthy Alternatives to Drugs & Alcohol
Program Facilitator Training
About the program:
“Natural Highs-Healthy Alternatives to Drugs & Alcohol” is an innovative, engaging substance abuse prevention/intervention program for teens that is built on evidence-based practices such as Motivational Interviewing, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy and Public Achievement. It is unique in that it engages young people as leaders and co-facilitators and is therefore able to inspire, engage and motivate teens more than conventional drug prevention programs. The program has been developed in collaboration with teens by Professional Counselor, Certified Addiction Counselor Supervisor and Motivational Interviewing TrainerAvaniG. Dilgerin Boulder, Colorado (USA) and is currently being researched as a promising practice for substance abuse prevention. The Natural Highs program includes cutting-edge neuro-science, healthy rituals, body-mind practices, non-judgmental dialogue, and inspiration to examine society’s relationship to substances and addictive behaviors. Through games, interactive discussions, stress management, and creative expression, young people learn how to access conscious states of being and connection in healthy ways that strengthen protective factors and healthy brain development. Ultimately this empowers youth to live in more authentic and healthy ways, to connect more with themselves and others, and to create more meaningful lives.
Date: March 22nd, 23rd, 24th 9:30am-3:30pm
Cost: Sliding scale $30-$100
Training Objectives:
- Experience an interactive, engaging and inspiring approach to substance abuse prevention
- Skills for engaging young people through Motivational Interviewing an evidence-based practice that was developed to help engage and motivate people for healthy behavior changes.
- Understand how the brain chemistry of emotions, substances, and “natural highs” work.
- Explore the issues underlying addictive behaviors.
- Explore strategies to create healthy habits and rituals that support physical, spiritual and emotional well-being.
- Understand how to facilitate the Natural Highs program with cultural sensitivity and awareness.
This training is suitable for:
- Community members/leaders with an interest in substance abuse prevention and intervention
- Health professionals & social workers
- AOD counselors & youth workers
- Educators, teachers and parents
About the Trainer:
TessEckert is an expressive arts activist, facilitator and educator--usingdanceand other embodied art processes for community building, rites of passage and social justice.Originally from Colorado, USA, Tess participated in the Natural Highs Program led by Avani Dilger, as a high school student from2008-2010and was so transformed by it, that she was askedto become a peer mentor and co-facilitator of the program. Tessmoved to the Northern Rivers in 2013, after completing her BA degree in Interdisciplinary and Global Studies, through a University program that enabled her to live among locals in Latin America, India and Australia where she engaged with cultural studies, contemporary Indigenous issues, and the study of local dance forms. She is currently following her passionas ayouth worker, dance teacher and group facilitator fordiverse groups of people locally throughout the region. Tess has piloted Natural Highs successfully in partnership with Casino High School and Bulgarr Ngaru Aboriginal Medical Corporation in Casino, NSW, working with local Bundjalung elders and workers to adapt the program to be culturally relevant, appropriate and accessible for local youth.
Testimonials:
“Natural highs is professionally run, well researched and fun. Tess helps Young
people make the connection between brain chemistry mood and drug use.
Armed with well researched scientific facts they begin to put the dots together
and work out for themselves the inevitable changes substance use has upon the
brain. They gain an understanding of how the substances work to mimic
chemicals in the brain and they learn how to trigger the same reactions through
fun social activities. As an early intervention or prevention tool Natural highs is as
good as it gets.”
- Paul Phillips, YouthAOD Worker at INTRA Youth Outreach Program,The Buttery Rehab Service.