Personal strengths and resources that people use in their recovery from persistent substance use disorder

Abstract

Background The concept of recovery capital refers to the sum of resources that a person has available to initiate and continue a recovery process. This concept has not been greatly explored with people with persistent substance use disorder (SUD), whose recovery is often quite long. Method We conducted 19 qualitative interviews with 19 people (9 men, 10 women) with persistent SUD to understand the personal strengths they use in their recovery. A gender-differentiated thematic analysis of the transcripts was conducted. Findings The analysis paints a portrait of people who, despite their difficulties, managed to use their skills and develop new ones to confront their problems: introspection, perseverance, self-belief, knowledge about recovery, etc. For women in particular, the ability to assert themselves appears to have been a survival tool in their trajectory. For most of the participants, material and financial resources were most lacking in their recovery process. Faced with a precarious financial situation, several women spoke of the need to get organized and be proactive in finding ways to support themselves. Conclusion Contrary to a deficit-focused perspective, the concept of recovery capital leads us to focus on what is going well in these people’s lives.