Visions Journal

The need for a strengths-based approach

Emily Jenkins

Reprinted from the The Ongoing Journey of Recovery: Recovery across the lifespan issue of Visions Journal, 2025, 20 (3), pp. 5-6

For the last two decades I have worked in the mental health and substance use field, first as a clinician, and now as a researcher. During this time, I have seen our collective understanding of recovery shift, sometimes for the better, sometimes reinforcing old patterns of control.

One thing that has become clearer is that a strengths-based approach to recovery benefits everyone. A strengths-based approach is one that brings attention to assets as opposed to deficits and seeks to build resources for well-being. However, despite some of the progress that has been made, particularly in relation to mental health, stigma and rigid definitions of recovery continue to harm people who use drugs. We need to redefine how we think about recovery across both these areas.

The evolution of recovery

In mental health settings, the notion of recovery started as a grassroots movement. It was led by people with lived and living experience of mental ill-health who wanted to reclaim their identities and challenge medicalized narratives that reduced them to their diagnoses. The message was clear: mental illness does not define us. People can and do live full, meaningful lives, even while navigating persistent mental health challenges.

This idea of recovery aligns with the mental health continuum model, which presents mental health and mental illness as distinct but also intersecting phenomena. Someone can experience mental illness but still have high levels of mental well-being, for example, just as someone without a diagnosis can struggle with poor mental health. This perspective supports a broader, more inclusive vision of recovery—one that emphasizes autonomy, dignity and personal meaning, rather than rigid clinical benchmarks.

The weaponization of substance use recovery

In contrast, in relation to substance use, the definition of recovery has been narrower and is often meant to signal abstinence. People are not considered capable of experiencing the hallmarks of recovery (i.e., a full and meaningful life) unless they have stopped using drugs altogether. This framing creates a problematic hierarchy: those in abstinence-based recovery are seen as "successful," while those who continue to use drugs are seen as "failing" or undeserving of support.

This is not a strengths-based approach. It indicates that autonomy isn't important and ignores the spectrum of substance use experiences. It doesn’t recognize that people use drugs for complex reasons and that minimizing harm—not necessarily stopping substance use altogether—can be a valid and valuable goal.

The power of language

Language plays a crucial role in shaping how we view mental health and substance use as a society. In mental health, we have been fairly successful in adopting person-first language, moving away from terminology that defines people by their diagnoses. This means using phrasing such as "a person with a mental health condition," as opposed to referring to someone as "mentally ill." This shift reinforces the idea that a person is more than a diagnosis.

In substance use, however, dehumanizing language remains widespread, stripping people of their dignity. Even well-meaning terms like recovery can carry implicit judgments when they are tied to abstinence goals. Instead, we need to recognize that while some people find meaning and stability in abstinence-based recovery, others focus on different forms of well-being and minimizing harms while using drugs. People walking each of these paths deserve respect.

Welcoming different experiences

We must stop treating some experiences as more legitimate than others. A true strengths-based approach recognizes that everyone has the capacity for well-being, and that people define recovery in different ways. It prioritizes dignity and self-determination over external measures of success.

Moving forward: A unified approach

To dismantle stigma and make further progress we need a more unified approach to recovery. We can:

• adopt a strengths-based framework for recovery in both the mental health and substance use fields; recovery should not be about control, but about empowerment

• challenge abstinence as the only valid form of recovery when it comes to substance use; efforts to minimize harms must be recognized as legitimate

• shift our language to respect all lived experiences; words shape reality—let’s use them to build a more inclusive, compassionate world

• centre people with lived experience in policy and practice; those directly affected must be front and centre in the conversation

We have made some important strides when it comes to thinking about recovery in mental health. When it comes to substance use, there’s still work to be done. It's time to adopt a strengths-based approach to recovery, recognizing that all people—regardless of where they are on their journey—deserve to be valued and supported in living a full and meaningful life.