The road to recovery from drug addiction is one paved in strife and difficulty, and individuals who are working to stay clean and sober need an immense amount of support along that journey.  One prominent struggle that many people face is dealing with weight gain during the recovery process. According to the American Addiction Center, 65% people gain weight while in rehab and after.  Furthermore, 20% of those people will become obese. At best, this can be a frustrating hurdle after recovery, and at worst, it can cause significant suffering which could lead to relapse or other chronic health problems. Whether this is brought on by extreme stress, a craving to replace the high no longer being achieved by drugs, or a lack of impulse control caused by brain damage, we know this is a huge issue that many in recovery need help with.

In response to this health crisis in Danville, the Nutrition Education Program Assistant began teaching classes at the Shepherd’s House Recovery Center focused on healthy eating on a budget. The class here consisted of 7 female participants, most of whom stated they struggled with food and eating since being in recovery. The class met weekly for 7 sessions and showed many positive outcomes.

100% of the women showed improvements in at least one area in each of the following categories: diet quality, food resource management and physical activity.  The class gave the women opportunities to share their struggles, socialize with others and gain valuable resources which would enable them to eat healthier.  They particularly loved getting the new recipes and were excited to try them since they lived together in a shared living space and often cooked for each other. Every class, someone would talk about a healthy recipe they had tried from past weeks’ lessons.  Overall, the class was very successful and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and gain valuable knowledge and confidence.