Welcome

WECAN!

Welcome to the
WE CAN! of Colorado website!

The Wellness and Education Coalition and Advocacy Network of Colorado, simply known as WE CAN!, is a statewide grassroots organization run by and for consumers. We are adults of every age and standing in society who share one commonality: a psychiatric diagnoses or the extraordinary experience of extreme emotional states. We acknowledge and respect the entire continuum of mental disorders.

Over the years, we have become empowered to advocate for one another and hold each other in support and solidarity. As a group we possess rich experiences which include poverty, wealth, recovery, stigma, discrimination, acceptance, emotional suffering and deep joy. WE CAN! is building a strong effective advocacy network in Colorado of individuals that are psychiatrically labeled. . Our Mission Statement states: "A voice for Colorado consumers and supporters that embraces mental wellness through education, personal and systems advocacy and leadership for empowerment and recovery." We take our mission seriously.

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WE CAN! Members Chat Room

Submitted by Jchapel on Mon, 10/29/2007 - 22:51.

Join Us For a Weekly Chat on Thursday's at 7:00pm

This website now has a chat room for WE CAN! members who are registered users at this web site. To register click on the "Create New Account" link below left. Complete the form with a username and valid e-mail address then click Create new account button.  Your password and further instructions will be sent to your e-mail address. Once you login you will see "Chat Room" in the user menu below left click on that then select a chat. You can also select a chat in the Active chats block along the left side.

You can always chat with someone else who may be online and logged in to the website. To increase the chance that others will be here to chat, we will be having scheduled weekly chats on Thursday's at 7:00pm


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Leadership Academy '07... Is it for me?

Submitted by bethefeltman on Mon, 08/06/2007 - 13:26.

The 2007 Leadership Academy is coming this October ;-)!! At the Academy, a group of people who are mental health consumers come together for 5 days of intense sharing and learning.


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Behind the Mask

Submitted by Mary Van Pelt on Tue, 05/29/2007 - 08:45.
Behind the Mask: Photo by Miles EddyBehind the Mask: Photo by Miles EddyIn recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, during May 2007, a collaborative art show was held at Milagros Coffeehouse in Alamosa, CO.  The show “Behind The Mask” featured the writings, drawings, and paintings of consumers/survivors/clients and providers of mental health services. 
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Consumer Growth Challenges Traditional Boundaries in Mental Health Systems

Submitted by Mary Van Pelt on Sun, 03/04/2007 - 14:06.
 

Adapted from a presentation given by Mary Van Pelt and Susan Manning, Ph.D. at the Innovations in Mental Health Conference, held November 10, 2006 at the Holiday Inn Select in Denver, Colorado.


I am a consumer, a psychiatric survivor. I’m a person diagnosed with a bipolar disorder and I’ve dealt with mental illness in my life for more than thirty years, since the age of seventeen.

In August of 1982, in the middle of the night, I was handcuffed in the back of a county sheriff’s car, and transported one-hundred-twenty miles from Alamosa to the state hospital in Pueblo. I was twenty-seven years old and this was my first serious psychotic break. I did not understand what was happening to me or why. In my altered state of consciousness I tried to figure out how to open the back door of the sheriff’s car. I knew this was a nightmare, if only I could force myself to wake up. At the hospital my treatment included forced medication and a week spent in four-point restraints. I was confined for two and a half months in a world turned surreal.

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