Illness Management & Recovery Program

What is the Illness Management and Recovery Program?
The Illness Management and Recovery Program (IM&R) consists of a series of regularly scheduled sessions in which mental health practitioners help people who have experienced psychiatric symptoms develop personal strategies for coping with mental illness and moving forward in their lives. The program is provided in an individual format and generally lasts six to twelve months. The sessions are available at the HealthPartners Regions Behavioral Health offices in St. Paul and Woodbury.

With the permission of the person who has experienced psychiatric symptoms, family members and other supporters may be asked to read the educational handouts, attend some sessions, and help the person develop and implement plans for coping with symptoms, reducing relapses, and pursuing recovery goals.

What are the goals of the Illness Management and Recovery Program?

• Learning about mental illness and strategies for treatment
• Decreasing symptoms
• Reducing relapses and rehospitalizations
• Making progress toward personal goals and recovery

What is provided in the Illness Management and Recovery Program?

• Participants will receive educational handouts, planning sheets, and checklists
• Practitioners will help participants develop personal strategies for managing illness and setting and achieving goals
• Participants will have opportunities to practice personalized strategies in sessions and in every day life

What will you learn in the Illness Management and Recovery Program?

• Recovery strategies
• Practical facts about mental illness
• The stress-vulnerability model and treatment strategies
• Building social support
• Reducing relapses
• Using medication effectively
• Coping with stress
• Coping with problems and symptoms
• Getting your needs met in the mental health system

How do you find out more about the Illness Management and Recovery Program?
To set up an initial appointment, please call (651) 254-4786, and ask for an IM&R appointment. Your initial appointment will involve a brief orientation and discussion to find out if IM&R is a good fit for you.