SHE RECOVERS Creating Connections Tour
Jen McNeely, editor of SheDoesTheCity, is the meetup lead of the SHE RECOVERS® chapter in Toronto. A community built around recovery for self-identifying women struggling from a wide variety of issues, including substance use disorders, trauma and other life challenges.
Jen will join actor and producer Jennifer Podemski, award-winning author Ann Dowsett Johnston and SHE RECOVERS® co-founders Dawn Nickel and Taryn Strong, on the Creating Connections Tour, for a day of connection and inspiration through yoga, self care seminars, speakers and more.
SHE RECOVERS Creating Connections Tour will be in Toronto June 9th from 10:30am to 3:30pm at the Burroughes building.
Jen McNeely
Tell us about SHE RECOVERS and what the Creating Connections North American Tour involves.
Jen McNeely: SHE RECOVERS is an international movement of women (self-identified) in or seeking recovery from a wide variety of issues, including substance use disorders and other behavioural health issues, trauma, abuse, codependency, cancer, grief, low self-esteem, perfectionism, and other life challenges. While we have a regular weekly meet-up in Toronto, the Creating Connections tour is about bringing the wider community together, in real life, and creating a welcoming space for women who are new to recovery, or She Recovers, to get a better understanding of what this powerful movement is all about.
Tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got involved in the organization.
JN: I first began my recovery from alcohol-use disorder back in 2010, and I began sharing about my journey publicly in 2012. In 2017, I was invited to participate on the sober blogger panel for the first big She Recovers event in New York City. I really had no idea what I was walking into, and I was completely blown away.
Can you speak about why it is important for a recovery program like this to exist now?
JN: It’s important to have options, and She Recovers is a wonderful option for women. I love how it respects that we each have our own personal pathway to recovery, and I also love that there are no labels you need to identify with; it’s a welcoming space for women recovering from all things. It feels fresh, open-minded, and it’s rooted in positivity — we focus on our strengths.
Can you talk about the other women involved in SHE RECOVERS.
JN: I’ll tell you two things: 1) This powerful community was started by a mother and daughter in Victoria B.C, Taryn Strong and Dawn Nickel, and to know them is to love them. 2) They have grown the community to include over 275, 000 women worldwide. The numbers speak for themselves.
You have been very candid about your past addictions on your website, what was it like to open up about this to such a large audience?
JN: Fucking liberating. Secrets are toxic.
What do you hope people get out of this event and the SHE RECOVERS program?
JN: I hope people are wowed the way I was when I first got introduced to the group. I hope women realize that they are not alone. I hope they find the support and connection they need to help them on their own recovery journey.
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