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Signage outside of Tallahassee\u2019s Disc Village. (Jada Gordon\/FAMUAN)<\/p>\n
The Drug Information Service Center Village, known as\u00a0DISC\u00a0Village, offers prevention,\u00a0counseling\u00a0and recovery programs for students at risk of substance use.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For more than 50 years, the center has served the Big Bend community, helping young adults navigate the pressures of college life.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For college students balancing academics, social life and new independence, the organization provides education, counseling and recovery resources designed to prevent substance misuse and connect those struggling with support before problems escalate.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Lisa Sherry, Disc Village\u2019s community outreach specialist, works with students,\u00a0families\u00a0and partners to connect people with resources and spark conversations about prevention and recovery.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cEach person is unique and individual, and what you have to do is assess their needs,\u201d Sherry said. \u201cEverything starts with an assessment, which allows the clinician to\u00a0determine\u00a0what treatment plan is applicable. You\u00a0don\u2019t\u00a0want to put everybody in the same box.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Disc Village offers outpatient programs, peer\u00a0support\u00a0and medication-assisted treatment for students with more serious substance use disorders.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cFor a young adult, it\u2019s about flexibility and treatment options,\u201d Sherry said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jacquelyn D. McMillan, assistant professor of social work at Florida A&M University,\u00a0identifies\u00a0early warning signs of substance dependency.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cDaytime drinking and the need to use substances to sleep are significant warning signs,\u201d McMillan said. \u201cDependency is evident when a substance is needed daily to function, and risky behaviors often accompany it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
McMillan also warns against misconceptions about using marijuana or prescription drugs to manage stress and encourages alternatives such as exercise.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cPrograms like DISC\u00a0village\u00a0can serve as preventive tools,\u201d she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Reducing stigma is key, Sherry added. \u201cStigma kills, and it keeps people from getting help.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
FAMU\u00a0health informatics and information management\u00a0student\u00a0Jade Elaine\u00a0offered a peer perspective: \u201cIt\u2019s easy to imagine these issues affecting someone else, but the reality is it could be any student.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Disc Village also partners with schools and law enforcement on diversion programs that provide support and counseling to young adults instead of leaving them with a criminal record for minor offenses.\u00a0<\/p>\n
While many services focus on students and young adults, DISC Village\u2019s work extends\u00a0beyond college populations.\u00a0The organization\u00a0operates\u00a0high-intensity residential treatment programs for adults who require 30\u201390 days\u00a0of on-site care. It also works with the Department of Children and Families to support parents in recovery\u00a0seeking\u00a0to\u00a0maintain\u00a0or regain custody of their children and serves rural counties across the Big Bend region where behavioral health resources are more limited.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Through individualized care and community collaboration, Disc Village provides students with resources to make informed choices and pursue recovery.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201dIt\u2019s\u00a0about providing opportunities so that if somebody has a slip up or needs extra support, we can link them to the services they need,\u201d Sherry said.\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Signage outside of Tallahassee\u2019s Disc Village. (Jada Gordon\/FAMUAN) The Drug Information Service Center Village, known as\u00a0DISC\u00a0Village, offers prevention,\u00a0counseling\u00a0and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":207497,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[232,234,233],"class_list":["post-207496","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-tallahassee","tag-tallahassee","tag-tallahassee-headlines","tag-tallahassee-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/207496","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=207496"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/207496\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/207497"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=207496"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=207496"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=207496"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}