Illnesses don't recover. People do.

Pat Deegan's Recovery Approach focuses on the person instead of the illness and offers hope-filled tools, technologies and training for people, families and providers. Using Pat's Approach, people can get and keep the life they want, and staff gain the knowledge and skills for practicing true recovery-oriented care.

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Pat Deegan: Disruptive Innovator

Patricia E. Deegan Ph.D. is the founder of Pat Deegan & Associates (PDA). For over 30 years Pat has been a thought leader and disruptive innovator in the field of behavioral health recovery.

Pat Deegan's Recovery Approach includes the award-winning CommonGround Software, Recovery Academy, Medication Empowerment, Certified Personal Medicine Coaching and the Hearing Distressing Voices Simulation.

Pat is an activist in the survivor movement and has lived her own journey of recovery after being diagnosed with schizophrenia as a teenager.

She has held several academic appointments, has numerous publications, and has carried a message of hope for recovery to audiences around the world.

Learn More About Pat

In the Spotlight... 

May 2023

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Recovery is Real

May 2, 2023

Pat Deegan will share five stories from her own recovery after a diagnosis of psychosis for the New Journeys State-Wide Virtual Gathering. This conference supports young people experiencing a first episode of psychosis and their families in Washington.

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Certified Personal Medicine Coach Kick-Off: Step By Step

May 2, 2023

We're excited to have a new cohort of Certified Personal Medicine Coaches beginning their 11-week journey toward certification. This group will be led by our CPMC-T Tracy Ciabattoni.

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Certified Personal Medicine Coach Quarterly Call

May 3, 2023

We're excited to be meeting with our worldwide community of Certified Personal Medicine Coaches for our Quarterly Call. We'll be focusing on Personal Medicine Outside of the Mental Health Box 📦.

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What does lived experience really mean and why is it important?

May 18, 2023

In this webinar, Pat Deegan will explore the origins of “lived experience” in philosophy and its migration into behavioral health. She will argue that lived experience introduces a new way of knowing that can complement, and at times disrupt, the clinical worldview.

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The Power of Personal Medicine Coach: Discovering the Healer Within

May 2023

Allison Stiles and Missy Rufo will be hosting a series of webinars with folks from the Mercy Care Arizona Network to share the importance of discovering our own Personal Medicine.

In the Media...

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The Me You Can't See

Pat sat down with Oprah and Prince Harry to discuss mental health recovery.

Watch Episode 6 for Free
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Anderson Cooper

Anderson Cooper tried Pat's Hearing Distressing Voices Simulation. Pat and Anderson chatted about his experience.

Watch Now
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Psychiatric Services: Podcast

Pat joined Lisa Dixon, MD to discuss Pat's recent publication: The Journey To Use Medications Optimally to Support Recovery.

Listen Now
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Unapologetically Black Unicorns

Pat sat down with Keris Jän Myrick on her Podcase Unapologetically Black Unicorns to discuss how Representation and Intentions Matter

Listen Now

From Pat's Blog...

Don't Let Anyone But You Define What's Possible for Your Recovery

Aug 26, 2022

Me-On-Medicine

Mar 22, 2022

Disclosure and privacy for peer specialists

Jan 28, 2022

Remembering Darby Penney

Dec 16, 2021

We don't have customers. We have partners in recovery.

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