Nativity art as a way out of addiction. It happens at the Il Camino Addiction Rehabilitation Community, where in the months leading up to the holidays an exceptional art workshop was activated. The guests were guided and taught how to create these splendid nativity scenes by the master artist Claudio Coppola, together with the operator in charge of the carpentry and ceramic workshops Carmela Coppola.
Thus created, the nativity scenes were then donated to various Sert in Campania, concrete symbols of rebirth and redemption. “The artistic journey – says Pietro Falco – was very useful and clearly fits into a much broader context of activities that we carry out daily. Beating addictions is not easy, it takes a team of professionals and you can’t do without a multidisciplinary approach”.
The team at the Il Camino centre is a well-established one, with various experts taking care of the users (both free and those subjected to alternative punishment measures).
Led by Pietro Falco (psychologist and psychotherapist who directs the facility), the center benefits from the collaboration of Aldo Ivano Iezza and Giorgio Triano (psychologists and psychotherapists), Giovanna Rapicano (graduate in educational sciences), Rita Angelica Iacopucci (social worker), Luigi De Gregorio (social animator), Gaetano Malafronte (psychiatrist), Carmela Coppola (community worker) and the operators Francesco Apicella, Antonio Astorini and Franco Architravo.
This well-established reality is located on Monte Faito and is a lifeline that has changed many lives for the better in more than 20 years. The facility has 35 beds available (26 of which are in agreement with the national health service). Many of the guests are young people who have lost their way due to dramatic experiences, others have great relational difficulties. Over the years, Dr. Falco has witnessed many changes, first of all that regarding substances of abuse.
“We have gone from heroin abuse to cocaine abuse, the risks of which are often underestimated. In the 90s cocaine was only for the rich, today it is available to everyone and even worse is Carck.
Often these substances are also linked to psychiatric disorders, because sometimes they can bring pre-existing problems to the surface, sometimes they exacerbate and make psychiatric problems chronic». Very soon, for this so-called “dual diagnosis” the facility will have the reconversion of 9 ad hoc places.
Falco, who has gained a lot of experience, explains that there are no standard paths. But it is essential to find the right interpretation within a multidisciplinary approach. “What we do here,” he says, “is to try to fuel a process of self-redefinition, to intervene on psychological and traumatic aspects.”
It is striking that there is no longer a difference between those who live in difficult economic conditions and those who belong to wealthier "classes". "Substance abuse - Falco continues - can affect anyone. In some
cases the problem is in the “liquid” social relationships, typical of our times, other times it is a reduced ability to be with others and to relate. Today, in fact, there is more connection and less relationship. In short, there are many factors that can lead to the development of an addiction. What matters is knowing that there is always the possibility with the right help to take back the reins of one's life”. Of the many young people who have shared a stretch of road with the specialists of the Il Camino center, many have managed to put the nightmare behind them.
Everyone had the opportunity.
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