Youth WRAP: Wellness Recovery Action Plan

What a neat little parcel this 63-page soft cover booklet is. Not only does Mary Ellen Copeland explain the Wellness Recovery Action Plan (WRAP) in a scant few pages, she manages to do it in a way that is easily understood by adults and teens alike – I know because my 14-year-old read the introduction and was able to tell me exactly what the concept was, who it was for and how it should be used.

The youth edition is written by youth for youth working with Dr Copeland – who created WRAP in 1997 – and Ed Anthes to better assist youth in managing their wellness and their lives.

It’s a great pocket guide that uses language, plans and activities that transcend its US origins, so that it applies just as much to an American teen as it does to a Kiwi one.

The contents contain an overall description of WRAP, how to get started with your own WRAP and how to develop a wellness toolkit. Then the next six sections are intended to be used to actually create your own plans using lots of checklists and to dos. There is a daily maintenance plan, triggers and action plan, early warning signs and action plan, when things are getting much worse and action plan, crisis plan and post crisis plan.

There is a final section on how to use WRAP in your everyday lives and it encourages plan makers to celebrate! Making a WRAP is suitable for anybody wanting to feel better, get well and stay well over time. It’s a sensible, non-emotive practical resource. I like it.

Reviewed by Susie Hill, communications consultant and medical writer