Nov 29, 2022
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HELP ME END THE STIGMA! Stigma is killing more people than any drug on this earth. @resurrektion_of_me said it perfectly… “My heart is broken that maybe somehow I haven’t made this crystal clear to everyone in my life- I am a sober person who loves people who use drugs. I don’t mean I love them in hopes that they find recovery. I mean I fucking love them just as they are and I want them on this earth forever. If you use drugs or are thinking of using… PLEASE DO NOT USE ALONE! I invite you to use in front of me. I am a safe and loving person who can watch over you in case anything happens. Narcan is worthless if there’s no one there to administer it. If you are a safe a loving person who wants people who use drugs to know that they can use in front of you too… tell them. Please make sure that they feel accepted and supported. If you’ve been sober and have gone back to using and feel excluded and judged by your recovery circle… get a new fucking circle. Fuck the day count. Fuck the new comer chips. Fuck the humiliation tactics. Fuck the shaming in the name of accountability. A human life matters so much more than any of that superiority bs. I don’t want to lose anymore beautiful people to the stigma that permeates our society. The stigma we swallow and turns into a beast of shame in our souls. Stigma is killing more people than any drug on this earth. No one should feel afraid to ask for someone to sit with them while they use. No one should feel like a disappointment or a burden just because they are struggling or want to use drugs. We have designated drivers for folks who want to drink… we need the same globally supported initiatives for those who want to use other drugs. Period.” #stigmakills #fuckstigma #endstigma #stigmafighter #mentalhealthstigma #addictionstigma #harmreduction #harmreductionsaveslives #harmreductionworks #narcan #narcansaveslives #neverusealone #naloxone #naloxonesaveslives #overdose #overdoseawareness #endoverdose #substanceuse #pwud #cranbrookbc #cranbrook #kimberleybc #agoodplacetobe #mykimberley #eknpud #pwud #peoplewhousedrugs #eastkootenays #peerwitnessing (at Los Angeles, California) https://www.instagram.com/p/CQylFINsc09/?utm_medium=tumblr
How Harm Reduction Is Saving Lives
Research shows that harm reduction is minimizing risk and keeping people alive. “This is about saving lives. We know people take drugs. We don’t have to condone it but nor should we judge people or bury our heads in the sand. It’s our job to do whatever we can to help people make informed choices about the risks they’re taking.”—Roz Gittins, Addaction’s Director of Pharmacy Harm reduction is…
4B Harm Reduction , Street Works , Bissel Outreach , Indigo Harm Reduction , Moms Stop The Harm , Aawear , substance use and addiction program- yeg , capud
It means so much to me to stand with such amazing advocates who’ve made huge strides in this peer led initiative to end the war on drugs. I’ve done just about every illicit drug out there, I’ve struggled immensely with addiction, had truly amazing highs that have expanded my consciousness, drugs that helped me connect with others, that got me through hard times and of course caused hard times. I’ve never wanted anyone to be ashamed of the pleasure or relief they seek in substances because if we look at ourselves with a compassionate lens we can see that we are all just curious or hurting. The addicted population makes up such a small percentage of substance users and I’ve yet to find one person who was addicted that wasn’t incredibly traumatized and in survival mode. I think we look at surviving through a weird perspective. In some cases it’s considered honourable and inspirational and other times we shame people for their inability to escape struggle.
Unfortunately the most stigmatized are the addicted and hurting while others just partake in whatever substance they wish and they never have to share that experience with anyone.
We can go into nightclubs and bars and drink our faces off, buy expensive festival tickets and party all week or engage in cultural or spiritual practice without much worry.
We rarely think about what it’s like to not be privileged. What about the people who get caught doing the very things we do , even if we’ve only just experimented a handful of times.
If you’ve tried a drug without consequences you really owe it the people who are locked up behind bars, the people on the streets who take on the majority of the moral shame and stigma which places barriers in front of them in terms of healthcare, employment, housing and especially those who’ve lost their lives to the toxic drug supply.
The more we criminalize and demonize substances the more unstable the market becomes. The need and the curiosity have never gone away and so we desperately try to accommodate supply and demand through any unregulated means necessary.
It’s not a problem that affects only those in poverty or those struggling with mental injury/ illness… that drug supply is the same for us all. The most educated are the most high risk because we connect with them every day.
At the end of the day it’s not someone else that’s dying - it’s us. Mothers, fathers , daughters , sons , friends, lovers, neighbours
We shouldn’t have to hide the things we find joy in
We shouldn’t feel ashamed for not knowing how to cope and we most certainly shouldn’t think we are somehow better than because we have money and privilege. Those people die too.
I stood in the scorching sun next to some of my favourite nurses and realized they are here because of people like me. People who admit their truth, who can be vulnerable enough to share their personal hardships and stories to help others understand that we are worth helping and loving and fighting for.
We all have a story. It’s a privilege for you to hear it.
We are the brave ones , the ones who can stand up to injustice, to stigma, moral judgement and defend the goodness of our character.
Remember that next time you’re partying on some extravagant weekend bender - perhaps you’re too ashamed to admit it
But we aren’t , we’re here to teach you how to create brave spaces and value your rights as a human.
You’re welcome
Pop quiz!
What do you think this is ?
It was sold as Molly
My guess was meth
This substance tested positive as benzos and fent only
Test your drugs. Appearances are misleading
My mom called me to say her friends daughter lost her fight to addiction. The autopsy report showed a fatal dose of fentanyl. She leaves behind three boys under the age of 5. She was only 32
It’s not a realistic expectation that fear of what could happen will suddenly make active drug users simply stop. I think as humans we fear the inability to face our darkest truths. When you struggle with things like traumatic experience or mental health disorders you run much higher risk of addiction and have an even harder time getting yourself out. I believe all addiction ultimately stems from trauma. I think more than ever the concept of harm reduction and policy change should be at the forefront of this epidemic.
It’s ok to say you’re not ready but it isn’t all that hard to be as kind to yourself in the process of your pain.
Harm reduction is carrying naloxone
Using with friends and taking turns
If you have to use alone you can download apps to be in contact with compassionate medical professionals and peer support specialist’s who are there to keep you alive and respect your life’s story.
Seeking help for addiction through programs like
SMART Recovery is the leading evidence-based addiction recovery program. Join a free meeting today and begin experiencing a Life Beyond Addi
And at the very least testing your substance so you can use safely.
I feel overwhelmed a bit lately. I’m working peer outreach where I come face to face with death and disease, my closest friends struggle immensely with their own traumatic experience and unhealthy coping mechanisms such as high risk sexual encounters, sharing drug supplies and taking unknown substances that all too often lead to fatality.
My old boss told me my dream job reached out for a reference and so … it’s all around me.
I can only hope that through meeting new people working in the healthcare industry that I’ll grow my own support network which just seems really small here.
I struggle everyday with dysregulated emotions, extreme fear of intimacy, fear of being alone and unworthy of love because of what’s happened to me, grief, shame, poor body image, imposter syndrome and anxiety and depression.
I guess I just realized that all my life I’ve just wanted to live without fear, with security, with love and health and someone wonderful to grow into something beautiful with.
Maybe that’s fairytale dreaming , I’ve done that ever since I was a little girl because I wanted to escape the fighting and screaming and abuse. I wanted to feel like the girl that ever dude thinks is beautiful while at the same time make myself as ugly and unhealthy as possible so no one would notice me. So I could hide.
Addiction soothes those overwhelming fears but it doesn’t ever make them go away. It robs you of everything you want and makes you think it’s the love you never received. It’s a trap.
Pain sucks, it’s exhausting, frightening, infuriating, isolating ….
Trust , I get it. One of the most soothing feelings the traumatized child will ever experience is the moment it chooses self love. When you can sit with the scared little kid and tell them they are loved, they are worthy and they matter. Most of all, that they are safe.
I’ve devoted myself to it and still sleep alone to protect myself from fears that don’t exist , they are just memories. Fragmented little clips of all the times people have brutally hurt me.
It’s not easy but I’m certain it will be worth it. I truly believe for the first time in my whole life that I am loved, worthy, safe and I matter. Everyone’s trauma is unique , but our healing is found within love.
If you’re struggling with addiction, I hope you know that there is hope and even if sobriety isn’t in the cards just yet… safety is always a choice that can be made. You are worthy of being safe.
Emotions are a beautiful monster
Let them come, let them go
They don’t change that you are deserving of joy.
I hope y’all make it out. Stay safe out there