Death By Overdose

Kristal – Attending Memorials as a Support Worker

Kristal discusses the importance of finding ways to honour people that have been lost and how they have impacted you. She speaks to how she often chooses not to attend public memorials for those she has lost as a support worker as they are often very overwhelming. Instead, she has her own personal rituals or ways of honouring those she has lost personally including opening a window. She discusses how this practice was used when she worked in palliative care.

Christian – “Grief in the opioid crisis”

Christian talks about looking for answers in great sadness.

Sarah K – Therapy helps

Sarah talks about how grief and trauma therapy has helped her in grief for her husbands death and how much trauma she was experiencing from his substance use disorders and entail health challenges

Weathering the Intense Emotions of Grief

Grief often comes with powerful, unpredictable emotional shifts that can be painful to experience. While it’s important to find ways to sit with these feelings, to acknowledge the pain of grief and accept loss, it’s also necessary to find ways to ease and manage the pain. There are several simple activities that you can explore to help.

Sarah K – Grieving in isolation

Sarah discusses isolation, being in grief during the pandemic and the importance of keeping connected

Kate – Trust and listening

Kate – explains how having someone you trust is super important so that you can have a space space to go to

Krista – “It does get easier”

Krista talks about time and acceptance. Krista continues to grieve the death of her son from opioid overdose.

The Reflection Room® project: How storytelling supports processing grief

The Reflection Room project is an evidence-based participatory art installation that was developed by researchers at the SE Research Centre and Memorial University in 2016. The project included a research component that evaluated the impact of Reflection Rooms as the project adapted over time to address changing needs.

Kristal – Professional Experience and Work

Kristal discusses being a peer support woker, working on a one on one level with community members to help them with their goals related to substance abuse. She supports those in the community dealing with loss and grief. She speaks to everyone’s experience with loss and grief being very individual.

Kate – Time to process

Kate shares about time and processing her grief especially during COVID

Kate – My art and my brother

Kate talks about being an artist and expression through art can remind her of her brothers encouragement

Krista – “How a counsellor helps”

Krista explains how a grief counsellor has helped.