Death By Overdose

Krista – “Mental illness and self medicating”

Krista talks about mental health and self medicating. Krista continues to grieve the death of her son from opioid overdose.

Thoughts on International Overdose Awareness Day 2023

We lead multifaceted lives, and the deaths of those we love who have died by drug poisoning contain multitudes. The death of a loved one can bring intense grief, shock, anger, shame, or guilt. People who use drugs, and those who love them that they leave behind, face stigma in North America’s dominant, settler culture.

Nicole – Working in Community Outreach

Nicole discusses her work in community outreach and how she has lived experience with addiction and living rough.

Kate – Miracle baby

Kate shares about her brothers daughter being born after he had died

Krista – “Opioids and Mental Illness”

Krista talks about opioids and mental health. Krista continues to grieve the death of her son from opioid overdose.

Krista – “The way I dealt with shame”

Krista talks about confronting shame head on. Krista continues to grieve the death of her son from opioid overdose.

When Death Feels like a Thief

In the heart of my grief, at my frailest, all I could see was what was no more. I grieved all that was stolen from me by death; love, security and even my very self. Had I known the value of having every pocket of who I was, picked bare by grief, I would not have fought so hard to hold onto it all.

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.

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

Collective Grief

When the death of a person affects many members in a community, city, country, or across the world, people will experience collective grief.

These are some things that can help people through the experience of collective grief across a community.

Krista – “Feel the feelings”

Krista discusses why she thinks it’s important to deal with feelings. Krista continues to grieve the death of her son from opioid overdose.

Sarah K – Coping

Sarah discusses how she copes with this unbelievably painful loss