Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic

Kate – COVID and grieving with my parents

Kate shares about how COVID was stress on top of dealing with the loss of her brother

Christian – COVID amplified the inequities in society

Christian talks about those that have very little and how COVID amplified their difficulties

Christian – Supporting people who may die

Christian talks about going from zero overdoses to 50 in a matter of months and how to help people who may die

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.

Grief & Drug Poisoning Toolkit [Free Downloadable PDF]

  Navigating life, death, and loss can be overwhelming. This toolkit is designed by mental health professionals and contains information about grief, different types of grief we may experience, gentle reminders on how to move through grief, as well as tips for those who may be supporting someone in their life who is grieving. This…

Kate – Things I do that help

Kate talks about how art, hiking and visiting the cemetery can be very therapeutic

Laura- Loss to Covid & Disconnection

Christian – Grieving spaces

Christian talks grieving spaces and people coming together when grieving

Kate – Miracle baby

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

Christian – Grieving the whole person

Christian talks about how we choose remember people when there has been a loss to drug poisoning

Kristal – Poetry, Comedy, & Art for Grieving

Kristal discusses using poetry and other forms of creative expression as a distraction from her grief and to disassociate in a safe and productive way. She discusses grief being love with nowhere to go, so she puts it into art.

Nicole – Working in Community Outreach

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