Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic

Kristal – Poetry, Comedy, & Art for Grieving

April 23, 2023

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.

Art / Death By Overdose / Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic / I Am A Professional / Video

Kristal – Story of Lived Experience

April 23, 2023

Kristal discusses experiencing homelessness at multiple stages of her life and how that informs her work as a peer support worker. It gives her an understanding of the nuance that surrounds the community. She uses this experience to support people who are experiencing grief related to death from drug poisoning.

Death By Overdose / Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic / I Am A Professional / My Story Video / Video

Nicole – Pandemic’s Effect on Safe Spaces and Mental Health Access

March 25, 2023

Nicole discusses how the pandemic affected access to safe spaces and shelters for those living rough and living with addiction.

Collective/Community Grief / Death and Grief During a Pandemic / Death By Overdose / Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic / Supporting Others / Video

Kristal – Harm Reduction

April 23, 2023

Kristal speaks to the importance of harm reduction and how it can save lives. She discusses how accessing harm reduction leads to the creation of connections with community support. It allows community outreach members to connect with community members and get to know them, and to know to look for them if they don’t see them when they usually do.

Death By Overdose / Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic / I Am A Professional / Video

Nicole – Stigma Surrounding Drug Use

March 25, 2023

Nicole discusses how the stigma around drug use has an impact on how people feel able to grieve when those in their community are lost.

Collective/Community Grief / Death and Grief During a Pandemic / Death By Overdose / Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic / Supporting Others / Video

Kristal – Lack of Memorials During Pandemic

April 23, 2023

Kristal talks about how memorials can offer closure to people who are grieving, find a community, and share stories. With the absence of this during the pandemic, many people turned inward to grieve or isolated, which can create safety issues and have an impact on mental health. She speaks to how this leads to depression, physical pain, and it compounds upon itself.

Death By Overdose / Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic / I Am A Professional / Video

Christian – Language around those pushed to the margins

April 23, 2023

Christian talks about how people who are pushed to the margins are not discussed as part of our community and how we need to include them. As a community how do we care for our neighbours and how do we mourn the loss of our neighbours

Collective/Community Grief / Death and Grief During a Pandemic / Death By Overdose / Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic / I Am A Professional / Video

Grief & Drug Poisoning Toolkit [Free Downloadable PDF]

August 29, 2024

  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…

Bereavement Professionals' Insights / Blog Post / Collective/Community Grief / Death By Overdose / Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic / I Am A Griever / I Am A Professional / I Am A Supporter / Supporting Others / Toolkits

Christian – Grieving the whole person

April 23, 2023

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

Collective/Community Grief / Death and Grief During a Pandemic / Death By Overdose / Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic / I Am A Professional / Video

Kate – Triggers

March 11, 2023

Kate discusses how she deals with her emotions when something triggers her grief

Death and Grief During a Pandemic / Death By Overdose / Death of A Loved One / Death of a Sibling / Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic / I Am A Griever / Video

Kristal – Attending Memorials as a Support Worker

April 23, 2023

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.

Bereavement Professionals' Insights / Death By Overdose / Drug Poisoning and the Pandemic / I Am A Professional / I Am A Supporter / Video