MHRN to host three-day course at Gaynor Family Regional Library
Do you want to learn more about addiction, harm reduction, and how we can make a difference in our community? The Manitoba Harm Reduction Network (MHRN) is giving area residents the chance to learn about this and more at their three-day Harm Reduction 3.0 Beyond the Needle workshop which will take place at the Gaynor Family Regional Library on Dec. 5 to 7.
“[This workshop is] the delivery of the harm reduction model through an anti-racist racism and an anti-oppression lens,” explained Shohan Illsley, Executive Director of the Manitoba Harm Reduction Network.
Illsley went on to say that this means that in the course they talk about oppression and how oppression and systems of violence impact harms related to people’s substance use.
“Recognizing that the majority of people use substances, whether it’s alcohol, cannabis, or other substances. What we know is that there’s a relationship between oppressions and systems of violence and harms related to that substance use,” said Illsley.
She says that it’s important to have harm reduction resources in our communities because the usual methods that we employ to help people using substances aren’t working well in our province due to lack of access as well as lack of analysis related to substance use.
“It’s important because we need to do something different to support our relatives. Because if we work from a harm reduction model, we know that our relatives who use substances will have better outcomes,” said Illsley.
In addition to having harm reduction resources like education for those that use substances, naloxone kits and other ways people can keep themselves safe, and STBBI testing resources, which allow people to keep others safe, it’s important that people in our community learn more about harm reduction in order to reduce the stigma.
“We all love somebody who uses substances and that means we all can be a support for folks who use substances. Also, education is really important in our communities because it helps to decrease stigma related to substance use. And for our relatives who are having challenges with substance use, in order for them to be able to seek out help, we have to address the stigma,” said Illsley.
If she could spread one message from the Harm Reduction 3.0 Beyond the Needle education to our community it would be that it’s not unusual for people to use substances.
“Using substances to alter the state of mind is a normal behaviour and it’s also quite expected. We know that 70 to 80 per cent of people will use an illegal substance in their lifetime to alter their state of mind. When the numbers are that high, it means that it’s really important for us to stop othering but also important for us to have an analysis of why some people end up with problematic use or why some people end up with substance dependence while others do not. Because everybody can end up [with problematic use]. There’s not a certain cohort that gets problematic use but the common denominator is adverse childhood experiences, trauma and mental health and those are all health issues. And so, when I think of what I want the community to know, one is that substance use is normal and two is that the war on drugs is making substance use more, not less, harmful in our communities,” said Illsley.
She encourages people in our community who work with people who use substances or have those in their lives that they wish to support to consider this educational opportunity.
“If you work with folks who use substances, it’s definitely a good idea to engage in some of this training or any other harm reduction training you can. But also, if you love folks who use substances because even when we do our training, lots of folks are sitting there as service providers but many of them are also thinking about their loved ones, their family members, and their relatives who also have some challenges related to substance use. So, we’re all impacted by it. You don’t have to be a service provider. And in fact, what we know is that mostly we all support people who use substances in some way, shape, or form and learning how to do that in a good way that doesn’t further stigmatize or isolate people is really important,” said Illsley.
You can learn more about harm reduction and workshops at the MHRN’s website at https://mhrn.ca/ and keep up with them on Facebook for the most up-to-date information at https://www.facebook.com/ManitobaHarmReductionNetwork/
