Tag: substance use

Less? a film of personal stories from people who have experienced and overcome homelessness

This 12.5 minute video by Britain’s NHS interweaves stories of four people who experienced homelessness and are now housed. Included in their stories are accounts of ways they felt dehumanized and stigmatized in health care settings, as well as small acts of caring that encouraged them to seek help and experience self-worth. Several of the stories also speak about substance use disorders and provide context for understanding how they may be intertwined with homelessness. For example, Viv speaks about how terrifying it is to sleep outdoors and Jamesy’s story includes discussion of how his drug use and homelessness were precipitated by several traumatic events that happened in a short time period. One of the stories mentions an averted suicide attempt.

The video is brief enough to be used in a class, and could be paired with other materials that document the connections between homelessness, health care access, and risk of chronic and fatal health conditions (see, for example, Denise’s Last Days, published February 20, 2023 in Slate Magazine: https://slate.com/technology/2023/02/trauma-aware-care-homelessness-hope.html).

Columna de Adictos y adicciones: Mi experiencia en un grupo de doce pasos

This 5 page newspaper article (about a 15 minute read for advanced Spanish speakers; more for lower levels) is a transcript of an addict’s story as told to a Narcotics Anonymous group. Jose Antonio says that he was trapped by a “circle of death” and describes how addiction is a disease that isolates the addict from the world. NA teaches him the difference between religion and spirituality and he explains how this insight was important to his sobriety. Useful for insights into 12-step programs and their approach to addiction, perhaps best for a community group discussion.

Bipolarations

David Martinez tells of his experience with bipolar disorder through childhood flashbacks that detail his family’s desire to deny that anything was “wrong,” their wariness of therapy, his placement in a classroom for “troubled” youth, his dropping out and his drug use. He describes the relief it was to receive, at age 32, a diagnosis and prescription medication for his condition and his subsequent work to integrate “the boy” he was and the college professor he is now. His story provides insight into how he experiences the “highs” and “lows” of his bipolar condition. He includes self-portraiture to tell his story. A recurring theme is uncertainty about what is “real”–his euphoric and dysphoric experiences, his diagnosis–and the distinction between internal experience and how one appears to others.

The essay could prompt discussion about the role of family in encouraging or discouraging treatment for mental health issues, the reasons why people may not take medications, the ways people mask or express mental health experiences.

This essay appeared in Please See Me, an online literary journal that features health-related stories by members of vulnerable populations, and those who care for them.