Why I Help Addicts Shoot Up: Interview With Meera Bai, Christian Nurse & Harm Reduction Advocate

Why I help addicts shoot up: Interview with Meera Bai, Christian nurse & harm reduction advocate – Put in simple terms harm reduction is meeting people where they are at. In the homeless service’s space harm reduction also means being sober is not a requirement for services such as housing. My recent visit with Donny in Calgary [bit.ly is a near text book example. Donny was drinking and using on the streets for over 20 years, but when he got into housing and was given some dignity Donny got sober all on his own. But Donny was also lucky. He never really got into very hard drugs, so it was easier for him to get sober. Often this is hard for ‘normal’ people to understand but there is a point where drugs take over a persons life. They lose all reason and self-worth. Their whole existence revolves around getting another fix. Often this path takes a person down an unthinkable path of self-destruction. People end up doing things to survive that are horrible. HIV , Hepatitis C, and drug related deaths become a very serious public safety issue for all of us. One story I heard from a few different people is addicts using puddles of urine to “fix” their heroin. The thought makes me cringe, but I know what drugs did to me when I was heavily addicted. I needed drugs more than I needed air and would do anything to get them. My second city in Canada was Vancouver and I spent a day in Vancouver’s Downtown East side. [bit.ly have always wanted to visit a “wet shelter” (a shelter that provides alcohol) to see for myself. I call myself a ‘liberal redneck’ so although I do lean towards a …

When the addiction cure is another addiction

Filed under: christian drug addiction help

Addiction manifests itself in different compulsions and behaviours, which is critical to recognise during the treatment process. Rather than identifying patients by their drug of choice, which may be transitory, research suggests we institute a broader …
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Lecrae's Balancing Act: Religion, Race, and Holy Hip-Hop

Filed under: christian drug addiction help

With the release of his new album, Gravity, earlier this month, Lecrae is growing in popularity as a hip-hop artist among audiences Christian and non-Christian, black and white. The Associated … Holy Hip-Hop artists often appear in front of white …
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Trying to quit smoking? Patches, drugs help: study

Filed under: christian drug addiction help

A man smokes a cigarette during a pause in the senior delegates meeting of the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in the western city of Recklinghausen, September 3, 2012. REUTERS/Ina Fassbender … "Smokers in the United Kingdom, Canada …
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Christians, religious leaders gather for Coalfield Day to Fast and Pray

Filed under: christian drug addiction help

A priest in the Anglican Catholic Church, Smith said job loss means more than the loss of a paycheck. He said it means loss of lifestyle and being unable to provide for a family. Smith said this often leads to drug or alcohol abuse, domestic problems …
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