While there are various programs in the Lower Mainland that address substance use issues, two upcoming programs are intended to help LGBT people access resources by holding them within queer-supportive spaces.

Trauma and substance abuse

To address a trauma and substance abuse issues experienced by Indigenous two-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer people, the Four Feathers Society is launching Taking Back Your Power.

This group will be held on Tuesdays and Fridays from 5 to 7 p.m. from March 9 to 29 at the Native Courtworker and Counselling Association of B.C. (520 Richards Street). Dinner will be included.

The sessions, conducted by addiction counsellors Robert Hong and Carolynn Dimmer with elder Robert Klein, will incorporate smudging, talking circles, and Indigenous teachings, and will explore subjects such as the relationship between post-traumatic stress syndrome (PTSD) and healing from PTSD.

Naloxone training

In response to the overdose crisis in the Lower Mainland, Vancouver-based queer male centre Health Initiative for Men (HIM) has been providing staff and volunteer with naloxone training and are extending their Take Home Naloxone program to men from men who have sex with men (MSM) communities. Read more via Straight