Harm Reduction

A Word From Mark

Dear Friends of Radiant Futures,

Every year, Radiant Futures evaluates our program standards in an effort to increase our inclusivity and update policies that may be causing more harm than good. In 2019, one of the changes we made based on extensive research, was to adopt a harm reduction approach for survivors who use substances. Up to this point, survivors needed to be sober for at least three days before they could enroll in our programs.

A harm reduction approach recognizes that requiring individuals who may use substances to immediately stop can, in fact, be dangerous to their mental, physical, and emotional health. In order to ensure the survivor’s wellbeing, it is important to create a holistic plan that identifies the reason for use, and slowly replace the need for substance with healthy coping mechanisms.

As you can imagine, enduring abuse often leads survivors to creating an avenue of escape which tends to manifest itself into substance misuse. With the support of our team here at Radiant Futures, you- our donors, and our partnership with sobriety programs and experts, survivors can free themselves from their addiction and build the life they want.

I invite you to read Lilia’s story and see how your support impacted her life as she overcame her addiction, healed from abuse, and reclaimed her life. I also encourage you to read our article about the harm reduction approach and see why we adopted this method into our services. And I hope you will join us for our 6th Annual ¾ Time Dueling Piano event- sponsorships are now available- that raises funds to support survivors like Lilia.

Thank you for your partnership in bringing forth a future where everyone lives and thrives free from violence and harm.

In appreciation,

Mark

Read More From Mark

A New Normal: Lilia's Journey Through Addiction

It was just another normal day for Lilia. She chased down her coffee with a shot of whiskey, before waking her children up to take them to their first day of school. With backpacks on and excitement in the air, Lilia walked her children to school, kissing them and wishing them well. Lilia headed back home, where she continued to fill her glass while doing the chores. At 12PM on the dot, her husband called to check in on where she was and make sure she was not doing anything they had not agreed upon for the day. At 1PM she took a nap, and woke up at 2PM, finished off a couple of glasses before walking to pick up her children. This was Lilia’s normal, and it had been this way for the past 15 years. She needed the drink just to cope with her day and prepare for the evening.

There was a time Lilia could faintly recall, when there was joy in her life; when she looked forward to seeing her husband, when she brought home her twins, and when they first bought their house. But that was a distant memory, and now all she knew was this- numbing herself daily, to make it through.

Lilia's Journey Continues

A Different Way: Using a Harm Reduction Approach

Harm reduction is a philosophy that was first developed by people organizing against the HIV/AIDS crisis and other health issues among injection drug users. The Harm Reduction Coalition states: "Harm reduction is a set of practical strategies that reduce negative consequences of drug use, incorporating a spectrum of strategies from safer use, to managed use, to abstinence. Harm reduction strategies meet drug users where they are at, addressing conditions of use along with the use itself."

Redefined in terms of domestic violence and trafficking, harm reduction is a set of practical strategies that reduce negative consequences of certain survival and coping mechanisms that survivors use. It believes in creating a larger pool of options survivors can choose from, rather than narrowing them down through paternalistic guidance. It shifts the power back to the survivor as they navigate through their trauma, identify triggers that led to the dependency on the substance, and replace those responses with healthy coping mechanisms.