| |  | Barnstable County Regional Substance Addiction Council (RSAC) monthly E-newsletter is a tether of communication across towns, providers, organizations, and individuals on Cape Cod providing information on substance use across the continuum of prevention, harm reduction, treatment, and recovery. | | November is National Substance Abuse Prevention Month | | |
November is officially recognized as National Substance Abuse Prevention Month — emphasizing proactive, ongoing efforts to stop the initiation and progression of substance use, especially among teens and young adults.
SAFE Project believes there is No Shame in getting help or in talking about mental health and addiction.
Join the movement to end stigma.
There is #NoShame in getting help or in talking about mental health and addiction. Join us in creating a nationwide movement to end stigma and support others in speaking up about their own disorders — sign SAFE Project's No Shame Pledge today!
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Community Opioid Funds Listening Sessions
Your voice matters! The Towns of Brewster, Chatham, Dennis, Orleans, and Harwich are working together to solicit feedback from residents to help make spending decisions. These Listening Sessions are intended to gather input on best use of Opioid Settlement funds and to foster regional collaboration. Join us for our in-person and hybrid Listening Sessions!
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Survey Information
For those unable to attend a listening session at any of the scheduled times, there is also a community survey to collect their input. To access the survey online click HERE, scan the QR code or print the paper copy HERE.
Questions? Contact Jo Morrissey at jomorrissey@crescendocg.com
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Safe Opioid Supply Leads to Better Outcomes
Safer opioid supply programs are effective strategies against the opioid epidemic, reducing overdoses, infections, and health care costs.
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World AIDS Day
Monday, December 1st, 2025 – 4:30 PM
Provincetown AIDS Memorial, Provincetown Town Hall
This event is free and open to the public.
For questions, contact Jenn at events@asgcc.org
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CHAMPS: Children Amplified Prevention Services
CHAMPS is a unique initiative in the scope of UNODC operations. It aims to amplify the resilience of children from birth to adolescence and by doing so preventing the use of drugs and other outcomes sharing a similar vulnerability faced by children as they grow.
The amplification of the prevention effect is sought by: Applying science and standards in prevention leaving no child behind, covering all ages of development through multiple interventions accounting for the social setting and by building a system of prevention bringing a strong partnership between public, private, academic, civil society, international organizations sectors and beyond. It targets healthy and safe development of children at all ages, all levels of risk and in diverse settings. Implemented through integrated services aligned with science and applied through impactful systems focused on the child. Supporting the expansion of issue-based themed to a person/population focused approach CHAMPS will also mean investing in interventions aligned with science which will be actually effective in preventing the use of drugs and of other psychoactive substances.
| From Safe Side Prevention: Language Matters: How to Talk About Substance Use and Suicide | |
Words shape how people see themselves and their willingness to seek help. While there has been a major focus on improving the language we use around suicide, we also need to be mindful of how we talk about substance use, especially since these issues often intersect.
The problem with stigmatizing language is not just that the words are outdated – they can actively do harm. This stigma can prevent help-seeking and affect the quality-of-care providers offer.
Easy swaps that make a difference:
- Instead of addict, use person with substance and alcohol use disorder
- Instead of substance abuse, use substance and alcohol use (with severity noted when relevant)
- Instead of clean/dirty, use testing negative/positive or in recovery/actively using
- Instead of habit, use substance and alcohol use disorder
- Instead of junkie, use person in active use or use the person’s name
- Instead of alcoholic, use person with alcohol use disorder
- Instead of former addict, use person in recovery or person in long-term recovery
Set the example. Even if someone uses stigmatizing language about themselves, maintain professional, respectful terminology. Your language models a different way of thinking about their situation and can influence how they see their own recovery potential. You can remind the person that they are more than their struggles, that their current and/or past behaviors are not what defines them.
Bottom line: Addiction is a chronic, treatable medical condition, not a moral failing. Our language should reflect that understanding and support people's journey to recovery.
| Peer Grief Support – The Sun Will Rise Foundation | |
The Sun Will Rise Foundation provides free peer grief support for those who have experienced the death of someone they care about due to substance use related causes. Not only from overdose, but also from suicide, homicide, accident, and medical complications due to drug/alcohol use. We understand the profound impact that grief can have on individuals, families and peers and we acknowledge the unique challenges and feelings that surround these types of losses. We are here to offer care, compassion, community, understanding, and support.
| | upcoming community events | |
SADOD Workshop: Grieving Ambiguous Relationships
Monday, November 17, 2025 | 6:30–8:00 PM
Details:
• Held virtually via Zoom
• Learn more and register at bit.ly/disenfranchised-panel
• Free for Massachusetts residents (use promo code MASS)
• $10 fee for out-of-state participants
• If cost is a barrier, please email Laura@sadod.org
This workshop is designed to offer understanding, connection, and support to anyone navigating grief outside of traditional roles.
Join SADOD for a compassionate, panel-based virtual workshop, Grieving Ambiguous Relationships: Exes, parental figures, sibling-like friends, and more. This session explores a deeply overlooked experience—grieving the loss of someone who may not fit traditional ideas of “family,” yet held a profound place in your life.
While society often acknowledges the grief of legal next of kin, many people who experience equally deep loss receive little understanding or support. This workshop brings together individuals who have been bereaved by the death of someone close to them but not considered traditional family. Through open, honest conversation, the panel will help normalize and validate grief in all its forms and encourage participants to seek support regardless of their relationship to the deceased.
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LEAP Onboarding Sessions Now Open
LEAP (the BSAS Lived Experience Advisory Panel) is a statewide group of community members with lived experience who help inform and strengthen programs overseen by BSAS—the Massachusetts Bureau of Substance Addiction Services. To become eligible for consulting opportunities, LEAP members must complete three onboarding steps: LEAP Orientation, the BSAS 101 eLearning module, and Community Academies—in any order.
Upcoming Opportunities:
• BSAS 101: Self-paced online module
• LEAP Orientation: Multiple virtual options available
• Community Academies: First series focuses on Procurement and preparing members to review BSAS funding applications
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Real Eyes Truth Inc. – November Workshops
Join free community workshops designed to help you strengthen coping skills, support emotional wellness, and explore holistic approaches to healing.
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BSAS Professional Development & Training Opportunities
Stay up to date on the latest free and low-cost professional development offered through the Massachusetts Bureau of Substance Addiction Services (BSAS). BSAS provides training for the substance use, mental health, public health, and recovery workforce, including CEU-bearing courses, skill-building workshops, and on-demand learning.
Where to Find Trainings:
• All BSAS-funded opportunities are listed on the Careers of Substance Training & Events Calendar (filter by “BSAS-sponsored events”).
• Recovery Coach trainings are available through the BSAS-funded REC Training Calendar at massrec.org and also appear on the Careers of Substance calendar.
• Individual training listings include CEUs, registration links, and scholarship or free options.
On-Demand Learning:
The Department of Public Health now offers TRAIN Massachusetts (TRAIN MA)—a statewide online platform with free, self-paced courses for the public health workforce.
Questions? Email BSAS.Learning@mass.gov.
| | Thanksgiving Meal Distributions and Community Dinner | Buy Fresh Buy Local 2025 Farmers Market Calendar | | Nutrition educators have assisted in coordination of Buy Fresh Buy Local Cape Cod with the mission of connecting people and businesses on the Cape with locally grown farm and sea products. Through Buy Fresh Buy Local Cape Cod, resources are created to assist individuals and families in purchasing, cooking, and storing fresh foods. Below are collections of cooking videos, recipes, cookbooks, and other resources to help families and communities better understand Cape Cod’s local food system and access to fresh, local food. | |
Food Access Cape Cod
Be sure to download our Cape & Islands Food Access Resource Guide! This publication is updated regularly by the Barnstable County Cape Cod Cooperative Extension and contains all the information you need for food accessibility.
| | | Are You Represented on Our Network of Care Service Directory Website? | |
The Barnstable County Department of Human Services’ Network of Care (NOC) SERVICE DIRECTORY website, is a robust local health and human services directory with resources for individuals, families, and agencies on Cape Cod with public health questions and concerns.
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