Our fifth community empowerment workshop talks about a something close to the heart of the community, drugs and addiction. With very little peer support and community bonding, many in the community know someone who has encountered drug abuse. The amazing facilitators from Lifeline came down to share more about what causes addiction and how to get out of the cycle.
After a quick round of self introductions, we were introduced to what addiction is and what causes addiction. Addiction is traditionally thought to be caused by the mere exposure to drugs. However, recent findings suggest that what encourages addiction is the lack of encouraging social environment and peers.
Riddled with pressures from family, finances, and shelter, many transgender individuals don’t have the proper mechanism and support system to cope and turn to drugs and other vices. This then contributes to a vicious cycle of drug abuse, jail time and rehab, unemployment, and poverty.
The Lifeline team shared rehabs and support groups for people dealing with addiction, as well as how we can support our friends who are recovering.
This is a really powerful workshop with very beneficial information for the community and anyone else dealing with addiction. Thank you very much to all the brave individuals who shared their personal stories with addiction and supportive words for others.
This workshop would not be the possible without the amazing support of AWARE and our facilitators from Lifeline.
For more pictures from all the past workshop, visit our gallery.