Stigma Unraveled - Addiction Unmasked

A behind the scenes look

This online publication aims to explore and mitigate the stigma associated with addiction and substance use disorder. We’ll be developing educational programs and resources aimed at health professionals over the next 12+ months. This substack provides a forum to share ideas, explain our thinking, and gather feedback from like-minded folks who have lived experience. We hope to engage leading scientists, health professionals, peer navigators, and patient advocates. We’ve got a lot to learn.

Lots of great resources already exist, and we hope to capitalize on the work that’s already been done (and being done) in this space. The National Academy of Medicine published a comprehensive report entitled Ending Discrimination Against People with Mental and Substance Use Disorders (2016) and hosted the Stigma of Addiction Summit in 2021. And Shatterproof has made some critical contributions by creating and implementing the Ending Stigma Action Plan and developing the Shatterproof Addiction Stigma Index. And the William Magee Center at the University of Mississippi is creating a model of how to address stigma and addiction on college campuses.

We’ve witnessed how other movements significantly impact social change in our lifetimes. From the HIV/AID crisis in the 1980s/1990s to the work of RAINN (Rape, Abuse, and Incest National Network), it involves grassroots efforts to change the hearts (emotions) and minds (beliefs) toward a marginalized group. People with addiction, particularly those with a substance use disorder, live in fear and shame. We need to unravel stigma. It’s killing people.

We hope to play our part in our little corner of the world.