‘I see you, I hear you, I’ll help you’

West Broadway

North End

Winnipeg

A new opioid response training program is taking a crack at breaking down stigmas through education and community engagement.

The Ready to Respond community drug poisoning training — organized by Nahuen Consultation — is teaching attendees to recognize the symptoms of drug poisoning, administer naloxone, how to monitor symptoms, and how to react in high-stress scenarios.

“It’s my goal to train folks in opioid response,” said Victor Mondaca, co-founder of Nahuen Consultation alongside his partner Mandy. “And to continue until everyone is trained.”

Mondaca, a community safety consultant with a former substance use disorder, said helping others is part of his personal healing journey.

“I was given an opportunity to recover and educate,” he said, which he added isn’t unusual for people in similar situations who want to help after recovering.

The first training session Mondaca led had 37 participants.

“Some people are lived experience and others just wanted to help and that gave me hope,” he said.

“What I see lately is divisive,” he added, noting that “bias leaves room for misinformation,” which he says contributes to negative stigmas surrounding substance use disorders.

“We push that everyone is a community member (and) it’s troubling how we continue to marginalize and attack human suffering,” Mondaca said.

From June 24 to July 3, Winnipeg Police Service led a controversial drug crackdown in an attempt to limit public drug consumption.

Although final numbers were not released by WPS at press time, 25 people were arrested, and more than 100 had interactions with police in the North End.

“We didn’t find a cure, we moved them out of visibility,” he said, adding he thinks it will cause more harm because it will be harder to find people who are in crisis and need support.

“Community connection is the first step to recovery,” said Mondaca, which is how Nahuen Consultation got started.

It began as a community engagement organization that visited shelters and resource centres organizing DJs and karaoke for residents and staff. The goal was to engage everyone, Mondaca said.

“Bridge the gap with staff and relatives,” he said. After its programming, Mondaca said he noticed a reduction in violent instances. “Education is the solution.”

But education wasn’t always as formal as sitting in a classroom all day, he added.

“Education was previously shared through stories and conversation,” noting that’s the approach he wants to use while training. “(I want) to facilitate training through Indigenous connection. People come in and ask questions, it’s open and a natural progression.”

Mondaca said a smudge will be available to those wanting to set intentions during the program and the two-hour session will finish with a sharing circle.

“More people need sharing circles,” he said. “It tells me that helpers need help and they help at the expense of themselves.”

“Every inaction takes a chunk,” Mondaca explained, citing the high-stress situations. “I don’t want people to leave (the training) with distress.”

The drug response training program will take place on Thursday, July 23 from 6 to 8 p.m. at 333 Maryland St. To register for the training program, or resources about upcoming programming, visit nahuenconsultation.com

“No person wakes up, looks in the mirror, and says they want to get addicted. They show up saying how can I numb the pain,” Mondaca said. “Be gentle with each other.”