Brain injuries, fatigue, frustration: The living toll of B.C.’s decade-long toxic drug emergency

Many overdose survivors are left forever changed, as are those who’ve been at their side.

The staggering numbers of dead as a result of toxic drugs rightly garner the most headlines, but British Columbia’s decade-long public health emergency has also taken a toll on first responders, families, and advocates.

The estimates vary widely, but there’s no doubt that many more people survive overdoses than succumb to the toxic mix of random chemicals poisoning the illicit drug supply — making for a never-ending chain of patients for first responders.

“If I’m honest, paramedics on the front lines and our dispatchers, we don’t even really consider it an emergency or even a crisis anymore because it’s just business as usual,” said Ian Tait, spokesperson for the Ambulance Paramedics of B.C.

“The work just isn’t done, the calls keep coming in.”

Their union is urging the province to reconsider its reversal of the decriminalization of personal possession of hard drugs, which is the long-standing position of advocacy group Moms Stop the Harm.

READ MORE:

• ‘No single solution’ as B.C. marks 10 years since toxic drug crisis declared public health emergency
• B.C. health officer Bonnie Henry is disappointed by reversal of decriminalization

“It’s hard not to feel like things are regressing a little bit,” said executive director J. Stewart, who said the organization’s board feels the government has caved to public and political pressure and moralizing, rather than following the science affirming the benefits of harm reduction measures.

• READ MORE: From shame and secrecy to Suboxone: B.C. drug users credit harm reduction for recoveries

“It’s embarrassing the number of studies and research that shows this and you keep having to say this over and over and over and over again,” he said. “You can keep people alive and save money, or you can dig in your heels, spend more money, and see more people die.”

The silent anguish of overdose-driven brain injuries

An unknown number of overdose survivors have had their lives forever altered by toxic drugs, the severity varying depending on how long their brains went without oxygen.

“There are challenges in decision making, problem solving, emotional regulation, fatigue, all of those pieces (including) short-term memory loss,” explained Janelle Breese Biagioni, executive director of Brain Injury B.C.

She pointed out most affected people aren’t diagnosed with brain injuries, so they don’t seek the kind of treatment that could dramatically improve their life and the lives of their family members.

• READ MORE: Brain injury a shadow crisis amid overdose deaths in British Columbia

“If we don’t do that for people, we will continue to see this spiral downwards, so we need to not abandon them,” Breese Biagioni said. “They’re not the same person and there’s a process for them to go through to get to who they’re going to be now and to begin to thrive.”

The free and easy access to the overdose antidote, Naloxone, has made a huge difference in surviving toxic drug poisonings. Biagioni estimates there are 15 to 30 survivors for each overdose death, meaning there are tens of thousands of British Columbians likely living with brain injuries as a result.

Canada’s first Recovery Café a model for connection

Policy makers and the public alike are coming around to the fact that drug addiction is a chronic condition, with relapses common and to be expected.

That makes places like East Vancouver’s Recovery Café a vital place for those continuing their recovery journey after leaving detox and in-patient treatment.

“I was feeling very scared and very unsupported and decided that the easiest way out would be to end my life, and after a couple of unsuccessful attempts at that, I made the decision to go to detox,” said Brad Conn, a member of the café. “By the time I went into detox, I was completely surrounded by substance use.”

READ MORE:

• Deaths of despair: Gabor Maté urges empathy during B.C.’s toxic drug crisis
• Detox wait times plummet after B.C. innovates drug treatment intake

He’s been attending the café for three years, finding kinship and community with others who’ve had similar experiences, while getting a free lunch and barista training at the spacious members-only café.

“We have to remember that once that clinical phase ends, life goes on for folks,” said Damian Murphy, the café’s manager. “We provide a safe, sober space where people can come be with others.”

As one member played music on the café’s piano and the laughter of other visitors echoed from the main room, Murphy explained that the Kettle Society provided some skills training, internet access, advice on how to go back to school, and peer support among other services — with the only requirement being that members attend a weekly “recovery circle” meeting.

• READ MORE: How B.C.’s approach to toxic drugs and addiction is changing

“It’s a chance to share with others what’s going on with their recovery, successes, challenges, goals for the future,” he said. “We know that addiction is a chronic, relapsing condition and the riskiest times can be when people have left that close supervision and go back into community.”