Our LGBTQIA2S+ communities are statistically more affected by alcoholism and addiction, or substance use that dominates our lives with negative impacts. The systems we live within cause profound harm to us and our communities–even more so with intersecting identities of race, ethnicity, class, disability, gender queerness, sexuality, and neurodiversity. The Equi Institute’s Recovery Mentorship and Harm Reduction Support Program is an LGBTQ2SIA+-specific support service for adults.
Certified Recovery Mentors (CRMs) share a lived experience of addiction and recovery. They are here to help you in your own harm reduction or recovery path as you choose it. Whether you are newly in recovery or have been on a recovery journey for some time; we are here for you. This confidential and free support does not require abstinence, only a desire to make a positive change.
We recognize that recovery is any positive change and that there are many roads on this shared journey. We support harm reduction as a path and practice. We have a holistic view and know that the systemic burdens and barriers that compound oppression, difficulty, and suffering throughout life; substances are a symptom, not the root of a problem.
We are here to support you where you are whether you are still using your substance(s) of choice, ready to make whatever positive change is right for you, or are seeking peer support in ongoing recovery. You are the expert on your own life. We are here to help you help yourself by providing a trauma-informed and supportive space.
“When do I need to ask for help?”
If you find it hard or impossible to stop once you start
When you try to hide how much you are using
Routinely using to cope with feelings
Increased tolerance and needing more to get the same effect
Failing in attempts to stop or moderate use
When your social life and relationships center around drinking or using
Impulse control and risky or self-destructive behavior when intoxicated
If you’re experiencing a concurrent loss of relationships, self-worth, physical or mental health challenges, or the ability to direct your life
If your thoughts and days revolve around planning when you can use your substance of choice
When you have reasons you want to stop or change how you drink or use and struggle with making a change that can last
And finally…you can ask for help whenever you want. We do not need to have a devastating “rock bottom” to utilize harm reduction practices and recovery paths.
Our Certified Recovery Mentors can help you with:
Providing trauma-informed LGBTQIA2S+ affirming recovery and harm reduction support
Harm reduction supplies
Empathy, connection, and guidance with queer peers in recovery
Co-creating change plans based on your starting point, goals, and values
Advocacy when seeking or attending detox, substance use treatment, or sober living options
Strategies to manage your recovery, take care of yourself, build self-trust, and live in a new way
Advocacy navigating community resources
Helping you explore options for connecting to a larger recovery or harm reduction community that is right for you
Helping you build life-affirming self-efficacy (ability to make changes one step at a time)
Working with Equi’s Community Health Worker team to help navigate the healthcare system
Reach out to TO OUR TEAM AND start your recovery journey today.
If you are from an organization and a client would like to be connected with trans and queer-focused Recovery Mentorship,
please use the referral form below.
Get connected with the equi institute’s Instagram
and stay tuned for future recovery meetings and events!
We embrace any positive change as recovery and part of our queer liberation.
We reject any stigma surrounding addiction, recovery, and harm reduction.
Together, we can create a community where everyone has access to the support and resources they need to thrive.