Changing the Stigmatizing Language of Addiction to Support Recovery – Produced by the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction
Gordon Garner:
My name is Gordon Garner. I’m here living in Ottawa and I’m living in recovery from substance use disorder. I’m the Chair of Recovery Day Ottawa, and I’m a Certified Addictions Counselor.
Chelsey June:
I’m Chelsey June. I’m part of the musical duo Twin Flames. I live here in Ottawa and I’ve been in recovery for 12 years.
Jaaji:
Hi, my name is Jaaji. I’m from Twin Flames, we’re a music group from Ottawa. And I’ve been in recovery for about three years now.
Gordon Garner:
Words matter because we begin to describe ourselves and people describe us by our behaviors, which are a result of our condition, but aren’t reflective of who we are. We’re actually the people who don’t approve of our own behaviors, but when we get merged in our behaviors, there’s no way out of that is what I am, then that is what I am. So where’s the exit then? If I’m a person who’s suffering from these behaviors, then I remain a person and I have an exit into that person. So I think it’s critical that we change the language.
Chelsey June:
So when I first started talking about my recovery and felt comfortable enough to open up about it, I used to say that I’ve been clean for however amount of years that had been at the time. But when I met Gord, he used the term recovery. And I never once heard him use the term clean. And when I described myself that way, he spoke a little bit about the word recovery and how much more of a gentle approach that is, because saying that you’re clean, it’s almost like saying that you were dirty at one point or you were doing something wrong. And I think a part of recovery, and a part of accepting those choices that we’ve made in the past, are being able to make peace with it and then be proud of who we are today in this moment.
Jaaji:
Well, I think that when you’re hearing the terms like abuse and being clean and using those common terms that are being used today, it just takes away from the actual problem.
Gordon Garner:
Everybody has this language and they want to get their own experience and I try to be very respectful for how people describe their experience. But at the same time, I want to recognize that the research shows that changing the language will change the outcomes for people. So we don’t want to stigmatize people in recovery because of the words they’re using for their experience. But we want to look at those words and see if they’re still being effective. And both Chelsey and Jaaji, they’re singer-songwriters. They believe in words. And so different words, different outcomes, different meanings. So I think it’s a beautiful thing.
Gordon Garner:
And when I saw one of their performances for children last week at the NAC and the kids were in love with them, and I had to be careful not to push them aside so I could go dancing. And having the opportunity and seeing the work they’re doing in the communities that they’re doing, the voices and languages that I don’t have, and imagery that I don’t have, and skills that I don’t have, really gives me great hope for the future and to know that a small part of that is the joy. I used to darken doorways, was always my experience for many years. So not to darken doorways, but to bring light to places. It’s a beautiful life.
And I think the key I want to say is the language I used on myself to describe my behaviors, as if they were me, didn’t allow me to have the life I have today, until I could imagine being something other than my behaviors. I couldn’t be. So I think imagination is critical. And these folks are working full-time on raising imagination of children to be together and to be joyful and to have good lives. It’s beautiful. (singing)
