Stigma Stories
In 2019 AdvoCard began providing advocacy for people who identified as having problematic substance use. Through funding received from the Edinburgh Alcohol and Drug Partnership we were able to support people who had difficulty engaging with services.
We work with people who identify as in recovery, accessing services, and those that are not in recovery. We also support people who are actively using alcohol and drugs. As the service became more established, we began to notice that more and more people told us of their experiences of being treated differently due to their substance use and through funding from the Scottish Government we began the Stigma Stories project. Throughout the lifetime of the project, we spoke with many people who told us their stories of feeling stigmatised and discriminated against. these stories were collected into our book – Stigma Stories
Some of these stories come from family members or professionals who work with people in recovery and provide a wide picture of how stigma effects everyone. The stories highlight the various ways that stigma can contribute to the problems faced by people who are already struggling to cope and how, in many cases, it has prevented access to treatment and support.
To mark the launch of our book we will be publishing a story each day.
