Isabelle Fortier, Montreal, QC
I lost my daughter Sara-Jane in May of 2019, to an accidental overdose of fentanyl. She had just turned 24 years old a month before. Nothing had prepared us to face her death to this awful and unfair monster which is addiction. Soon after her passing, I started to read about substance use, addiction, mental health issues to try to better understand what led to her using and…ultimately to her death. We knew that she was using, but we did not know that she was mixing her own benzodiazepines and sertraline prescriptions with other hard drugs…
In my quest for answers, I got in contact with the wonderful advocates of MSTH and wanted to reach out to other families as well. Since joining in 2019, I’ve been an active board member, got involved on different forums, participated in conferences, did some talks, supported our local safe consumption sites and overdose prevention sites, created a private Facebook group for our French-speaking families. And amidst all this, I continued to inform, teach, and share information to family and friends about stigmatization, addiction, and the overdose crisis.
As an osteopath, I have decided to pursue my studies in substance use prevention and treatment. I want to be able to better reach outpatients who might be using but are not comfortable about sharing this information with health specialists. I want to be better equipped with treating chronic pain coupled with mental health issues and addiction. I’m also working on organizing student clinics and professional development program in substance use for osteopaths and future osteopaths to be. People who use drugs need to be treated with understanding and compassion and I think that developing abilities among the osteopathic community is a wonderful way to connect with substance users and to let them know that we care about them…
I would like to acknowledge that I am located on unceded Indigenous lands. The Kanien’kehá:ka Nation is recognized as the custodians of the lands and waters on which I work and live today. Tiohtià:ke/Montréal is historically known as a gathering place for many First Nations. Today, it is home to a diverse population of Indigenous and other peoples. I respect the continued connections with the past, present and future in my ongoing relationships with Indigenous and other peoples within the Montreal community.
J’aimerais reconnaître que le territoire autochtone sur lequel j’habite n’a jamais été cédé. Je reconnais la nation Kanien'kehá: ka comme gardienne des terres et des eaux sur lesquelles je vis et travaille aujourd'hui. Tiohtiá:ke / Montréal est historiquement connu comme un lieu de rassemblement pour de nombreuses Premières Nations, et aujourd'hui, une population autochtone diversifiée, ainsi que d'autres peuples, y résident. C’est dans le respect des liens avec le passé, le présent et l'avenir que je reconnais les relations continues entre les Peuples Autochtones et autres personnes de la communauté montréalaise.
