Devon de Koker- Social Worker in Private Practice

04/02/2024

05/01/2024

In research published last year, participants in recovery from SUD identified images of people using substances and paraphernalia (needles, syringes, spoons, or lighters) as both stigmatising and triggering, reporting that the images brought up urges or cravings to use substances.

Participants tended to categorise images featuring substances as triggering when they related to their own primary SUD diagnosis. Realistic depictions of actual substances and alcohol, whether powders, crystals, ma*****na, pills, alcohol containers or servings, or cigarettes/vapes, were identified as stigmatising by participants.

“It is very stigmatizing when it comes to what the images are saying,” shared one participant in recovery.

This thought-provoking study is a must-read for our and is available on the Knowledge Share: https://www.issup.net/knowledge-share/resources/2024-01/stigmatizing-imagery-substance-use-disorders-qualitative

28/10/2023

You are invited to get enrolled.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScNXLNK9lYDy_yVsyUDpPiGDBB7ZR064rRBzu2koWPmb_z57g/viewform

14/10/2023

Welcome to a webinar hosted by the Swedish Drug Policy Centre on Thursday, October 19th at 14:30-15:30 CEST. Mulka Nisic Ph.D. student at Derby University describes her research project, which...

01/10/2023

Today, we commemorate , a day on which we celebrate that is Possible. As phrased by our International President, Amy Ronshausen, during our Recovery Webinar on September 29th, "Recovery is a journey of , , and . It is a testament to the human spirit's capacity to overcome adversity, heal, and thrive." The pathway of recovery is a personal story, however, not an individual one. With the correct support systems surrounding them, such as family, community, health care providers, etc., a person embarking on their recovery journey can be empowered.

We have shared our member's personal stories/testimonials throughout the month. We are incredibly grateful for their courage to share their unique, inspiring, and empowering experiences and highlight that recovery is possible. We strongly recommend you to visit our website and read their .

https://wfad.se/activity/news/international-recovery-day-2023/

29/09/2023

Today, the Practice facilitated a Webinar on Substance Use in collaboration with the Diversity and Inclusiveness Branch of the City of Cape Town (CoCT). This is the start of a range of sessions on Substance Use and other activities in cooperation with the CoCT. We are looking forward to a meaningful partnership with the City in substance use services🤝

18/09/2023

A big shout out and congratulations to our Social Worker, Angelique Scholtz, for being chosen by the World Federation Against Drugs (WFAD) to form part of a group of Global Drug Demand Reduction Professionals that’s objective will be to advocate for evidence-based drug policy. Angelique also attended her very first meeting of the World Federation of Therapeutic Communities (WFTC) recently and represented the Practice.

We are very proud of you Angelique!

16/09/2023

Recovery from substance use is possible.

During this year's , we share of members on their Recovery Journey. Their stories are unique, inspiring, and empowering, and showcase their strength and that .

Today, we share the story of Christopher. Read the full testimonial on our website.

https://wfad.se/activity/news/recovery-month-testimonials-the-most-important-step-i-made-to-sustained-recovery-was-to-decide/