‘That just makes you fall deeper into it’; the real stigma impact on addictions

The degrading language used toward those suffering, the feeling of superiority over those at the lowest point of their lives, only works to keep them down.

“Having your self-worth just torn apart and being degraded in that way, that’s not going to help a single thing,” said Luke Eadie, who graduated from A New Tomorrow’s recovery program in 2025. “That just makes you fall deeper into it. I know people who have died because of that.”

“It almost brings a shame that you are not a good human or not worthy of getting better when I feel like we are all equals, right?” added Dre Hewson, who finished his recovery program earlier this year at A New Tomorrow. “Just because you have an illness that is taking a hold of you doesn’t mean you aren’t worthy of getting help for that.”

A New Tomorrow first helped Dre, Ashley and Luke through their own recoveries. Now, those three are helping guide others with their real lived experience.

“It impacts everybody and I think this is one of the things. We create stereotypes and stigmatization but there are so many people suffering in the world that, of course, they will self-medicate with a substance. Whoever those people are, we want to accept and help all of them,” said Danielle Olson, A New Tomorrow’s Integrated Care Services Manager.

A simple reminder from those who have been there to everyone lucky enough to have never been there.

“It breaks my heart people in addiction are treated a certain way – especially when you are on the street – because everybody has a story. Everyone is someone’s son or daughter,” said Eadie. “Everyone has the same value. Your value is inherent in that you are a human being and people are treated awful because of things that happened in their past.”

by Michael Reeve

‘That just makes you fall deeper into it’; the real stigma impact on addictions

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