The Stigma Crusher is up and running!
We are currently at the following locations weekly:
- Tuesdays from 12 PM – 2 PM outside Hilda’s Place: 1458 Chicago Ave, Evanston, IL (in partnership w/ Connections for the Homeless)
- Wednesdays from 12 – 2 PM @ AJM Auto Body, 926 Front St, McHenry, IL
- Wednesdays from 3 – 4:30 PM @ Woodstock Square Train Station, 401 Clay St, Woodstock, IL
- Thursdays from 12 PM – 1:30 PM @ HomeTowne Studios: 1177 S Northpoint Blvd, Waukegan, IL
- Thursdays from 2 PM – 4 PM @ 10th & Prescott in Waukegan, IL
- Fridays from 2 PM – 4PM @ St. Andrew’s Church, 155 N Prince Crossing Rd, West Chicago, IL (in partnership w/ Hope for Healing)
To request a mail-order delivery of supplies, please fill out our form at bit.ly/l4lsupplies. Priority will be given to Illinois residents. Naloxone cannot be shipped outside of Illinois. For local syringe exchange information see the NASEN map at: https://www.nasen.org. For naloxone delivery, see Next Distro at: https://nextdistro.org/naloxone#state-finder
** Look for the big purple truck! **
Services/Resources Provided On The Stigma Crusher
Peer Support – A minimum of 2 Peer Recovery Support Specialists on the truck every week
Treatment Navigation and Transportation – Assistance in identifying what treatment and recovery options are available (including all levels of care, job support, housing support, legal assistance, social service registration help, etc.) and transportation to a facility by a trained advocate or linkage to a transportation service when applicable
Addiction Medicine Doctors (when available – we have 2 that volunteer) – private consults with participants on any medical needs they might have.
CADC – We have one full-time volunteer with her CADC, and several others that have volunteered to join us when she can’t
Social Workers – Our co-founder Chelsea is a LSW and is on the truck 2 out of the 4 Thursdays. In addition, we recently met with the Lake County Health Department SAP and one of their social workers wants to begin volunteering in North Chicago.
Printed Resources – pamphlets and flyers on multiple pathways to recovery, including flyers from the health departments and treatment facilities, including NiCasa, SAP, Gateway, Banyan, Rosecrance, recovery meeting schedules, grief support meetings, Naloxone Information, 211 Flyers, CARE Brochures, etc
Fruit & Snacks– We bring along about 50 pounds of fresh fruit each week, alongside our bins of snacks
Personal Care Items – These include socks, toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, soap, lip balm, wound care kits, safer sex kits, razors, menstrual products, hand sanitizer, body wipes, and more
PPE – Masks and hand sanitizer to keep folks safe
Safe Use Supplies – These include safe injection, smoking and snorting kits and education on how to use safer, as well as training and distribution of naloxone. We also can dispose of any used syringes returned to us.
Services/Resources Provided By Live4Lali Off the Truck
- Professional and group harm reduction/NARCAN training can take place in person or virtually. Supplies can be ordered and delivered to you directly.
- Harm reduction education and supply distribution for individuals and families can take place in-person at our office in Arlington Heights, at your location if local, or virtually.
- Supply delivery is available to anyone in northern Illinois. We can mail out supplies to anyone outside of that area across the U.S. We will do our best to connect you with your local harm reduction outreach agency.
What is Harm Reduction?
What are the general goals of harm reduction?
- Reduce the spread of infections such as HIV & Hep C
- Reduce risky drug use
- Prevent drug overdose deaths
- Provide honest drug education
- Increase user’s’ contact with services and treatment
What is the data telling us?
- In 2018, 2,167 people in Illinois died from opioid-related overdoses. This figure is more than twice the rate of car crash fatalities and 1.5 times the number of homicidal deaths. (Illinois Department of Public Health/IDPH)
- In the United States, overdose death is the leading cause of fatality for people under the age of 50.
- In 2017, 1,375 adults and adolescents were diagnosed with HIV in Illinois. Illinois ranked 8th among the 50 states in the number of HIV diagnoses in 2015. (Centers for Disease Control & Prevention)
- In 2015, IDPH reported a 200% increase in Hepatitis C prevalence among 15-29-year-olds, and a rate of 38 HIV disease diagnoses per every 100,00 people with 42% of new cases affecting people under age 30.
- According to Roosevelt University’s Illinois Consortium on Drug Policy, the Chicago Metropolitan Area ranks highest for both emergency department mentions for heroin and the number of individuals who were arrested and tested positive for heroin. The state of Illinois is the 3rd worst state in the country for funding treatment for opioid use disorder.
What types of harm reduction strategies is Live4Lali promoting?
- Connection, compassion, hope, healing, and shame-free approaches to engage with participants
- Linkage to substance use treatment and recovery support services, and other ancillary supports such as housing, employment, and legal services
- Toiletries, clothing, food, and other basic needs
- Medication-assisted treatment (MAT)
- Needle and syringe exchange/access
- Overdose reversal kits (Naloxone/Narcan)
- Fentanyl test strips
- Information distribution
- Peer outreach
- Drug policy reform
- Overdose prevention facilities
For information about accessing Live4Lali’s harm reduction services contact Laura Fry, Executive Director, at [email protected] or 844.LV4.LALI (584.5254) x803.