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Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW Profile picture
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23 Mar, 4 tweets, 2 min read
Two projects I collaborated on with colleagues have been released TODAY and they're both on ✨STIMULANTS ✨

A mini-thread, I promise...
1) ✏️We filled a gap in the policy space by developing a resource on policy responses to stimulants since everything is opioid-focused these days.

"Policy Proposals to Reduce Stimulant-related Harm: How to Address the Fourth Wave of the Overdose Crisis"

drugpolicy.org/sites/default/… Image
2) Just in time for #NDAFW (National Drug and Alcohol Facts Week) which ends up being a week about fear and stigma, we have released our "10 facts about methamphetamine" page and fact sheet!

drugpolicy.org/drug-facts/met…
FIN! I'm actually done sharing and will not write any more. Just read and share! (See? I can do mini-threads!)

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More from @MyHarmReduction

Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW Profile picture
25 Mar
All the good tweets condemning the fatphobic and moralistic tone have been written. (She's clearly been ratio'd)

I'd like to zoom out to look at what this post says about our puritanical culture how we think about *pleasure* and *treats* and DRUGS.
1) There is clearly this belief that because they are available for free, that somehow every vaccinated person will show up every day for their daily free donut.

They won't. Some might. But that's not how most people work. Most people moderate pleasure.
2) It's also clearly *RICH* to individualize something as policy-driven as sugar consumption, weight, and obesity. An innocent campaign for a free donut isn't going to undo systemic policy choices. (Not my wheelhouse, so I defer to the other tweets on this)
Read 12 tweets
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW Profile picture
7 Jan
Gonna switch gears for a second to tweet about the problem with Dryuary and other self-imposed periods of 100% abstinence since I’ve now read 5 different tweets about people “failing” their Dryuary goals bc 2021 is currently a dumpster fire and people want to drink. (1/?)
2. First of all, goals like Dryuary for a month free of alcohol are actually quite admirable and probably a good practice for most of us. A break never hurts. And they can be a chance to reboot and get perspective on our patterns of use, role of alcohol in our lives, etc.
3. BUT these kind of goals can also be a troubling set up for a lot of us because these kinds of efforts actually require a bit more conscious planning and preparation than most of us do in advance. And they require us to practice different strategies in the moment.
Read 15 tweets
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW Profile picture
4 Jan
The NYC Dept of Health and Mental Hygiene (@nycHealthy) released some 2019 overdose death data and preliminary 2020 overdose death numbers for the first quarter of the year. It's not good news. A thread 🧵🧵🧵
1) Overdose deaths remained high in 2019; similar to 2018 rate of 21.2 per 100,000. Opioids involved in 83% over all overdose deaths, fentanyl most commonly involved drug in overdoses (in 68% of deaths). You can read more here:

www1.nyc.gov/assets/doh/dow…
2) You can see here that the overdose death rates in NYC increased in recent years. Not a coincidence that we saw this jump after fentanyl entered our heroin supply. Image
Read 9 tweets
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW Profile picture
8 Dec 20
A lot of really important and interesting myth-busting studies, articles, and papers have been released lately about people who sell drugs.

Here's a thread highlighting them and some key themes (1/?)
1) Just today, @Talkingdrugs ran a piece on a small study with 13 dark net drug sellers, which found many were motivated to keep customers safe and informed of drug risks, including harm reduction education talkingdrugs.org/consider-the-d…
2) A few days ago, @SessiBlanchard wrote a piece for @Filtermag_org based on leaked FBI documents showing they knew drug sellers were selling customers new syringes and fentanyl test strips, as well as testing their own meth supplies for fentanyl: filtermag.org/fbi-dealers-ha…
Read 18 tweets
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW Profile picture
11 Nov 20
Drug courts are not:
- an "alternative to incarceration;"
- a substitute for all drug decriminalization;
- a panacea; or
- a "public health" approach.

I was a drug court representative for years. I know.

A THREAD 🧵🧵🧵....
1. Drug courts cherry-pick their participants so few are eligible. Most have very strict criteria (first-timer, no mental illness, no felonies, no violent charges, etc.) so people with most severe problems who arguably have most to gain are usually INELIGIBLE for services.
2. Judges and non-clinical team members can weigh in on treatment decisions. Drug courts have a terrible track record when it comes to medications like methadone and buprenorphine. A judge can say you need a weekend in jail after your most recent relapse to "teach you a lesson."
Read 11 tweets
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW Profile picture
29 Sep 20
Starting now - our September #DrugResearchersRT.
.@MayaSchenwar opening by discussing the 'alternative to incarceration' that many talk about - electronic monitoring. "We shouldn't have to choose between prison and prison-lite." They "widen" the net. Same with probation- classist, ableist, and racist system. Set many up to fail
.@MayaSchenwar now referencing drug courts as a common alternative to incarceration and the current overdose crisis. "Giving people the choice between prison and treatment is...essentially, mandating it." And although these have gained bipartisan support, are deeply problematic.
Read 10 tweets

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