The Problem Women and gender diverse people who use drugs (PWUD) face intersecting stigmas, leading to exclusion from healthcare, social services and public discourse. Stigma is the biggest barrier to care engagement for PWUD. The Narcofeminism Storyshare (NFSS) project seeks to challenge stigma by: Creating spaces for women and gender diverse PWUD to share their stories with mutual support. Advocating for policies that uphold their rights and lived experience. The Approach Using a community-driven approach, Dr. Nichols and colleagues will: Co-develop workshops with women and gender diverse PWUD to create narratives that challenge stigma through lived experience. Integrate these narratives into trainings for healthcare providers, social workers and policymakers. Produce advocacy materials grounded in authentic stories. Evaluate narrative-based approaches as a tool for stigma reduction. Reducing Stigma Using Narrative-Based Approaches “To be effective, stigma reduction interventions need to be community-driven and center the voices of directly impacted people.” - Tracy R. Nichols, PhD Short Term Impact Led storytelling workshops with women and gender diverse PWUD to document lived experiences and support healing. Shared the NFSS model nationally and internationally through webinars, presentations and trainings. Longer Term Impact Promote stigma-free, gender-affirming and trauma-informed services through narrativebased training. Drive drug policy reform through story-centered advocacy. Societal Impact Funding for this research will support the NFSS project to amplify the voices of women and gender diverse PWUD, reduce stigma through narrativebased training and promote policy reforms that protect their rights. This work offers societal benefits in the following areas: For more information visit https://health.lehigh.edu/research-partners or email INRSRCH@lehigh.edu 27 Community/Culture: Sharing stories counters the isolating effects of stigma. Policy: Evidence through personal narratives for destigmatizing approaches to drug policy. Education: Uses stories as pedagogical tools to create transformative learning that reduces stigma.
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