People who use drugs, particularly people who use opioids, sometimes experience a great deal of trauma and loss. This trauma and loss is often not taken seriously. We often lack the support we need because the loved ones we lose are criminalised and “brought it on themselves”. The lack of support can be compounded by our own feelings of guilt and blame. We often believe we could have done more to prevent the death.

Steroids can take the form of tablets, capsules, oral liquids and injectable liquids. Common slang terms for steroids include ‘roids’, ‘gear’ and ‘juice’. Steroids are synthetic substances that promote the growth of skeletal muscle.

Parenting is tricky. Scott is a dad who uses drugs. He tells us about the ups and downs of fatherhood, including his experience giving harm reduction advice to his son.

Take the edge off with some calming yoga poses

“Gender had always felt like play for me, and using meth felt like my way to indulge in the drama of the performance. I got off on how binary my expressions were – in a way it was kind of like drag.”

“My gender was linked to the type of sex I was having. And the type of sex I was having always closely related to the types of drugs I was using.  When I started shooting opioids, it wasn’t long before needles became a central part of my sex life…”

How do you know if a relationship is headed for disaster or if you are in danger? And what can you do about it? Kai Noonan, ACON’s expert in domestic violence, talks about abuse in a way that applies to relationships between people of all genders and sexualities

UN had the pleasure of taking afternoon tea with four amazing trans-people to explore the role that drugs have played in their lives, owning identity, “passing”, being “queer” and community

“Thousands of ravers have gone before you, making these same mistakes – so heed my warnings and hopefully you don’t have to!”

We asked rural users about the biggest issues they confront.

A story of what it is like to be a sex worker who uses drugs.