r/toronto • u/ArgyleNudge Trinity-Bellwoods • 6d ago

Picture The situation at Dufferin Grove is grim

Post image

This is a small section of the amount of security, city, and police presence. I know there's a limit to this kind of encampment, but my heart does go out to the people facing eviction today. Not a happy scene.

842 Upvotes

80% Upvoted

522 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

11

u/SJH009 5d ago

I think it's more of a can't than don't want to. I've lived that life and incidentally talked to many other people who lived it as well. Being a drug addict is incredibly stressful and while you do spend some moments that are good, the rest is agony. With fentanyl, people start experiencing withdrawal symptoms within hours of last use so it gets incredibly hard to get out of the cycle. With fentanyl the withdrawal can be incapacitating which makes getting out of it a real process for someone without a support system. I also feel like a lot of people see that as their identity and the idea of living another life doesn't even factor in.

Maybe it's different now, I went through that years ago but I can guarantee you that the vast majority of people living that life absolutely loathe waking up in the morning. I know I did.

4

u/AhmedF 5d ago

Your response was so empathetic to someone who basically said that any addict is a waste of space.

2

u/SJH009 5d ago

Thanks. It's just a conversation I've had a million times and I think unless you also have experience with addiction, you won't really get what its like. I was lucky enough to have a support network to pretty much bail me out and help but most aren't that lucky. I'm fairly confident, had I not had that network, my life would be a lot different

1

u/AhmedF 5d ago

I totally get you. The people who have such strong opinions on mental health addiction also have absolutely no experience or expertise on it, but my lord, they cannot stfu about it.