Kuujjuaq, Que. healing centre encourages reconnecting with Inuit identity
Global News
The Isuarsivik Recovery Centre in Kuujjuaq, Que. runs nine-week-long programs using a harm-reduction approach tailored to each individual.
On the shore of a still-frozen lake in front of a traditional Inuit dwelling with the spring sun melting the snow underfoot, the Governor General met eight women who are reconnecting with their Inuit roots as they try to heal from addiction.
Mary Simon wiped away tears hearing what her visit meant to the participants and leaders of Isuarsivik Recovery Centre in Kuujjuaq on Monday.
“We have to recognize our history, our traumas. But we also have to put a lot of emphasis on our strength,” said Mary Aitchison, vice-chair of Isuarsivik’s board of directors.
“You did that, you show us that, you model that. You model so much of who we are, who we aspire to be.”
Isuarsivik was founded in 1994 as a community organization focused on addictions treatment. But in the early 2000s, after funding issues and a lack of success in program outcomes, it shut down for several years.
“We started looking at our program, and we realized we were using the Minnesota model, which is great, the 12 steps,” said board president David Forrest.
“But we shouldn’t be focusing on the substance, we should be focusing on the soul, the trauma.”
He said that at the time the program was being re-created, Simon had told him programs developed by well-intentioned people from the south weren’t meeting the needs of Inuit.