Scenario #6: Support an Individual Struggling with Alcohol, Depression, and Other Needs

Darryl is a 35-year-old Indigenous man who has been struggling with alcohol dependency, depression, and unstable housing after losing his job during the pandemic. He was recently referred to a community support program after a brief hospitalization. His support worker, Amina, takes a trauma-informed and culturally sensitive approach, incorporating the Medicine Wheel to guide their conversations. Together, they explore Darryl’s physical, emotional, spiritual, and mental well-being, identifying how poverty, intergenerational trauma, and lack of access to culturally appropriate services have contributed to his current struggles. Amina also helps Darryl understand the risk and protective factors in his life, such as social isolation, stigma, and poverty as risks, and his strong connection to his grandmother and culture as protective factors.

Amina connects Darryl to a treatment continuum that includes outpatient counselling, harm reduction support, and access to traditional healing practices. She also works with his family, who are overwhelmed and unsure how to support him, to improve communication and understanding of addiction as a health issue. Amina recognizes that mental health and substance abuse issues impact the whole family system, and she arranges a family support circle. Through her consistent support, advocacy, and culturally grounded approach, Darryl begins to rebuild his confidence and work towards long-term recovery. His journey highlights how addressing poverty, systemic barriers, and emotional healing together is essential to truly support mental health and recovery at both the individual and community level.