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The Sugar vs. Bass Hack

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Another intangible hack offered by harm reduction leaders was the idea of what one called “sugar” and “bass”. What they meant was ways to use tone, inflection, and voice to help diffuse and reinforce the impact of enforcing community agreements or boundaries.

“Sugar” would purposely soften their words, while “bass” would drop their voice to convey firmness. Both techniques are deployed depending on the situation.

There are certain things that may not seem intuitive that, nevertheless, cleanup many harm reduction organizers felt were essential to creating harm reduction spaces and services free of escalation. These included cross-training and ”Proceduralization”.

Featured Hacks

These featured hacks highlight creative, practical solutions from harm reduction leaders on the ground. From DIY tools to clever workarounds, each one reflects the ingenuity, care, and real-world experience that keeps this movement alive. 

Hacks for Staying Present

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As discussed in the part of the site on preventing escalation, it is essential for harm reduction workers to stay present and remain centered and relatively calm during escalated events. This is one of the hardest things to do, but staying present and centered during any kind of escalated situation at your harm reduction site is essential to de-escalation.
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Hacks for Empathetic Active Listening

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Once you have grounded yourself during an escalated situation, next engage in active listening with the person who is agitated. This can seem counterintuitive or difficult when you are dealing with somebody who is, for example, screaming at you, and it may feel like you’re rewarding them for being completely irrational. But it is key to getting them more centered and grounded so they’re less agitated and less likely to become a danger to themselves or others.
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