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Hacks for Recognizing Behavioral Signs of Escalation

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Recognising early signs of agitation or distress can help prevent conflict and keep harm reduction spaces safer for everyone. While every situation is different, there are some common behavioural cues that may signal someone is beginning to escalate.

Behavioral signs of escalation include:

  • Heightened irritability.
  • Raised voice.
  • Increase in speech or rapid speech.
  • Sudden silence or social withdrawal.
  • Mood swings.
  • Difficulty concentrating or impaired memory.

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. 

Edie Springer’s Worker Stances for Clients Who Use Drugs & Harm Reduction Worker: Best Practices

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Harm reduction immediately resonated for Edie, who was herself a former drug user and methadone patient. Faced with the devastation of HIV’s impact on drug-using communities, Edie fully embraced harm reduction and trained hundreds of harm reduction workers who have carried her legacy with them. She developed these worker stances in 1996 and they have been shared among many of us in the harm reduction community for generations.
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Hacks for Service and Supply Management

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Many of the harm reduction leaders that were interviewed for Space Hacks talked about how critical it is to effectively manage services, supplies, and inventory in order to maintain community tranquility. It may not feel intuitive, but OGs report that ineffective management of supplies is the number one potential flashpoint for escalated situations during harm reduction services.
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