Sign in

Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW

@myharmreduction.bsky.social
2K followers 68 following 86 posts

Harm Reductionist. Drug Policy Reformer. Writer. Speaker. Lapsed Academic. Researcher-Advocate. Brown. She/Her/Dr.

PostsRepliesMedia
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
Honored to be included in this all star lineup of interviewees for the upcoming FREE virtual Harm Reduction Summit Oct 5th to 8th. Learn more and register here: wisepartners.therapywisdom.com/r/sheila-vak...
010
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 17/09/2026
The audiobook for my book, The Harm Reduction Gap, is on super-sale at 60% off! Get it now! www.audiobooks.com/promotions/p...
audiobooks.com
60% OFF The Harm Reduction Gap: Helping Individuals Left Behind by Conventional Drug Prevention and Abstinence-only Addiction Treatment
This book teaches how harm reduction can be a safety net for people with substance use disorders that our current addiction treatment rejects, abandons, and leaves behind. Harm reduction is an appr...
021
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Thrilled to share that my co-authored Commentary in the International Journal of Drug Policy about overdose death declines has been published. Download here www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...
sciencedirect.com
011
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Maia Szalavitz @maiasz.bsky.social · 11/04/2026
fraudulent addiction treatment will remain common until we actually have standards of care that don't allow billing for "faith based" approaches led by poorly trained peers. www.propublica.org/article/kent... if you wouldn't pay for it for depression or cancer, you shouldn't pay for it for addiction
propublica.org
They Needed Treatment for Drug Addiction. The Company They Turned to May Have Used Them to Commit Fraud.
Kentucky’s largest drug rehab center touts a Christian message and a selfless commitment to helping others. But internally, the organization prioritized money over the well-being of its clients and st...
02510
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Prison Policy Initiative @prisonpolicy.org · 04/04/2026
70% of all people in jails are legally innocent. Many of them are held behind bars simply because they cannot afford bail. Money bail perpetuates an endless cycle of poverty and jail time.
Graph titled: Why are so many people detained in jails before trial?
They're not wealthy enough to afford money bail.
03226
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 04/04/2026
“What you see already is the immediate and extremely dangerous policy of bombing regions without even showing any pretense of evidence that you’re actually hurting the drug trade” www.salon.com/2026/03/31/t...
salon.com
Trump and Latin allies push rebrand of failed War on Drugs - Salon.com
Using old, failed tactics, Trump puts U.S. influence over legitimate solutions
064
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Prison Policy Initiative @prisonpolicy.org · 17/02/2026
A single day in jail can derail someone's life – imagine the horrific consequences of multiple bookings in a single year. As we enter 2026, it's time for the U.S. to embrace housing-first solutions, not increased policing & criminalization.
Infographic that says more than 40% of unhoused people booked into jail were booked again within the year
0138
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Roxane Gay @roxanegay.bsky.social · 06/02/2026
1. It was not an accident. 2. It was not a staffer. 3. While the president may have dementia his racism is not due to dementia. 4. He isn’t sorry. He means every racist thought he shares. 5. His base agrees with him. 6. He will do it again. 7. No one in power will hold him accountable.
425274548043
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 14/01/2026
Devastating. Infuriating. Murderous. These cruel funding cuts will destroy grassroots and treatment programs that are providing vital life-saving services to people who use drugs and those with addictions. www.npr.org/2026/01/14/n...
npr.org
Trump administration sends letter wiping out addiction, mental health grants
The Trump administration sent hundreds of letters Tuesday terminating federal grants supporting mental health and drug addiction services. The cuts could total as much as $2 billion.
014
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 12/12/2025
Really excited for this new Congressional briefing series hosted by the Addiction Science Defense Network- Register to join their first session on January 13th 2:30-4pm EDT and share with your member of Congress so we can preserve federal funding! www.npscoalition.org/congressiona...
npscoalition.org
Protecting Federal Leadership in Addiction Science and Public Health
The Assiction Science Defense Netowrk (ASDN) is hosting a six-part congressional briefing series on the urgent need for sustained federal support for addiction research, prevention, treatment, and rec...
020
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 10/12/2025
"The expansion of coca cultivation is a direct driver of deforestation in the Andean valleys and the Colombian Amazon." - Learn more about how illegal coca cultivation and the drug war are driving climate and environmental disaster www.reformrestorerecover.org/evidence
reformrestorerecover.org
Evidence — REFORM.RESTORE.RECOVER
052
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Amistad Law Project @amistadlaw.bsky.social · 17/11/2025
“The media oftentimes relinquishes its role in public education and public awareness, instead fanning the flames of fear and hysteria that can lead to support for harsher penalties and more stigmatization,” says @myharmreduction.bsky.social. objectivejournalism.org/2025/11/balt...
objectivejournalism.org
Baltimore media outlets may be exacerbating overdose crisis
Experts say coverage in Baltimore has spread misinformation and steered a city struggling with the overdose crisis toward police crackdowns.
031
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 08/10/2025
The HUGEST congratulations to my friend, colleague, hero @nabarund.bsky.social for being awarded a MacArthur Fellowship for his incredible harm reduction work and research. #MacFellow www.macfound.org/fellows/clas...
macfound.org
Nabarun Dasgupta
Combining scientific studies with community engagement to reduce deaths and other harms from drug use.
050
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 08/10/2025
Hey Detroit! I will be doing a book talk on Tuesday, October 14th, alongside Kassandra Frederique and Valerie Kelley-Bonner. The event is 3-6 pm, and it is FREE. Simply register using the QR code on the flyer. Help spread the word!
152
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 02/09/2025
SAVE THE DATE: Sept 25th 4:30-6pm EST Join us for our September Drug Researchers' Roundtable with Drs. Cerda and Allen where they will discuss research on NYC's Overdose Prevention Centers and their impact on neighborhood conditions. Register: bit.ly/Sep2025Roundtable
021
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Filter | harm reduction journalism @filtermag.bsky.social · 08/09/2025
“They say they want to protect Americans from drugs, but their policies don’t match these words,” says Hanna Sharif-Kazemi as the administration talks up more drug-war strikes. A new tracker helps quantify the damage to people who use drugs of domestic cuts, reports @tganeva.bsky.social:
filtermag.org
Trump’s Deadly Drug War Is Also Waged Through Funding Cuts
While waging war in the Caribbean to "protect Americans," the administration is slashing lifesaving care for PWUD, as a new tracker details.
096
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Prison Policy Initiative @prisonpolicy.org · 02/09/2025
"Our existing system subjects hundreds of thousands of legally innocent people per year to the horrors of incarceration" @bailproject.org on the importance (and effectiveness!) of ending cash bail for @nytopinion.nytimes.com👇
nytimes.com
Opinion | One Concrete Way to Make the Justice System Fairer
063
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 02/09/2025
SAVE THE DATE: Sept 25th 4:30-6pm EST Join us for our September Drug Researchers' Roundtable with Drs. Cerda and Allen where they will discuss research on NYC's Overdose Prevention Centers and their impact on neighborhood conditions. Register: bit.ly/Sep2025Roundtable
021
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Narcotica Podcast @narcocast.bsky.social · 29/08/2025
New episode with @myharmreduction.bsky.social all about the victims of bad drug policy we don't hear about and how to face the attacks on harm reduction. Find it on iTunes, Spotify, YouTube, etc. open.spotify.com/episode/2Lzx...
open.spotify.com
Spotify – Web Player
021
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Prison Policy Initiative @prisonpolicy.org · 13/08/2025
🚨🗞️ JOURNALISTS: As the criminalization of homelessness runs rampant in DC & across the country, it's more important than ever to rely on data to get the story right. Here are some useful resources that can help you to fight through misinformation 🧵
12414
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 11/08/2025
DC will be the testing ground. Next up could be your city. Where do they go? No one knows. The point is to disappear people without addressing the root causes- most notably, our housing affordability crisis.
3133
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Puff the Magic Hater @mskellymhayes.bsky.social · 04/08/2025
Hey fam, my new book, Read This When Things Fall Apart, comes out in three months. That means now is the critical window for preorders, which help get books on shelves, in libraries, and into the hands of the people who need them most. www.pilsencommunitybooks.com/item/vCQt68D...
The book cover for Read This When Things Fall Apart: Letters to Activists in Crisis, Edited by Kelly Hayes. The book cover features an artistic rendering of a person with long hair wading into a body of water at night in a wilderness.
682588685
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 31/07/2025
What an insult to our harm reduction movement and elders who fought so hard for naloxone and fentanyl test strip access. Check out the atrocious language in the latest letter from SAMHSA claiming these tools are "not harm reduction." www.samhsa.gov/sites/defaul...
In recent years, the life-saving opioid overdose reversal medications (OORMs), naloxone and nalmefene, have been lumped into an ideological concept of harm reduction which has been used to advocate for policies that are incompatible with federal laws and inconsistent with this Administration's priorities.
052
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Logan Hullinger @loganhullinger.bsky.social · 25/07/2025
The wonderful @myharmreduction.bsky.social will be at Red Emma's next month to talk about her book, "The Harm Reduction Gap." It's an excellent read, and I highly recommend attending the event. Details: withfriends.co/event/264441...
withfriends.co
8/27 - Sheila Vakharia presents "The Harm Reduction Gap" w/ the Maryland Alliance for Sensible Drug Policy by Red Emma's
Get tickets and support Red Emma's by becoming a member
196
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 22/07/2025
SAVE THE DATE: August 27th at 7pm Baltimore I'll be doing an in-person book talk and signing at Red Emma's. Register and bring a friend! I would love to see you there. redemmas.org/events/sheil...
redemmas.org
Sheila Vakharia presents "The Harm Reduction Gap" w/ the Maryland Alliance for Sensible Drug Policy
This long-awaited book teaches how harm reduction can be a safety net for people with substance use disorders that our current addiction treatment rejects, abandons, and leaves behind.
051
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 17/07/2025
This administration has prioritized punishment, penalties, tariffs, and border enforcement in the name of our loved ones who died of overdose. All while gutting the very programs & strategies that are saving lives, and cutting the research for solutions. www.npr.org/2025/07/16/n...
npr.org
Exclusive: Trump team withholds $140 million budgeted for fentanyl fight
Threats to $140 million in funds for public health departments battling fentanyl overdoses comes as some experts see the addiction safety net unraveling.
000
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Filter | harm reduction journalism @filtermag.bsky.social · 17/07/2025
"An increasingly hostile political and legal environment appears to be directly translating into greater police interference with health services," write Liam Michaud & co-authors of their new study, for which Ontario service users and providers were interviewed:
filtermag.org
Police in Ontario Increasingly Obstruct Harm Reduction Service Delivery
Police surveillance and interference block life-saving care as the province becomes more hostile to harm reduction, our study shows.
064
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 16/07/2025
Appreciate this NYT coverage about Contingency Management, one of the most studied approaches to treating addiction- and one of our strongest tools to help people with stimulant use disorders. Rewards, not punishment! www.nytimes.com/2025/07/16/h...
nytimes.com
Upended by Meth, Some Communities Are Paying Users to Quit
072
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 15/07/2025
People always ask me, "Sheila, but what about the kids?" Now I can refer them to this great textbook. Preorder your copy today! It's by Amanda Reiman and Barry Lessin - "Harm Reduction Approaches with Adolescents who use Substances." www.amazon.com/Harm-Reducti...
amazon.com
Harm Reduction Approaches with Adolescents Who Use Substances
Amazon.com: Harm Reduction Approaches with Adolescents Who Use Substances: 9781032940847: Reiman, Amanda, Lessin, Barry: Books
085
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Puff the Magic Hater @mskellymhayes.bsky.social · 30/06/2025
Seeing some posts referring to Kilmar Abrego Garcia as being "kept safe" in jail. No one is safe in jail, fam. Incarceration strips years off people's lives and manufactures premature death. It's very important to understand this, especially now.
758661283
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Filter | harm reduction journalism @filtermag.bsky.social · 24/06/2025
"False positives for synthetic cannabinoids can be used to sanction prisoners and to fuel clicky headlines; accuracy doesn't matter unless the results would need to hold up in court. Which may explain why synthetic cannabinoids have awkwardly disappeared from federal sentencing data."
filtermag.org
Feds Share Prison Contraband Data They May Not Have Thought Through
A new USSC report awkwardly doesn't include synthetic cannabinoids, despite the so-called epidemic of these substances pouring into prisons.
084
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Filter | harm reduction journalism @filtermag.bsky.social · 23/06/2025
"Courts might give prison mail a three-day grace period, but they won't believe it took a month for your mail to make it to the post office."
filtermag.org
Prisons Need Their Own Post Offices, Not That We'll Ever Get Them
Courts might give prison mail a three-day grace period, but they won't believe it took a month for your mail to make it to the post office.
052
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Chanda Prescod-Weinstein 🌌 @chanda.blacksky.app · 22/06/2025
My heart is with my Iranian friends and their families. May everyone live.
162585454
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Prison Policy Initiative @prisonpolicy.org · 22/06/2025
One of the cruelest, most unproductive disciplinary punishments prisons often turn to is taking away visitation Here's the truth: Visitation has positive impacts for everyone – better health, reduced recidivism, and improvement in school. It should be a right, not a "privilege"
Graph titled: Disciplinary write-ups are common and usually involve "minor" violations, but they almost always lead to harsh punishments
1185
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 22/06/2025
I was anti-war in 2003 when I was 21 and had no social media. Even then, I knew there were no WMDs. This time is no different.
020
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Prison Policy Initiative @prisonpolicy.org · 21/06/2025
More than 1 in 3 people in state prisons were first arrested before their 16th birthday. The criminalization of youth has life-altering consequences. Shouldn't the US be investing in youth instead of locking them up?
Graph showing that more than 1 in 3 people in state prison were first arrested before their 16th birthday
02311
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse @ajdaajournal.bsky.social · 18/06/2025
Thanks for tuning in to our #CPDD2025 reads! Which article was your favorite? Consider publishing your next substance use related article in AJDAA!
012
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 13/06/2025
Our harm reduction family continues to experience tremendous loss. I am deeply saddened by the loss of Naomi Burke-Shyne and Peter Krykant. Both made a tremendous impact in the short time they were with us. I wish we had more time with both. May we be their continuation.
0223
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 09/06/2025
If you know (or are) an Early Career Researcher heading to #CPDD2025 on Saturday, be sure to swing by our panel to learn about different career paths! I'll talk about my journey to policy advocacy. Swing by Bayside Ballroom A at 2:45pm!
043
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Prison Policy Initiative @prisonpolicy.org · 03/06/2025
Formerly incarcerated people earn far less than the general population – about 53% of the median US worker’s wage. Reentry is difficult in and of itself. How is anyone supposed to successfully navigate it without financial stability?
Graph showing that people released from federal prison earned $269 per week in the first year of release, vs the general population which made $507 per week.
0116
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Canadian Drug Policy Coalition @candrugpolicy.bsky.social · 26/05/2025
"Community-controlled decriminalization is a better path to mainstreaming psychedelics than relinquishing power to the medical industry and pharmaceutical cartels that provide monopolized services to primarily affluent customers." Read more: thetyee.ca/Analysis/202...
thetyee.ca
The Rise of Psychedelic Capitalism | The Tyee
Big business sees a gold rush. What about equity, access and Indigenous knowledge?
0106
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
alec karakatsanis @equalityalec.bsky.social · 24/05/2025
THREAD. A lot of attention is rightly going to Medicaid cuts and other very bad things in Trump's bill passed by the House, but there's something else that isn't getting enough attention, that is very difficult to find in any news coverage, but that will fundamentally alter life for all of us.
9672390
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Greg Pak @gregpak.net · 23/05/2025
This comment period ends today, 5/23, at 11:59 pm ET. Please do comment asap if you believe the government should allow us to get COVID vaccinations. I can't believe we even have to petition them about this, but here we are.
3515551530
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 22/05/2025
Absolutely infuriating. These cuts are putting our most vulnerable at risk while enriching those who need it the least. There's a reason why it happened in the middle of the night. www.nytimes.com/2025/05/22/u...
nytimes.com
House Passes Trump’s Domestic Policy Bill, Overcoming Last-Minute Resistance
110
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Beth S Linas, PhD, MHS @bethlinas.bsky.social · 14/05/2025
My latest research: we found baseline fentanyl test strip (FTS) use was associated with greater engagement in overdose risk reduction behaviors but not with the risk of nonfatal overdose. In this population, using FTS did not lead to more risk taking behavior jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...
jamanetwork.com
Fentanyl Test Strip Use and Overdose Risk Reduction Among People Who Use Drugs
This cohort study evaluates whether self-reported baseline fentanyl test strip use among people who use drugs was associated with overdose risk reduction behaviors and nonfatal overdose over a 28-day ...
044
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 14/05/2025
Our letter with 325 signatures of acadmics across the US was featured in a CNN story today about overdose death reductions and how this trend could be reversed if we don't preserve federal funding for livesaving services www.cnn.com/2025/05/14/h...
cnn.com
US drug overdose deaths saw an unprecedented drop in 2024, but federal cuts could threaten momentum | CNN
Drug overdose deaths in the United States made an unprecedented drop to the lowest they’ve been in five years, according to a new federal government estimate released Wednesday.
030
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 14/05/2025
ICYMI- The third panel in our "New Drugs and New Markets" series is now available online. We discussed the complexities of drug markets and their impacts on health and safety. Check it out! www.youtube.com/watch?v=CR-V...
youtube.com
Panel 3: Understanding Drug Markets
YouTube video by DPA Voices
010
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 14/05/2025
Our faculty sign-on letter against federal funding cuts also got some coverage in the New York Times last night www.nytimes.com/2025/05/13/h...
nytimes.com
Trump’s Focus on Punishing Drug Dealers May Hurt Drug Users Trying to Quit
000
Reposted by Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW
Ju Park, PhD @drjupark.bsky.social · 13/05/2025
This Open Letter from addiction and mental health experts was sent late Monday evening to congress! Major to SAMHSA, CDC and HRSA are unacceptable #fentanyl @jencarroll.bsky.social @chadsabora.bsky.social @brownpublichealth.bsky.social @defendpublichealth.bsky.social www.npr.org/2025/05/13/n...
npr.org
Experts warn Congress cuts to addiction funding will mean more overdose deaths
A broad coalition of addiction experts wants Congress to maintain healthcare funding for the nation's response to fentanyl and other street drugs.
384
Sheila Vakharia PhD MSW @myharmreduction.bsky.social · 13/05/2025
Proud to have worked alongside faculty advocates to draft and get signatories for this letter. We got 325 US-based faculty to sign on against cuts to Medicaid, SAMHSA, CDC, and HRSA. www.npr.org/2025/05/13/n...
npr.org
Experts warn Congress cuts to addiction funding will mean more overdose deaths
A broad coalition of addiction experts wants Congress to maintain healthcare funding for the nation's response to fentanyl and other street drugs.
040