A New City, A New Perspective

Hi y’all! My name is Johnny Reyes (he/him) and I’m from San Antonio, Texas. I’m currently serving as the Opioid/Substance Use Disorder Access Coordinator at HealthRIGHT 360 in San Francisco, California.  

Being from Texas, I was taught that people out on the streets are there because of the actions that they freely chose, and thus, are unworthy of aid or sympathy. For most of my life, I have had a very sheltered and privileged existence. I was raised in the suburbs, attended private school, and I never once had to worry about food insecurity or finances. Everyone in my ever-changing social bubbles came from backgrounds of comfort as well. Anyone that didn’t fit into our similitude was instantly looked upon with skepticism, whether it be someone suffering from a mental illness, someone asking for money on the sidewalk, or even someone using drugs. I was able to unlearn this mindset and educate myself in college by volunteering with multiple homeless organizations which helped me empathize on a deeper level.

Now, I find myself in the thick of the opioid crisis in a city that has been plagued by the ominous rising number of overdose deaths. When I graduated college, I thought that my education had come to a close. My time in this city has proven me very wrong.  

San Francisco is estimated to have tens of thousands of drug users, many of whom have walked through the doors of HealthRIGHT 360 in hopes of gaining the resources they need to begin their journey to sobriety. One of my roles at HealthRIGHT includes connecting patients with our Medication Assisted Treatment team, which allows them to safely enter our residential detox program. Here, they are provided with the fully integrated care that all patients deserve, including resources such as housing, therapy, and case management. 

Whatever underlying beliefs about drug use that I had from my past went out the door when I began to converse with patients. Every day brought new patients, and along with them, new stories. Those of lost jobs, battles with mental health, and family trauma. Every patient was unique, yet every patient’s story shared the same theme of resilience. Taking that first step towards sobriety was sometimes the most difficult action patients had to do. Some took this step to be reunited with loved ones, while others just wanted a better life for themselves.  

Hearing what patients have endured throughout their life, I know now that they are in fact stronger than my past distorted perception of them. What they have suffered would knock any of us down, but they were able to rise back up and seek out the necessary care. There are many obstacles along the way to their arduous goal. However, we as a society can work to make their journeys more attainable and lend a helping hand in their path towards a healthy life. Sometimes all we need is just a little more empathy and a new perspective.