When it comes to counselling people with addictions, Dr. Gabor Maté speaks from experience. For 12 years he worked in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside with patients challenged by hard-core drug addiction, mental illness and HIV, including at Vancouver’s Supervised Injection Site.

He brought his unique perspective on addictions and trauma to the University of the Fraser Valley’s Abbotsford campus on Monday, Sept 25, at 2:30 pm. The event will be held in Evered Hall in the Student Union Building. Doors open at 2 pm. Admission is free and the public is welcome.

Maté’s presentation is titled Prisoners of Childhood: Reconciling Justice with Trauma History, Healing and Resilience. In conversation with Maté will be people with lived experience of trauma, addictions and incarceration.

With over 20 years of family practice and palliative care experience and extensive knowledge of leading-edge research, Maté is a sought-after speaker and teacher regularly addressing health professionals, educators, and lay audiences throughout North America.

This talk is based on his latest book, In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts.  A book signing by Maté will follow.

As an author, Maté has written several bestselling books including the award-winning In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters with Addiction; When the Body Says No: The Cost of Hidden Stress; and Scattered Minds: A New Look at the Origins and Healing of Attention Deficit Disorder, and co-authored Hold on to Your Kids. His works have been published internationally in twenty languages.

Maté is the co-founder of Compassion for Addiction, a non-profit organization that focuses on addiction.

This event is sponsored by UFV College of Arts, Faculty of Professional Studies & Faculty of Health Sciences.

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