In Quebec, drug consumption is both trivialized, stigmatized and demonized. The documentary series Substanceswritten and directed by Gabriel Lajournade, alias Lajou, and produced by Urbania, wishes to break the silence around often complex realities.
“We wanted to make a relevant portrait of the phenomenon,” explains Lajou, who, with his team, notably Marion Spée for research and three journalist-presenters, Hugo Meunier, Sara Buzzell and Jean Bourbeau, was interested in products as diverse as fentanyl, GHB, hallucinogens and even cannabis, in order to provide a nuanced and educational assessment of the current situation.
One of the strengths of Substances is undoubtedly its clear educational objective, imbued with a desire to inform a public that is often poorly equipped to understand the issues surrounding drug consumption. “Because of the taboo surrounding the subject, we are content with a very summary overview in high school. However, a significant part of the population experiments with these substances, and not just cannabis, since there are a large number of drugs circulating,” explains Lajou.
This lack of information concerns, for example, families, who may find themselves helpless when faced with new forms of consumption by young people. “Parents learn that their children are using Xanax and they don’t even know what it is,” emphasizes Lajou. The series therefore attempts to fill this void by explaining not only the effects of drugs, but also their origins, their uses and the risks associated with them.
Health from every angle
In fact, Substances piques curiosity by presenting, among other things, both the medical and recreational uses of certain drugs while exploring the blurred border that can exist between these two facets. For example, in the episode devoted to Xanax and benzodiazepines, these pharmaceutical molecules generally prescribed to relieve anxiety, Sara Buzzell shows that their increasing use, with a silent crisis affecting Quebec schools, and their addictive potential arouse many of worries. “The objective of the series is to inform without too much judgment so that people make an informed choice, whether consumers or those around them when the time comes to support them,” says Lajou.
Conversely, the series also highlights new therapeutic uses of drugs previously considered purely recreational. This is the case of MDMA, commonly associated with festive evenings, which is now used to treat mental health disorders. In January 2022, Health Canada allowed health professionals to request special exemptions to treat their patients with substances such as psilocybin or MDMA as part of psychedelic-assisted therapy. “It’s not very widespread, but it’s legal: there are psychologists who, in their offices, give MDMA legally to their patients to work with them and unblock certain emotional issues, certain traumas,” says Lajou. This contrast between the therapeutic effects of MDMA and its recreational uses shows how perceptions around drugs are changing at great speed.
Among the consumption trends that continue to grow in Quebec, there is also microdosing. This practice, which involves consuming very low doses of psychedelic substances like LSD or magic mushrooms, is growing in popularity. “It’s a bit of a form of illegal self-medication,” notes Lajou. And continues: “People do not necessarily want to experience hallucinations, but rather seek to improve their mood, increase their creativity or reduce their daily stress. »
Despite the hype around microdosing, Substances however, makes a point of recalling that the benefits of this practice have not yet been scientifically proven. “There are a few small studies, but they are not very rigorous. And it was a challenge for us to document this practice while expressing reservations,” recalls Lajou.
The screenwriter and director of the series finally wants to raise a significant point which does not appear on the screen. “What surprised me the most while doing Substances and talking with experts, it is to realize to what extent alcohol causes much greater damage than most other drugs,” confides Lajou.
If alcohol is not mentioned in the first season of SubstancesLajou insists on recalling that, even if it is highly valued socially, alcohol is responsible for numerous public health problems in the province. “It is the most dangerous substance, the most costly for our health system, and it is the number one date rape drug,” he says.
In its entirety, Substances invites the public not only to rethink in a critical but caring way the preconceptions about drugs, but also to realize the extent of a phenomenon well anchored in society in 2024. “We wanted to balance the discourse, in somehow,” concludes Lajou.