On Feb. 21, a Sunday evening, I spoke with my son Pat. We made plans to go snowboarding in the near future. His last words to me: “I love you.” And mine to him: “I love you, too.” Twenty-four hours later the police were knocking at our door in Northampton. They sat us down and compassionately but directly confirmed who we were and then informed us that our son, Patrick Henry Brown, was deceased. He died from an opioid overdose. You don’t need to know what a wonderful young man he was – how hard-working, loving, gentle, caring, beautiful. What you do need to know is that he could be your son or daughter, husband or wife. Your loved one.
He died from an epidemic present throughout the country. It is especially virulent up and down the East Coast and here in the Northeast. This is not Zika; think smallpox, or the plague.
We were aware there was a risk to Pat and others – but had no idea of the extent. You may be seeing increasing stories as the casualties mount, claiming 100 lives a month in Massachusetts.
In 2014 there were 1,100 unintentional opioid overdose deaths. The statistics for 2015 are not yet in but strongly indicate a surging number of deaths.
Our funeral director told us that the number of unintentional opioid overdose deaths in the first two months of 2016 exceed the past three years combined for his establishment.
The fallen are all ages and come from all walks of life – high school students and professionals, wealthy and disadvantaged.
Prescription opioids, including oxycodone, are flooding our homes and our streets. Oxycodone has been promoted as the answer to pain. But it is very addictive. Pharmaceutical companies say their drugs ease pain, but they are not accountable for the epidemic of addiction they fuel.
A large percentage of these prescriptions for opioids are used illicitly. They become street drugs bought and sold and marked up from already high prices. The pharmaceutical companies profit from all of this, regardless of the drug’s ultimate use. And their answer to drug addiction is more drugs, such as methadone, suboxone and even drugs for opioid constipation.
Companies run massive marketing campaigns to us and to our doctors: Pain in the past two decades has been emphasized; it is now the fifth vital sign. The other vital signs are objective and measurable, while pain is subjective in the mind of the patient. Many doctors are increasingly skeptical of this emphasis on pain and the widespread use of opioids that results. We should be also; ask your doctor.
Many people become addicted when recovering from an illness or a medical procedure. Many others use these opioids to ease emotional pain or for the euphoria they can provide. But the good feeling is short-lived. Within days of starting opioids the body can start to be dependent.
For the many of us who are genetically predisposed to addiction, this is the beginning of an epic life struggle.
Prescription opioids are expensive and few of us can afford them without health insurance. They double in price by the time they hit the streets. Increasingly there is a cheaper and plentiful alternative: heroin. A high schooler doesn’t need an ID to buy heroin and a bag of it can cost less than a six-pack of beer, and much less than oxycodone bought on the street. Heroin costs less than a pack of cigarettes.
The pharmaceutical industry cashed in while America became the largest market for opioid drugs, far bigger than other countries. We the people have to beg our legislatures for nickels and dimes when the drug business should be required to contribute to solving the problem they created – providing money not for more drug solutions, but for better answers to our addiction crisis.
Instead, the drug companies respond with “medication-assisted treatment,” in effect pushing more chemical answers, like suboxone. That is a piece of the solution, but this kind of treatment has the effect of crowding out more thoughtful and comprehensive long-term solutions to addiction.
Drugs are easy to obtain, but treatment is not. Ask any person who has been there trying to get a loved one into treatment. And remember, if your loved one is over 18 you have no say in the matter nor any right to any communication from treatment centers.
When people die of opioid overdoses, the cause is rarely made public, as families endure their grief in private. I am writing to put a face on this tragic disease. I respect all other families in making a personal decision about how they speak of their loss, but would encourage them to do as I am doing now.
What would happen if every opioid death was front-page news? You would see once a week, likely more often, the face of a loved one right here in western Massachusetts.
Addiction is a lifelong, chronic disease. It is an illness, like diabetes, and treatment should be open and non-judgmental. Today, as our family learned, treatment options are flawed and even those who manage to receive care can get lost in the shuffle. After their bodies are “clean,” their minds may not be ready to live without drugs. Many do not receive needed follow-up counseling – a gap that leaves them vulnerable to relapse, as was the case with our Pat.
I am very proud of my son, as are my wife, Deb, and daughter, Elsa. We are sad beyond belief. Many others will be facing this same tragedy soon.
A plague is random, it is bad luck, but it is here. We have to work together to save many lives and we have to start now.
Henry Brown and his wife, Debra McNeice, live in Northampton. Their children, Elsa and Patrick, grew up in Leeds.