Honoring the Unique Piece of our missing puzzle!

“Prevention and Remembrance” is the main theme and focus of events and vigils held across the world on “International Overdose Awareness Day” August 21, 2012. 

All over the world, families, friends, and loved ones whose lives have been touched by the tragic deaths or permanent injuries due drugs or alcohol join together in growing numbers to honor those lives that have been lost.  We acknowledge the grief of the people who loved them and are devastated.  Countless of these family members still feel the stigma that society places on drug overdose.  As the epidemic grows, friends and families come out of their homes to bring awareness of prevention, show caring support, and eliminate this very stigma that has lingered throughout time.  Silver badges will be worn throughout the day as a symbol of remembrance, compassion, and understanding.

On this day it is my hope that every person touched by this tragic loss will be able to go through the bereavement process as any other person does.  Respectfully we will acknowledge that a person can love someone unconditionally without the judgment of others.  Even if they pass from a drug overdose, their memories to be honored.

These events will also bring awareness of addictive illness and prevention.  People are not aware that many overdoses are preventable. There will be talk of sensible solutions such as improved access to the overdose reversal medication naloxone as well as implementing Good Samaritan 911 policies.

The United States alone has reported that over 48 people a day are dying from drug overdoses and many more are reported as other causes. There is a growing epidemic of abuse of heroin, oxycodone, and other prescription painkillers along with street drugs.  The lives that are cut short are often those of teens and young adults who have yet to really live life.  Heartbreakingly, families and friends of those who have passed are left behind, in shock and reeling from the sudden devastation.

I understand this sorrow, as I too lost my 18-year-old daughter Candice to an accidental overdose.  She made a fatal mistake that took her life and all of her hopes and dreams.  She was a kind-hearted, loving child with a smile that would light up the room.  People were drawn to her brilliant personality.  She was a kind soul who loved her family dearly.  She had dreams of being a nurse one day.  My family has been forever altered by my daughter’s death.  She shared a special bond with her younger sister Brittany who was her best friend although she adored all her sisters and cared for her special needs brother as well. Candice made the biggest mistake of her life, causing her to overdose on February 15th 2005.

Today I watch as my daughter Brittany prepares to be a mother without her big sister.  Her happiness is diminished as she struggles with not wanting a maid of honor at her wedding; even the joy of picking baby names is bittersweet.  That place in her life and in her heart is now forever changed by Candice’s mistake.  As my children grow, I often sit and wonder what Candice would be like with them today.  In my mind’s eye, I imagine her watching them grow with me, seeing their bonds, hearing their laughter, and knowing how much we miss her presence in our lives every single day.  This missing piece of our unique puzzle is felt so deeply.  Candice touched so many lives without even knowing it.

 As a result, I continue to run the local chapter of “G.R.A.S.P.” (Grief Recovery After Substance Passing) http://grasphelp.org/ here in the San Diego/La Mesa area.  We are a support group across the country for those whose lives have been affected by deaths due to alcohol or drug misuse.  The compassion and understanding within this group has been very healing for me.  We meet once a month on every third Tuesday at the Grossmont Health Care District.  I am also a member of “Broken No More”, “A NEW PATH” (Parents for Treatment and Healing), and “Mothers United Against the Failed War on Drugs”.  I would like to help bring awareness and understanding of addictive illness in hopes that we can gain support for more treatment options and sensible solutions.  I will join “A New Path” http://www.anewpathsite.org/  in a candlelight vigil on International Overdose Awareness Day.

When:            August 31, 2012 at 7:00 p.m.

Where:           St. Paul’s Cathedral Courtyard

2728 6th Avenue

San Diego, CA 92103.

Please join us and light a candle on International Overdose Awareness Day 2012. This is a day of remembrance and prevention.  I will remember my daughter and those who have lost their battle with addictive illness. Please, light a candlewherever you are!