Opioid abuse is a growing epidemic in the United States, and frequently makes headlines. I think it’s particularly hard to get nuanced stories about the opioid epidemic because drug use is highly stigmatized and many journalists, even sympathetic ones, frequently write stories pumped with *shocking* details and descriptions, which is less humanizing than what they’re probably hoping for.
That said, it is a significant issue, and one that is tied to the over-prescription of opioid painkillers. Prescriptions are down since 2010, but even short-term prescriptions for opioid painkillers increase one’s risk of developing an addiction. In 2015, drug overdose was the “leading cause of accidental death in the United States,” with 38% of those drug overdose deaths from prescription pain killers and 25% from heroin.
I find reading stories about the opioid crisis, especially in my home city of Philadelphia, to be particularly difficult not because of the subject matter, but because of many people’s total disdain and disgust for people who use drugs. Reading comments on the internet is always a (mentally) dangerous endeavor, but people are particularly cruel about drug addiction, and this simply does nothing to help the crisis.
The above video from Vox is a really helpful primer on one of the reasons why heroin deaths are spiking, but I also read 2 articles this week that I thought offered some really important, nuanced perspectives on what the lives of opioid drug-using women are like:
Sex Workers and Drug Users Speak Out in Philadelphia – The Fix
Establishing a sense of empowerment and community is crucial – even lifesaving –for sex workers, said Amanda Spitfire and Aisha Mohammed, Project SAFE volunteers and the evening’s organizers.
“A lot of the stories were really painful, involved a lot of pain and sadness and hardship and difficulty, and I think that that’s really important to recognize that that’s a part of it, too,” Mohammed said after the event. “But that’s not a reason to abolish the sex industry altogether. Those are the reasons to make it safer – to make conditions safer and better and more lucrative for people who are doing it.”
Getting An Abortion In Alabama Is Hard. The Opioid Crisis Is Making It Even Harder. – Huffington Post
Although the patient Parker and Johnson were talking about was from Birmingham, she was 21 weeks and 1 day pregnant, which meant her procedure would have to be a dilation and evacuation, or D&E. Parker would have to use drugs to soften her cervix to conduct the abortion procedure in order to be able to insert his instruments into her uterus and remove the fetus.
…The clinic wouldn’t be open again until the following Wednesday, by which point she would be perilously close to the 22-week cutoff. … To add to the patient’s concerns, Alabama has been aggressive about prosecuting women who use drugs while pregnant. Given the abortion restrictions in surrounding states, given the looming public holiday and given this woman’s desire not to become a mother, Parker and Johnson both knew they were her last best hope.
It’s a complicated topic, but I hope that when readings articles about opioid addiction that you look for articles that present facts in a neutral tone and with respect for the people they’re interviewing.
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