Opioid Awareness Thursday, May 23, 2019
SPONSORED BY: Mayor Richard Kopczick Illinois House of Representatives
DaviD allen Welter STATE REPRESENTATIVE 75TH DISTRICT
SUE REZIN
ASSISTANT REPUBLICAN LEADER STATE SENATOR • 38TH DISTRICT
Morris Herald-News / MorrisHerald-News.com • Thursday, May 23, 2019
OPIOID AWARENESS
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Photo provided
Grundy County Sheriff Ken Briley (left) and Coroner John Callahan stand next to the latest Medication Take Back box at the Grundy County Sheriff’s Administration Office.
Grundy County Coroner has drop-off boxes around county SHAW MEDIA MORRIS – With medication being one of the avenues that people can follow to become introduced or addicted to opioids, the Grundy County Coroner’s Office has made dropping off unused or expired medication available around the county. Walk into any law enforcement office in Grundy County and there will be a drop-off box nearby. In December, the Grundy County Sheriff’s Office installed a medication and sharps take-back box in its admin-
istrative building at 111 E. Washington St., Morris, in conjunction with the Grundy County Coroner’s Office. The Medication and Sharps TakeBack program, through the coroner’s office, allows people with expired or unused medication to drop it off. Instead of ending up in a landfill and eventually the environment, it will now find its way to the incinerator. The drop-off boxes have been available in other law enforcement buildings throughout the county, including the Minooka, Channahon, Coal City and Morris police departments.
Concerns about medication disposal can stem from possible poisoning from accidental ingestion with children or pets, Illegal use or theft and contamination of water resources.
Minooka, IL 60447
DROP-OFF LOCATIONS
• Channahon Police 24555 S Navajo Drive Channahon, IL 60410
• Morris Police 200 E Chapin St. Morris, IL 60450 • Minooka Police 121 McEvilly Road,
• Coal City Police 545 S Broadway St. Coal City, IL 60416
• Grundy County Sheriff’s Office 111 E Washington St. Morris, IL 60450
How walking into the sheriff’s office can help By KEVIN SOLARI
ksolari@shawmedia.com MORRIS – At a Grundy County Board meeting in February, Grundy County Sheriff Ken Briley rolled out a program to help the county. Working with Family Guidance Centers in Joliet, and using grant funding from state and federal sources, people with substance abuse issues can walk into the Grundy County Sheriff’s Office and ask for help without fear of arrest. Even if they have drugs on their person at the time. “We learned a long time ago that we cannot arrest our way out of this problem,” Briley told the board at the time. “Our job is to provide them with the help they’re looking for.” The board approved a resolution that would connect Grundy County with Family Guidance Services in Will County to provide the support. Two problems the county has had in the past were finding help for people without insurance and a lack of facilities in Grundy County. Carla Policandriotes with Family Guidance Centers told the board that Grundy County has been identified as a “desert zone” for treatment options for people with drug or alcohol addictions. “The crisis is there’s not treatment,” Policandriotes said. Family Guidance receives about $30 million in grants and funding and has earmarked $250,000 for treating people coming from Grundy County. The program works this way: Any resident who willingly enters the Grundy County Sheriff’s Office and requests help with substance use disorder that involves opioids, alcohol or other substances will be screened for eligibility and, if eligible, will be registered for participation in the Safe Passage program. Any drugs or paraphernalia they have on them at the time will be turned over to deputies, but they will not be criminally charged. Certain warrants of criminal backgrounds would make someone ineligible, however. Ron Vlasaty, the chief operating officer for Family Guidance Centers, said that they’ve received 10 referrals from the Grundy County Sheriff’s Office as of mid-May, with three of them still in treatment. Even though most of the people referred to the program have dropped out, Vlasaty said that’s normal.
Shaw Media file photo
Grundy County Sheriff Ken Briley introduces special guests to give remarks at a forum March 13 at the Coal City Public Library. Briley also rolled out the Safe Passage program a month earlier, with his office working in conjunction with Family Guidance Centers. “Relapse is part of the process,” he said. “Of those that dropped, they can still come back any time. It’s a difficult process, but something we continue to do with patients.” In February, while introducing the Safe Passage program to the county board, Vlasaty said, “We’re here for them as long as they need us.” The first step once someone asks for help at a participating police station or at a hospital is a practical one. Family Guidance Center works to figure out what transportation options the potential patient has, as well as a pre-screening to find out which Family Guidance Centers location they should go to. The patient also will go through an assessment to determine what type or level of care they will receive. There are three levels, Vlasaty said, ranging from outpatient treatment to residential treatment. The options can be in conjunction with medication assisted treatment, as well. How did the crisis begin? The United States faced a heroin crisis in the 1990s when it was a drug of choice for rock stars, models and ad campaigns. But it faded at the turn of the century. The resurgence is due mainly to opiate use in medication.
“Year’s ago, there was a stereotypical individual,” Vlasaty said. But in the last several years, ever since the nation became more familiar and aware of the opioid crisis, he said the population seeking treatment has changed. “We saw the patient population change from a street-level user to people who had a job, were hurt on the job and were prescribed opiates,” Vlasaty said. In that situation, when the prescription runs out, someone could go seek opiate painkillers or other opiate products, such as heroin, on the street or from other extralegal sources. Vlasaty said the doctors were just as blindsided by the addictive nature of the painkillers as were the patients. The danger comes from the illicit sources. Briley said many drug dealers will use substances such as fentanyl to cut their heroin to make it more profitable. If they have more to sell, they can make more money. As for the current state of things, Vlasaty said he is seeing money available for treatment growing, and options for people to find help increasing. Who is affected? Vic Elias, a detective with the Grundy County Sheriff’s
Office, said everyone can be affected, that there is no age group or socio-economic class that is typically affected by opioid addiction. “We saw last year in the stats ... that the youngest (overdose) was 17 and the oldest was in their 70s,” he said. “So there really is no demographics. Male, female, it doesn’t matter.” Key to treating the crisis is not just having treatment options, but having people know what options are available to them. Elias said he had recently been to a family’s home where an individual had overdosed on a Friday. The following Monday he stopped by the home to give them information about the Safe Passage program. The family had not heard that it was available, he said. “She was flabbergasted that I even showed up at her door to make contact, explain to her the program and say ‘Hey, here are some options,’ ” Elias said. Vlasaty said the county is off to a good start. “The sheriff was very proactive in this,” he said. “He came in with an agenda and followed through. This thing is only going to grow.”
OPIOID AWARENESS Morris Herald-News / MorrisHerald-News.com • Thursday, May 23, 2019
Safe Passage: A tool to combat the crisis
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Morris Herald-News / MorrisHerald-News.com • Thursday, May 23, 2019
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Specialty court in session Drug and mental health courts give addicted another chance By KEVIN SOLARI
ksolari@shawmedia.com MORRIS – Since 2006, Grundy County has had options for people charged with a crime that is connected to either a drug problem or mental health scenarios. The Grundy County Drug Court was founded in 2006, the Mental Health court in 2014. Both of them offer a way for people to serve the community, stay out of prison and become productive members of society. Neither are get out of jail free cards. “Our goal is ‘How is the community safer?’ ” Grundy County State’s Attorney Jason Helland said. “Is the community safer because this person gets locked up, or is the community safer if this person gets treated?” Nationwide, Helland said, evidence-based practices showed that the target population of offenders are less likely to re-offend if they get treatment instead of prison time. Mitch Conwell, the drug court coordinator for Grundy County, said the drug court program is more intense than probation. Drug court provides a treatment team for participants. “We’re dealing with some of the highest risk population,” he said. A high-risk person on probation will have two to four contacts with their probation officer a month. High-risk does not mean a high risk to the community, Conwell said, rather that are at high risk to re-offend. “Putting these people in prison typically criminalizes them more,” Conwell said. People in drug court agree to participate in a program. And they’ve also agreed to punishments, which can include prison time, if they fail to complete their program. It is treatment-focused, Conwell said, rather than adversarial. When the participant goes up to speak to the judge, they have a conversation. “The judge’s interaction with them is one of the most impactful things,” Conwell said. The programs associated with specialty courts often are more intense than other programs. Helland said more than one person has begun the drug court program and said they would rather do their time in prison and get it over with. Part of that is constant communication with people involved with the court. “We have contact with them almost daily,” Conwell said. “That’s one of the reasons I say it’s more difficult than
Shaw Media file photo
Grundy County State’s Attorney Jason Helland inherited the county’s Drug Court and brought a Mental Health Court to the area to help treat people with mental health issues who run afoul of the law. He said he expects to see those eligible for the specialty court programs expand in the future. the traditional probation models because we have 10 times more contact with them simply because we can.” Drug court participants will meet with Conwell, their probation officer, come into the office for random drug tests, and have to show up to court dates. Drug Court is currently funded by the Grundy County Board, and the Mental Health Court is funded through a grant from the state of Illinois. Helland brought the Mental Health Court to Grundy County in 2014. “They are never not drug-tested,” Helland said of those in drug court programs. “It’s a 10-panel drug screening and they’re tested every 72 hours. And they’re observed so they can’t cheat.” Participants also are subject to random home visits from the court. Some steps in the program might seem mundane to some, but they are key to the treatment process, such as having a stable address, a job, a car to get to the job are some of the first things participants need to do in the program. Once they get basic needs met, medication sorted out and support struc-
ture in place, then the treatment process can begin. “If they don’t know where they’re next meal is coming from, how are they going to get to court?” Helland said. “A lot of those issues are addressed at the beginning.” Helland said he expects to see criteria for eligibility into the program expand in the years to come. Even violent offenders might become eligible as research shows treatment is more effective than incarceration. There’s reason to be encouraged by and expand the program. Conwell said at the national conference last year, the specialty court model was hailed as the most successful criminal justice reform in history. “In the standard probation model, you’re talking recidivism rates in the 80% range, and I think the national recidivism rates for the drug court program is about 50%,” he said. “That’s a dramatic reduction for this population.” Separating the drug and mental health courts isn’t necessarily a clear demarcation. Helland said that as they get to know people in the programs more, it
becomes increasingly unclear to know if the mental health issues caused the drug abuse, or vice versa. “Offenders going into the mental health court have a ... diagnosable, treatable mental illness,” Helland said. “A lot of them have never received treatment. A lot of them have never had medication management.” Conwell said addiction is always a symptom. “So many of our people in drug court have what we call a concurrent disorder which means there’s some sort of mental health issue, as well,” Conwell said. “It (addiction) is what’s driving the behavior, a lot of self-medicating behavior.” Upon completion of the program, Drug Court participants have a graduation. “I think the key to this type of process is relationship-building,” Conwell said. He described one person who had been in and out of jail, known to the Morris police, who went through Drug court and is now working in a good job and sometime stops by the office to say “Hi.” “He just celebrated 42 months sober,” Conwell said.
By DENISE M. BARAN–UNLAND dunland@shawmedia.com
Note to readers: Last month, we ran a story about a Braidwood mother who feels if her pregnant daughter had remained on Vivitrol (naltrexone), a medicine used to treat heroin addiction, her daughter and then unborn grandson might still be alive today. Today’s story explains the medical treatment for women who are pregnant and battling addictions.
When a woman calls Stepping Stones for help with her addiction, asking her if she’s pregnant is part of the screening process, Paul Lauridsen, executive director of Stepping Stones Treatment Center in Joliet, said. “The state mandates that we treat pregnant women on a priority basis,” Lauridsen said. “If we don’t have a bed available, then we’re required to contact other providers to see if we can get them in somewhere.” Stepping Stones then ensures the woman has prenatal care. If she does not have a doctor, then she may be referred to the Will County Community Health Center, he said. Whether a pregnant woman is treated at Stepping Stones as a resident or outpatient depends on the strength of her support system and her level of use, Lauridsen said. The actual medication used to treat the addiction is coordinated through the woman’s doctor, Lauridsen said. “That’s the doctor’s call and we’re going to comply with what they recommend,” Lauridsen said. Unfortunately, no medication to treat substance abuse exists that is ideal for use in pregnant mothers. “There’s just not enough research done for them to say, ‘This is absolutely safe and you don’t have to worry about it,’” Lauridsen. “You know how hard it is taking aspirin [when you’re pregnant].” “If somebody can get by, there’s no question that it’s better not to be taking any medication while pregnant. But you have to weigh that against if someone is going to
be out using heroin or something else on the street because of her addiction.” Pregnant women may remain at Stepping Stones until they deliver, Lauridsen said. If a woman requires in-patient treatment following delivery, Stepping Stones will help her find resources. Structure is key for ensuring a safe pregnancy for mother and baby, Lauridsen said, structure as well as support and good prenatal care.
Before delivery
In an email Dr. Jennifer Byrd, medical director of the Will County Community Health Center in Joliet, said women who battle addictions, opioids especially, may be more prone to complications during pregnancy. For instance, the placenta may detach from the uterine wall (placental abruption), interrupting the blood supply and nutrients to the fetus and causing bleeding in the mother. The membranes may rupture prematurely and cause amniotic fluid around the fetus to leak out, which can result in an early and unexpected delivery. Other complications may include fetal growth restriction, miscarriage and fetal death, Byrd wrote. Treating the addiction and receiving good prenatal care
may help prevent complications. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always happen. “Many pregnant patients with opioid use disorder go without care during the gestation and often present in labor in our area hospitals,” Byrd wrote. How often do pregnant women with substance abuse disorders seek treatment at the Will County Community Health Center? More often than many people think, Byrd wrote. But women who are currently using cannot be treated at the Will County Community Center. “This would not be appropriate, as she would then be considered a high risk pregnancy and would be transferred to a maternal fetal medicine OB doctor,” Bird wrote. “We would educate the patient and facilitate the transfer providing health information to the receiving doctor.” The woman will be asked how often she uses recreational drugs or prescription drugs for non-medical reasons. She will also be screened for drugs, sexually transmitted diseases and depression, Byrd wrote. As part of her care, health care professionals will discuss treatment options for the opioid addiction with her, along with the risks and benefits for each treatment. These may include buprenorphine
(Subutex), buprenorphine/ naloxone (Suboxone) and methadone, Byrd wrote.
What about Vivitrol?
“No, currently the safely information is not complete for Vivitrol in pregnancy, so it is generally not used,” Byrd wrote. Dr. Jyoti Randhawa, chief medical officer, said “everyone’s alarms tend to go off” when a woman with an addiction becomes pregnant. People want to “strip away” “anything or everything” that can cause harm to the mother or baby. “But the rule of thumb is you treat the patient in the best interest of their life quality, even if a woman is pregnant and is having substance abuse issues,” Randhawa said. “You still want to follow the general protocol.” Randhawa said when a pregnant woman is stable in her recovery, it’s important to maintain stability for the best possible outcome of the pregnancy. She can understand why a woman who is doing well with Vivitrol might want to continue with it. “It’s a great medicine,” Randhawa said. “It’s the gold standard for a lot of addiction issues.” Methadone, however, is an appropriate medication for pregnant women and the one most commonly used, but
health professionals do need to closely monitor it, Randhawa said. When deciding a treatment plan, health professionals balance what is known about the risks and benefits against what is not known, she said. What trimester a drug is introduced may influence that decision, too, she added. “We take all that, and we take the patient’s history, and we try to make the best recommendation possible with the information we currently know,” Randhawa said. During the actual delivery of the baby, the doctor and anesthesiologist must communicate well, Byrd wrote. This results in better monitoring for pain, which can be treated with injectable Ketorolac, a non-steroidal, anti-inflammatory medication, and/or a high dose Tylenol, while monitoring for sedation and fatigue, Byrd wrote. Byrd said the only concern with Tylenol is when the woman has preexisting liver or kidney disease, which health care professionals will know from blood work.
After delivery
Postpartum care includes pain control with nonopioid treatments, therapy for substance abuse and support from social services, Byrd wrote. Byrd also wrote that breastfeeding is encouraged because it decreases the length of the hospital stay for newborns, increases bonding between mother and baby and optimizes the baby’s immune system. The baby is also monitored for signs of withdrawal if the mother was using opioids during her pregnancy and then treating that withdrawal, Byrd said. The process is complicated but worth it, Lauridsen feels. “When you have a pregnant woman who is batting with an opioid addiction you want to do the right thing,” Lauridsen said. “When you’re able to be successful, you not only have the mother who is doing well, but the child. And so it’s very gratifying when it works.”
OPIOID AWARENESS Morris Herald-News / MorrisHerald-News.com • Thursday, May 23, 2019
When mom-to-be has an opioid addiction
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Downward, then upward
Morris Herald-News / MorrisHerald-News.com • Thursday, May 23, 2019
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Local man lost it all from drug addiction, but slowly is getting it back By ALLISON SELK
Shaw Media correspondent Michael Morman, once chief operating officer of an insurance company with a life full of money, cars and fancy condos, found himself in a downward spiral of drugs, suicide attempts, lawsuits, job loss and lost relationships. Morman said he would not change one moment of the past seven years of his life. “I’m not ashamed of any of that, again when I tell people if you knew me before this, that never was me. I lost my way, I lost my soul and I lost who I was and I’m happy to say I think I’ve kind of found myself, again it’s not quite the same person I was, but I’m okay with that,” Morman said. The Morman family, father Rich, mother Sandy and children Kelly and Michael moved to Channahon from the south side of Chicago in 2005. Michael attended Olivet College in Michigan and received a bachelors degree. in financial insurance and risk management. He began to work for an insurance firm. His life of money and travel allowed him to live lavishly and in 2012 while in Sacramento, Calif. He had his first taste of when he had a bad ache, his roommate had undergone surgery and had opiates in the home. He said he took the pills for the pain and became hooked, but not totally. What began with pills to treat his pain quickly spiraled downward. In 2013, he moved back to Illinois and lived in St. Charles where he landed a job with another insurance brokerage. Fast forward later that year he was exposed to cocaine which led to crystal methamphetamine. “Looking back, I had very severe depression issues, a lot of things I struggled with, just being overweight, being openly gay to my friends, but not being out to my family, a lot of those things weighed heavily on me,” Morman said. During the years of 2015 to 2017, Morman admitted to using methamphetamine five to six days a week while he held a title of COO at an insurance company. He said methamphetamine was known to be prevalent in the gay community. He also experienced being held at gunpoint and living under a bridge as he became homeless. “Within my community, it would take me five minutes to find it and that’s a huge problem,” Morman said. “The drug has easy access, it’s cheap and it helps you escape. Meth helped me escape my problems when I could not face the world and reality.”
Allison Selk for Shaw Media
Michael Morman of Channahon went from a life of money and high-ranking careers to multiple suicide attempts and drug addiction. Now, he remains sober and on a mission to share his story to help others realize it’s OK to ask for help. In Jan. of 2018, after his business had been mismanaged, Morman tried to hang himself. The rope broke and as he sobbed in his parents home, he asked for help and his father took him to Edwards Hospital. He stayed in Linden Oaks Behavioral Health for a week. He was out and in the midst of dealing with his actions. He’d lost his business and career, and he went to Wisconsin and attempted suicide again. He failed. After, he went on a two-week methamphetamine binge. “At that time I had lost pretty much everything. I was paying my dealer with my TV and kitchen appliances,” Morman said. “The one interesting thing that I would say with meth as a drug in particular ... is that it steals your soul, and it really does. You think you are invincible, you think you conquer the world and for a long time I was able to.” In March of 2018, Morman flew to Las Vegas for a job interview so he could be close to his boyfriend Max Mullen. Morman never showed to his interview, instead he checked into a run down hotel in a bad part of town and used methamphetamines for three days. “Max said, ‘You need to get help,’”
Morman said. He contacted Arlene Riccardo, mother of friend and performer Tommy Wind, and she helped him get into Desert Hope Addiction Treatment Center in Nevada. He was there for 30 days and checked himself out which he said was his worst decision. Three weeks later he relapsed and in June of 2018, he and Max broke up. He attempted suicide in Vegas. He came back to Channahon and relapsed twice in the summer of 2018. “Finally stuff started to click a little bit that I needed to try as hard as I could to get my life together and that I was either going to end up in three things, back in rehab, in jail or dead,” Mormansaid. Morman said he wants others to know that it’s okay to ask for help and many people struggle with addiction also deal with depression and other mental health issues. Morman thinks keeping up with the societal norm can hinder those who struggle with mental illness and/or addiction to raise a hand to ask for help. The police chief of Minooka Justin Meyer and Grundy County Sheriff Ken Briley receive applause from Morman
due to the use of the Safe Passage Program where resident can go into the stations and ask for help with addiction to opiates and receive assistance to get to treatment facility. He said he hopes the village in which he lives will respond to his requests on how it will help with the opiate crisis and make it easier to offer sober living homes to recovering addicts in the area. “Channahon I don’t believe is nearly doing enough. I think they prefer to put their head in the sand then openly talk about the crisis. It’s not enough to say we did narcon training and have a pill take back program - more needs to be done,” Morman said. Morman also said it frustrates him that addicts who have private insurance can receive more help than those on Medicaid. He said the type of help and locations greatly decrease if on Medicaid. He attends Narcotics and Alcoholics Anonymous meetings, even though alcohol was never a drug of choice. He has had local businesses open doors to be a meeting place for addicts, but has also received backlash when people send him messages such as “druggie, leave our town,” Morman said.
Braidwood mom shares her daughter’s battle with heroin
Kim Earling lost her only child, Samantha Kile, and unborn grandchild to Samantha’s heroin addiction in November. Despite multiple rehabilitations in 2013 and 2015, her daughter’s addiction persisted. “I want everybody to know change needs to happen with the way everybody, society, treats addicts,” Kim said.
By DENISE M. BARAN–UNLAND dunland@shawmedia.com
The first time Kim Earling of Braidwood met her only grandchild was in the casket at a funeral home. “We went to plan Samantha’s funeral,” Kim said, referring to her 22-year-old daughter who had died of drug overdose. “And the funeral director looked at us and said, ‘How would you like the baby laid out?’ ” Earling said anyone who loves a person with an addiction always wonders when “that day” will come. But when her daughter, Samantha Kile, was growing up, Kim never imagined that day would come for her. “Samantha was a very happy, caring, bubbly soul who was friends with everyone,” Kim said. “She could light up a room. If you were having a bad day, she would turn it into a good day, no matter what her troubles were. “She was very intelligent. In high school, she actually tested into accelerated classes. She always put other people first. She never wanted to disappoint anyone. She was always very apologetic when these things happened.” Earling said she and Samantha had what Earling considered to be an open relationship, where they could talk about anything. That’s why Earling was stunned the day a gym teacher told Earling that Samantha, then in the sixth grade, was cutting. “She was such a good kid, always smiling around the house,” Earling said. “She never once gave us a clue anything was wrong. I was immediately concerned and wanted to get to the bottom of it. I wanted to fix her. But she just clammed up. She was afraid of hurting me. She wanted to show me the ‘happy Samantha.’ ” Kim said Samantha saw a counselor for a year. She learned Samantha was missing her father. Samantha had
Eric Ginnard – eginnard@ shawmedia.com
been close with him until he and Kim broke up. Kim began seeing Chris Earling when Samantha was 8 and eventually married him. Samantha did well after counseling and became very active in softball, cheerleading and speech during her first year of high school, Kim said. This was despite the fact Samantha had another loss around eighth-grade graduation: Chris’ dad, to whom Samantha had become close, had died. Within 18 months, Samantha’s grades had dropped. One of Samantha’s friends called Kim and told her Samantha was using heroin. Kim called a friend who had a relative who was a psychologist for advice on symptoms of heroin use and tips for checking Samantha’s bedroom. “I started educating myself. I didn’t even know what signs to look for,” Kim said. “She was sleeping all the time, there was weight loss and mood swings, and all of a sudden I was finding these little orange caps. I didn’t know what they were until I started reading about them. They were the covers for the needles.” Kim also started home-schooling Samantha, who did so well with the program she almost graduated early, Kim said.
“But we never completed it,” Kim said. “Because that’s when the drugs took over.” At that point, since Samantha refused to go into rehabilitation, Kim decided to change Samantha’s environment and took her to Arizona. Chris stayed in Illinois until he found a job in Arizona. But within a week and a half of the move, Samantha had gone online searching for heroin. “By this time, she had gotten sloppier at hiding it,” Chris said. “I even had videos of her high, but she still denied she was high. She always claimed her doctor gave her too much Xanax or something.” Eventually, Kim persuaded Samantha to go into rehabilitation, which Samantha did to pacify Kim, since Samantha still was denying she was using heroin, Kim said. “She tried to leave after a week and a half,” Kim said. “She walked out – it was a 30-day program – and she called us up and said, ‘I’m leaving. You need to come get me.’ The counselor at that point had arranged a phone meeting with me and said, ‘Don’t come get her.’ Once she realized we weren’t going to get her, she went back to the rehab facility and checked herself back in.” Samantha spent Christmas
2013 in rehab and completed the 30 days. Did it help? “I liked to think it did,” said Chris, who joined his family in Arizona in February 2014. “Things seemed to be OK. She was smoking pot, which I never agreed with, but everybody tried, more or less, to convince me it was the better alternative, so I tried to ride with it.” Samantha found a job at a fast-food restaurant, along with heroin from one of her co-workers, which triggered a relapse. The family returned to Illinois and their former jobs in April, Kim and Chris said. Kim pushed rules and rehabilitation. Chris said loved ones insisted Samantha must hit “rock bottom” before she might seek help. Samantha had a total of five stays in rehabilitation and was in and out of jail for drug possession, Kim said. The 90-day rehabilitation at the end of 2015 worked well for Samantha. She had a year of sobriety until Kim’s aunt died in July 2017. At that point, Samantha went on Vivitrol, a brand name for naltrexone, an opioid blocker, which also worked well for Samantha, Kim said. Until January 2018, when Samantha missed her Vivitrol injection by one day.
“She went and used again,” Kim said. “And that led to eight overdoses in 30 days.” Samantha went back on the Vivitrol and became pregnant in April. But Kim said she and Chris did not know about the pregnancy until August. At that point, Samantha had to go off the Vivitrol because it’s not approved for use in pregnant women, Kim said. Kim said she begged health providers to reconsider. Chris said Samantha was prescribed Subutex, the brand name for buprenorphine, an opioid used to treat addictions. Chris said the Subutex, “didn’t do squat.” The baby was due Jan. 3. Samantha died Nov. 3 from an overdose of fentanyl. Kim said the night it happened, Chris was out of town and Samantha was visiting a relative. Kim had gone to bed and Samantha woke her up when she came home, letting Kim know she was going to take a bath. Periodically Kim awakened and heard the bathroom fan, signs Samantha still was in the bath. Finally, Kim was wide awake, realizing Samantha was taking a very long bath. She got up to check. “She was face-down in the bathtub,” Kim said. Before running for the Narcan, the brand name for naloxone, which treats overdoses, an act now habit, Kim looked at the ceiling for strength and thought, ‘I guess today is the day.’ ” Why are Kim and Chris telling Samantha’s story? Because they want real change. Kim wants Vivitrol approved for pregnant women. She wants overdoses classified as suicide attempts. She wants people to understand the impact addiction has on the addict’s brain. “I want everybody to know change needs to happen with the way everybody, society, treats addicts,” Kim said. “Addiction affects more families than people are aware of … this can happen to anyone: rich, poor, good or bad. And it destroys families. It took my only child and my only grandchild from me. Change needs to happen. And I’m going to fight for that.”
OPIOID AWARENESS Morris Herald-News / MorrisHerald-News.com • Thursday, May 23, 2019
‘Because that’s when the drugs took over’
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Morris Herald-News / MorrisHerald-News.com • Thursday, May 23, 2019
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‘If it helps one family ... it’s worth it’ Speakers at Coal City forum share emotional stories about heroin, opioid abuse By MEGANN HORSTEAD
Shaw Media correspondent COAL CITY – Minooka resident Kurt Miller said he was lying on the couch watching TV nearly four years ago when his youngest son entered the house and remembers having to call 911. “I hear the bathroom door open and close, and I noticed he’d been in there awhile,” he said. “I hear a thud. I thought, ‘I don’t know what that is, but I’m going to check on him.’ I opened the bathroom door. He was on the floor.” Miller’s story is not unlike many other accounts detailing the impact of heroin and opioid abuse, both locally and nationally. A few dozen people attended the spring heroin/opioid forum hosted last week at the Coal City Public Library. The event, by design, set out to educate and inform the community on current trends heroin/opioids, the available resources and immediate treatment options. Featured speakers included Sheriff Ken Briley of Grundy County Sheriff’s Department, Emily King of Minooka, Kurt and Karl Miller of Minooka, Ronald Vlasaty Jr. of Family Guidance Centers, Deputy Sheriff Vic Elisa of Grundy County Sheriff’s Department, Sgt. Josh Slattery of Grundy County Sheriff’s Department, Police Chief Tom Best of Coal City Police Department and Fire Chief James Sheldon of Coal City Fire Protection District. Those at the forum sat in on remarks, followed by a question-and-answer session. The Grundy County Coroner’s Office has noted a number of trends in drug-related deaths in recent years. In 2017, the county reported five substance abuse-related deaths, compared with 31 deaths recorded last year. The Grundy County Coroner’s Office has recorded multiple combinations of heroin with other substances over the years. Those include heroin/fentanyl, heroin/alcohol, and heroin/prescription drugs. “Our heroin problem and substance abuse problems are, I’d say, at an all-time high, and it’s only going to get worse,” Grundy County State’s Attorney Jason Helland said. Briley recalled the call for service to Miller’s home in April 2015. “We got a call of an overdose at one of our homes in town,” he said.
Photos by Megann Horstead for Shaw Media
Kurt Miller shares his family’s story at a heroin and opioid forum March 13 at the Coal City Public Library. “When our officers arrived on scene, our officers started CPR on a young man.” Miller admitted it was difficult to gauge if his youngest son, Karl Miller, was struggling with an addiction. “There is no indication of anything was wrong until he was about 16,” he said. “I cannot pinpoint where it started, but I do know it was a progression.” Miller recounted more of what he can remember of the day his youngest son overdosed. “I tried to start CPR myself,” he said. “At that point, the police officers had arrived. They had come in. The paramedics arrived shortly thereafter. I thought I was going to have a heart attack because I had no idea. I had never experienced anything like this.” Karl’s mother, Emily King, encouraged those present at the forum to use their resources if they know of individuals who are strug-
gling with an addiction. “My biggest thing is if we would have known Karl had a drug addiction problem and there were resources out there, we would have reached out to those and definitely tried to get some help for him,” she said. Since then, Karl Miller’s health has shown progress. He participates in physical and occupational therapies and is under the care of a neurologist for the acquired brain injury he suffered. “He’s in a wheelchair,” Kurt Miller said. “He has balance problems. His memory’s not so good. He needs assistance with bathing, going to the bathroom, and making meals. He can converse. He remembers any funny line from any funny movie.” King said their family is happy to have Karl. “The help that forums like this potentially give – even if it helps one family, one life – it’s worth it,” Kurt Miller said.
Coal City Police Chief Tom Best shares remarks at a forum March 13 at the Coal City Public Library.