SHREWSBURY ― Sharing their experiences of losing loved ones to opioid addiction, and showing where grieving survivors can turn to for support was the focus of a Central Massachusetts Prevention and Support Network event held Wednesday in Independence Hall at Veterans Inc.
In his opening remarks, Worcester County District Attorney Joseph D. Early Jr. acknowledged the “immense pain” that parents of children who have died due to drug overdoses go through, and the “courage and resilience” they have to share their personal stories, all in the hopes that something better will come from their personal losses.
Early said the country lost 107,000 to overdoes death last year, with 278 of those deaths happening in Worcester County.
Beyond the numbers, Early said, the grieving process is compounded with the inherent stigma of overdose death.
“To every person, it’s a son. It’s a daughter. It’s a brother or sister. It’s a niece or nephew. It’s a mother or a father. It’s people that we love,” Early said. “Often, grief takes many forms. And these haunt us. … They have to go through the grief of losing a loved one and then having to deal with the stigma and opinions of people who just don’t know. It’s so hard.”