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Talk host gets news a college friend and father of two, just died of opioid addiction - while talking about upcoming Lowcountry Opioid Summit
While talking about an upcoming lowcountry event in its second year, dealing with dark topics like teen suicide, child trafficking and opioid addiction - I got a stark reminder of what the real 'crisis' in our country is, or rather, are. It's not the Corona Virus as the media and some Democrat politics would have us scared into believing, its cancer, alzheimers and heart disease, diabetes, and yes - opioid addiction related deaths.
Health and Human Services says deaths from drug overdose, including those involving opioids, are up among both men and women, all races, and adults of nearly all ages. Two out of three drug overdose deaths involve an opioid. Overdose deaths from opioids, including prescription opioids, heroin, and synthetic opioids (like fentanyl) have increased almost six times since 1999. Overdoses involving opioids killed more than 47,000 people in 2017, and 36% of those deaths involved prescription opioids.
I sad down with Mayor Will Haynie in-studio for a preview of this Saturday's event. While we were talking, an old buddy from my College of Charleston days was texting me. He said, 'was just listening to you on the radio ... didn't know if you knew' that one of our fellow college friends 'passed from opioids about a month ago after getting a perscription from some surgeries. There were signs apparently (I never saw them) and he fell asleep one night and never woke up.' I replied 'thank you for letting me know' and that I too had lost a cousin to a suicide related opioid death.
Mount Pleasant Police Chief Carl Ritchie, Nanci Shipman, and Mayor Haynie will be talking about those signs among other topics at the 'Our Community, Our Children' event this Saturday at Mount Pleasant Memorial Waterfront Park.
Take a listen to the podcast recap of 'The Kelly Golden Show' here and by pressing play button on below player.