Content note: drug addiction, overdose, eating disorders
Last month, I went to the One Pill Can Kill conference, hosted at the school where I teach.
I wrote a freelance article about it for the Beaumont Enterprise while one of my journalism students covered it for the school newspaper.
READ MORE: Southeast Texas schools lead Texas in fentanyl overdose deaths
People shared about losing a loved one to fentanyl, and survivors shared their stories.
Chelsey Chancelor’s story stood out because of the similarities to managing both addictions and severe, long-term eating disorders.
Here’s the part of her story that was the most healing for me:
“If it wasn’t for NARCAN, I wouldn’t be here today. I have been pronounced dead I don’t know how many times. There is harm reduction and there is medicated assisted treatment.
“I just want to say to the next addict that’s still suffering, don’t leave five minutes before the miracle arrives, because there is hope. I’m standing here in front of you. This is hope.
“Don’t ever think that your kids know better. Sit down and talk with your kids and let them know, ‘This is a crisis.’
“You run out of time in the day to visit all the gravesites from the people you grew up with because they’re overdosed and dead. Just don’t ever think that it won’t happen to you. Don’t ever think that it’s a defect of your parenting if your child is an addict.
“It is a disease of the brain, and it cannot be cured, but it can be managed. No matter how low you get, what’s stopping you from getting better?
“I’m not a bad person because I got addicted to heroin. I’m not a shitty mom because I’m a drug addict. I am fighting for my life because this disease wants me dead. Today, I have the power to say that my disease of addiction no longer has that control over me.
“There are other options, you don’t have to die at the hands of a needle, you don’t have to die at the hands of a pimp, you don’t have to die at the hands of any lick or trick or high that you think is worth it for that 10 minutes because once that 10, 15 minutes wears off, you worse off than before and it’s just not worth it.
“Today I’m grateful to be alive.”
Eleanor Skelton 