In an episode “dedicated to siblings,” Denise Krochta welcomes guest Erin Daly, a freelance journalist from San Fransisco with a passion for reporting cultural and human interest stories. Oxycontin became a subject of interest to Erin in the course of her day job, but her fascination with it took a personal turn when her youngest brother became addicted to the painkiller and eventually died of a related heroin overdose in 2009. Tune in as Erin shares her personal story and how you can address (or prevent) similar instances in your own life.
What is life like when your sibling is a drug addict and/or an alcoholic? What happens to a family thrown into chaos due to a brother or sister abusing drugs and alcohol? Who gets all the attention from the parents? And what is the proper emotional response: Fear? Anger? Denise starts off this episode by reading a letter from an anonymous contributor describing her pain as she struggled watching her brother fall into the perilous grip of drug abuse.
“[My brother] was a risk-taker by nature,” explains Erin Daly, elaborating on her childhood and a few of the factors she feels led her brother to a life of drug addiction. How much should personality be taken into account when examining drug addiction? Are you able to tell early on–when someone is a child!–they then may be prone toward taking up these deadly habits?
Denise and Erin also have an in-depth conversation on the cultural acceptance of prescription drugs in the United States and how that attitude–and the media stance on the matter (including the ongoing flood of commercials)–affects our youth’s opinion toward addictive substances. Is our Nation’s casual stance on prescription drugs taking a toll on our kids? Why are only some drugs taken seriously? And why is it only in America that we take such a lackadaisical approach?
This episode is sure to leave you thinking, asking questions, and begging for more!