Over the last year, there have been approximately 200 deaths from drug overdoses here in Maine. This is an eightfold increase in the last three years. Another startling statistic from the last year is that of the 12,000 babies born in our state, more than 950 were addicted to a substance. That is almost one in 12 Maine babies.
All these statistics are troubling, and they reinforce the need for action. But when I went to the Senate floor to discuss the drug epidemic recently, I didn’t want to talk about numbers — I wanted to talk about people.
In particular, I wanted talk about a young man from Maine named Garrett Brown, whose battle with addiction tragically ended with a fatal heroin overdose in November of last year.
There was a gripping story about Garrett in the Bangor Daily News recently that chronicled his battle with addiction. The author, Erin Rhoda, spent a lot of time interacting with Garrett over the last three years and recounted his struggle with addiction.
I sat reading Garrett’s story in my darkened office late last week. It was like reading the story of the Titanic or of the Lincoln assassination. You knew how it was going to come out, but you hoped it wouldn’t happen. You kept seeing moments when the tragic end could have been avoided; but the saving moment never came.
That was what was so gripping to me about his story. It was so real, and it was so close to home. Included in the story was a picture of Garrett as a young boy: smiling, happy, and ready to go to school with his backpack. Most families in America have pictures like that their scrapbooks, or stored on their computer. Here was a wonderful kid who had a family that loved him, but had a system that failed him.
We have this idea in our society that addiction is just a choice. Well, the way these drugs work on your brain, they hijack the very parts of your brain that enable you to make that decision. The BDN article accurately laid out the issue when it said that opioid addiction like Garrett’s needs treatment.
Make no mistake, Garrett took responsibility for his addiction. But when he took responsibility, we didn’t provide the means for him to effectuate change and save his own life. He had to will to beat it, but didn’t have the resources he needed to take that step.
I didn’t know Garrett Brown, but I know he was a brave kid. I could tell by his conversations with Erin Rhoda and by his conversations with us. He knew he was talking to us through the interview. He knew this was going to be public.
He knew he was communicating with us, and here’s what he said:
“If this changes one kid’s life, saves one kid from being in jail, saves his family the pain of seeing him go through it, saves one kid from overdosing and dying, then all that I’ve done hasn’t been in vain. I guess that’s why I keep doing this with you.”
What an amazing statement from someone struggling with addiction, and what a tragedy that he couldn’t be saved. This isn’t a tragedy of numbers, it’s a tragedy of real people. It is a tragedy of young lives lost, of treasure squandered, and of hearts broken.
I have never in my adult life seen a problem like this that is facing our state. We can’t solve it all at once. There is no magic wand. But if we find young people like Garrett who are ready to take a step towards recovery, we need to meet them halfway.
People in Washington sometimes ask me: What is so special about Maine? I tell them Maine is a small town with very long streets. We know each other, care about each other, think about each other, and we try to help each other. I think this country can also be a community — should be a community where we think about and care about each other.
Young lives lost, treasure squandered, and hearts broken. I hope we can start to change the tragic trajectory of addiction that is breaking so many hearts in this country this week so we can make a difference, maybe not for Garrett Brown, but for the young people to whom he was desperately sending this message. We can, we should, and we shall.
Editor’s note: To read Garrett Brown’s story go to http://external.bangordailynews.com/projects/2016/02/garrett/#.VtzB1owrJpg
