For most of Mindy’s 19 years of life, she was a “normal kid” who swam on the school swim team and looked forward to trips to the zoo with her mother. The youngest of four sisters, Mindy enjoyed art and French class, and her classmates at the high school she attended. Drugs and alcohol had never been a problem. “I didn’t drink, smoke pot or anything,” she says. But Mindy’s boyfriend was another story.

“My boyfriend was into heroin,” she says. Though she was tempted to try it, she never did. And then in 2009, he jabbed her with a heroin-filled syringe as she walked by. Mindy was shocked – at first – then grew to need the drug. Read More

This story is about my son, John. He died at the age of 28 after a three- to four-year-long addiction to Vicodin that I didn’t even notice he had, even though he lived with me during that time. He was a very high-functioning addict.

John’s teenage years were very trying, as he was drinking and smoking pot almost every day. Calls from the police in the middle of the night were becoming common. And yet, he looked like the proverbial boy next door. He was an outstanding athlete, with many trophies and awards. He played baseball and was a pitcher, and this was the brightest shining star in his life. He was also very gifted intellectually and artistically. Read More