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SALT LAKE CITY — You may have seen them — two new obituaries just this week of two young men, dead from a drug overdose.
Many families say too many Utahns are dying from heroin, and that it’s time to break the silence. Family members have so much love for and so many memories of their loved ones who died.
“He was lot of fun to be around” said Mike Schultz, whose son, Adam, overdosed in November 2012.
Families also have lots of heartache. Nevertheless, many of them are telling their stories in hopes of helping other Utah families realize they are not alone.
“There is no shame here,” said Sheila Kirst, who lost her son Jake in October 2011 in Park City. “Heroin killed him but it was not who he was.”
Talking about it helps for Mike and Darlene Schultz.
“His poor choices were not my fault,” Darlene said.
They had tried everything for Adam.
“We were a good family. This isn’t supposed to happen,” she said.
“The more we keep this a secret, the more dangerous it is,” said Christina Zidow, COO of Odyssey House of Utah. She said heroin is often the next step from prescription drug abuse or marijuana use.
The numbers have been steadily growing in the past decade, she said, with huge numbers of teens and 20-somethings using. Many start at age 12.
“People are starting to use to deal with something else that’s going on. They may not fit in as well with their friends, and this is how they develop a peer group. Or they struggle with anxiety and depression, and this is how they feel better. They escape their feelings or numb their feelings,” Zidow said.
One mother recently called KSL Newsradio to talk about her son’s struggle.
“It’s not a once-a-day thing. They demand more to feel normal,” she said.
Zidow said 60 percent of kids who hear clear expectations from their parents on drug and alcohol use, won’t try it.
“Make it a part of our conversations in our family, so it’s not a scary thing to talk about or a shameful thing to talk about,” she suggested.
Parents-empowered.org reviews the importance of bonding, boundaries and monitoring.
Sheila Kirst started a scholarship at The Christian Center in Park City in her son Jacob’s name.
“If we can just save one,” she said. “I never want another mother to go through this.”
But still, families like the Schultzes are learning to live without their child.
“It's hard, because you look back and think, ‘I coulda, woulda, shoulda done this or that,’ and really his poor choices were not my fault,” Darlene Schultz said.
