Drug Addiction Doesn’t Discriminate

Erik Kilgore tragically lost his older brother to an accidental drug overdose.

In Erik's words, "James Matthew Kilgore was a son, brother, friend and uncle. His smile could light up a room. It seemed that everyone he met became a friend instantly. James had a sense of humor that could make the most serious person burst out laughing.  Most importantly, James wanted to know how YOU were doing as a person. However, James also suffered from a disease, opioid use disorder, for 12 years. He was first introduced to opioids during a wisdom tooth extraction in high school, a classmate turned drug dealer introduced James to OxyContin.  The addictive nature of OxyContin was not understood by many people at the time." 

Then on December 9, 2018 James died of an accidental overdose from a pill laced with fentanyl.

If there is one thing I choose to take away from this episode and conversation, it is that NO ONE and I mean NO ONE is immune to a drug disorder.  Thank you Erik for sharing your story and so much more.  I am left with no words for the loss of your beloved brother except that I am incredibly moved by your dedication to helping educate others about drug addiction. 

Erik started a non profit organization breaking down the stigma and statistics surrounding drug addiction that can be found at https://www.henrysuncle.org.