I am a program manager for the Post-Overdose Response Team at Emily’s Hope, a local nonprofit dedicated to removing the stigma of substance use disorder through awareness, education, and prevention.
Our team swiftly responds to surviving overdose calls. We offer empathy, resources, naloxone, trained peer support, and a follow-up plan of care to prevent future overdose events. We bridge the gap to treatment for those experiencing an incredibly vulnerable time in their lives, while simultaneously supporting an environment that’s compatible with achieving long-term recovery.
At ten years old, I lost my mother to complications from long-term substance use disorder. In high school, she began experimenting with multiple substances, which quickly resulted in a difficult lifetime of mental health issues, criminal encounters, affected relationships, and instability regarding most facets of her life. While I was incredibly privileged to have a phenomenal father, her decisions influenced and impacted me throughout my first decade of life.
I never had the opportunity to experience a healthy mother-daughter relationship, and there are times when I wish she had support similar to what we provide our clients to have a fighting chance of reaching recovery- something that could’ve changed the trajectory of her life.
Today, if I can support the mission of being that person who gives a parent the opportunity to be the best version of themselves for their children, I can simultaneously heal a part of my own heart.
I’m a firm believer that it’s natural to yearn for the opportunity of turning your previous life experiences or lessons into purpose. We each have a firsthand experience of how traumatic experiences impact us, so it becomes very rewarding to prevent the same experience for others.
Looking out for each other means caring for our vulnerable populations, understanding why equity is more impactful than equality, and genuinely caring about the lives we’re surrounded by.
Our team swiftly responds to surviving overdose calls. We offer empathy, resources, naloxone, trained peer support, and a follow-up plan of care to prevent future overdose events. We bridge the gap to treatment for those experiencing an incredibly vulnerable time in their lives, while simultaneously supporting an environment that’s compatible with achieving long-term recovery.
At ten years old, I lost my mother to complications from long-term substance use disorder. In high school, she began experimenting with multiple substances, which quickly resulted in a difficult lifetime of mental health issues, criminal encounters, affected relationships, and instability regarding most facets of her life. While I was incredibly privileged to have a phenomenal father, her decisions influenced and impacted me throughout my first decade of life.
I never had the opportunity to experience a healthy mother-daughter relationship, and there are times when I wish she had support similar to what we provide our clients to have a fighting chance of reaching recovery- something that could’ve changed the trajectory of her life.
Today, if I can support the mission of being that person who gives a parent the opportunity to be the best version of themselves for their children, I can simultaneously heal a part of my own heart.
I’m a firm believer that it’s natural to yearn for the opportunity of turning your previous life experiences or lessons into purpose. We each have a firsthand experience of how traumatic experiences impact us, so it becomes very rewarding to prevent the same experience for others.
Looking out for each other means caring for our vulnerable populations, understanding why equity is more impactful than equality, and genuinely caring about the lives we’re surrounded by.