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PublishedMarch 28, 2017
Disease or bad behavior: Does addiction call for compassion or punishment?
Drugs with the power to disorient a user's moral compass create a fundamental split in how addicts are perceived, and the difference trickles into the public policy and resources meant to combat the crisis. Meanwhile, as the societal response wavers, people are dying.
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PublishedMarch 27, 2017
Families hit hard: For some caught in crisis, tragedies multiply
Because addiction is driven largely by genetic and environmental factors, overdoses can strike the same home twice, compounding the sense of grief and shame that is common among the epidemic's survivors.
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PublishedMarch 26, 2017
Resources for users who want to stop, and how others can help
Q: I want to learn more about addiction. Where can I go? A: The National Institute of Drug Abuse has extensive resources about the science of addiction. The U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration is a good tool for learning about different treatment options and what they entail. The Alliance for Addiction and […]
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PublishedMarch 26, 2017
Note from the editor: How the 10-part ‘Lost’ series came to be
GETTING HELP: Resources for those who want to stop, and how others can help As a devastating public health crisis tore through families and communities across the state, the Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram set out to document the heroin epidemic’s impact. A team of reporters sought to understand the causes and consequences of the […]
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PublishedMarch 26, 2017
A deadly epidemic: Addiction to opioids has put an entire generation at risk
The grisly trend – fatalities from drug overdoses in Maine reached an all-time high in 2016 – only seems to be getting worse, prompting one caregiver to lament: ‘Where is the outrage?’ This 10-part examination lays out the ramifications of the crisis, mining answers from the human toll by telling the stories of those we’ve lost.
Lost
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