Opioids are Devastating for All Ages say Clean Recovery Leaders During Tampa Television Interview

Shayne Sundholm and Austin Cooper on Morning Blend in Tampa, September 20

How scary are opioids? “The federal government has declared a national state of emergency with the opioid epidemic,” said Shayne Sundholm, CEO of Clean Recovery Centers. “We are see people dying every single day in our business,”

“No one is safe,” added Austin Cooper, Clean’s Director of Marketing. “It’s so easy now for kids to get drugs. They’re using their XBox or PlayStation to have a package delivered to their door without their parents knowing about it. Then they go back to their room, open the package and start using.”

How long does it take to get addicted to opioids? “Immediately,” said Cooper. “Children are exposed to so many things today at parties such as opioids, meth and crack. They try it, and they’re hooked.”

The stigma attached to opioid addiction, and addiction in general, compounds the problem and can push users away from seeking treatment. “How many hundreds of thousands of people have to die before we change our thinking and how we’re going to do deal with opioids?” Sundholm asked.

Speaking out is powerful first step. “During my own recovery I’ve been really speaking out to expose and smash this stigma I once carried,” Cooper explained.

Clean Recovery is working hard to combat the stigma and get more people into treatment, whether at Clean or elsewhere. “On social media we’re building a very strong campaign to help people understand that this is a disease, not a moral issue,” Sundholm explained. “It’s a very, very serious problem, but there is help.”

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