There are so many things to consider when the news of our local Cincinnati opioid epidemic is presented as the worst in the country. Giving our local population the appearance of being the only ones who face this issue in any way. There is no reason to believe that this isn’t a national or even international problem and that we could all join together in some way to make sure that all of those suffering from this problem are given at least a significant amount of assistance. Addiction is a crisis that affects more than just the one who battles it from the inside, but also for everyone around.

Definitely considering the fact that I am right here in Cincinnati, one of the top cities of the country to see overdose deaths from heroin there is much to question of the use of the word epidemic. It seems to be that this is more than an epidemic and it is spreading across our nation with the helpless pain of the Black Plague so many centuries ago. Without the understanding of what was killing so many people on many corners of the world, there was little left to do about it except stand in wonderment. Our first responders and healthcare clinics seem to have found themselves in this same predicament when it comes to heroin and other opioids.

I know that I have written about motherhood from my own perspective in the past. However, there is something that brings up the question of what these mothers seen on the news are facing inside when the conflict of addiction leads them to bring their young children on their journey for heroin or other opioids. What could be the need so strong that it is easy, or at least acceptable, to put your children in the place of seeing those hideous acts?

With the potential for so many different options of addiction treatment, the question of how much the nation could invest in the resolution of this problem rises to the top. With all of the political presentations that speak out against funding the repair from natural disasters like fires in California and more, there is something lingering in the back of my mind regarding what will be done to help solve and prevent the thousands of deaths that occur due to heroin on a regular basis.

Then, after we see the social cost of this epidemic to families and communities as a whole, there is the overall financial burden this is placing upon each city it faces, as well as our federal government. I have to wonder why this, and other addiction crises have not been brought up more strenuously in government communication considering the number of deaths that have arisen over the past year. Many reports estimate the number of opioid deaths in the U.S. alone for this year to exceed 500,000 while others even say that the estimates are severely underestimated. There is much to be said for potential deaths that are not even recognized as the overdose they may have been or deaths where it may not have been completely due to an overdose, but where the use of heroin or another opioid could be involved.

With these stories present on the news daily there are so many questions that come to mind just for me. Even though I have never seen these drugs used or causing harm to another, I still have to admit that the stories that are seen on the news, articles read about the statistical downfall to humanity and more, there is nothing more that I would love to see that an overwhelming report that this has all come to a pass.

I have to say that there are some other issues mentioned in articles that are leaving low-income families without access to the help it could take to overcome this crisis, especially with Medicaid being steeply reduced in many areas. Do, why are we working so hard not to take care of our neighbors? Why has the effort of the GOP under Trump become that of reversing the need for every man to have health benefits? It is as though my very fear is coming about; the one thing that I believed would happen if Trump were to be elected into presidency. I wondered if our country would become more of a corporation than a nation. These people who are dying from troubles of addiction and other treacherous issues are handled with no empathy or sympathy whatsoever. So, where do we go from here?