- DISC Village will host their first Run for Recovery on Thursday, Septemner 26th starting at 5:30pm at Lake Ella.
- The run is to raise awareness about their programs and introduce people to the recovery community
- Watch the video to find out about the latest opioid overdose statistics in Leon County and available resources in our communities.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
The presence of fentanyl is still an ongoing concern for our community. That's why one organization is lacing up their shoes this month to raise awareness about their drug recovery programs. The goal is to shed light on available resources and discuss new help that's in place for those who need it.
A crucial community for Erica Maddox during her own recovery.
"People look at you different as an addict or a junkie, and that's such a terrible word for someone that's struggling with addiction," said Maddox, "Because you know we don't wake up and want to be addicted to something."
A stigma Maddox. longs to eradicate.
Now, Maddox works as a peer specialist at DISC Village (Drug Information Services Center), a non profit focused on prevention and intervention from substance misuse, guiding people through recovery with her own lived experience.
"People need to realize that people go through the same thing that they're going through and we can recover and we do recover," said Maddox.
It's a message Disc Village are hoping to voice at their upcoming community Run for Recovery.
Maddox said the benefit of this run is to introduce people so they feel less alone.
The goal is showcase the recovery community here and highlight their programs, including their Medicated Assisted Treatment for alcohol and substance misuse and their residential programs.
"You shouldn't be embarrassed to come and ask for help or treatment for this, just like you shouldn't have any stigma about diabetes, or high blood pressure or any other medical condition," said Lori Harrison, nurse practitioner for Medicated Assisted Treatment at Disc Village.
Fentanyl has been a pervasive issue in our communities and nationwide.
"Fentanyl can be in anything, I think a lot of people don't realize nothing is safe now unless you're purchasing it from a store," said Jennifer Travieso, Operations Director at Disc Village.
Travieso said, this year, there have been zero suspected fatal overdoses reported in EMS in Leon County.
There have been 94 non-fatal overdoses.
"Overdoses are still occurring, although we are very grateful people are surviving them, we still want to make sure that everybody has access to Narcan," said Travieso.
Disc Village have free narcan stands available across Leon County and surrounding counties. Locations can be found here.
Visual and verbal awareness to end stigmas and show people recovery in possible.
"Just to know that somebody has been in my shoes and understands what I was going through," said Maddox.
The Run for Recovery will take place on September 26th at 5:30pm at Lake Ella Park.
You can sign up online.
If you'd like to access Disc Village's services, you can also drop by their office on W Tharpe Street.
