Help others fight addictions

Having grown up in Whitman County I am not a stranger to the dark side of addiction in the surrounding communities.

Alcoholism, drug addiction and a lack of mental health resources run rampant in some of our communities.

Small towns are a great distance from needed resources and not everyone has a support system.

Growing up, I saw many of those closest to me fall victim to the need to escape the voices in their heads holding them back from making healthy decisions and actively consuming alcohol on a regular basis.

As a child, I witnessed someone I love die from Cirrhosis of the liver.

I have had many family members and friends fall victim to drug addiction, whether it be methamphetamine or heroin, and even spend time in prison or die from an overdose.

Even as a child, I recognized that was due to individual choices the people in my life made. But being close to them, I knew it had to do with traumas in their lives.

I am admitting this because it is a shame to see the ones we love struggle alone. To see people afraid to reach out for fear of being judged for something we all struggle with, a need to be heard and understood.

With September being National Mental Health Awareness month, I cannot help thinking about how bad I wish I could help people who struggle know they are not alone.

For those who struggle with any kind addiction there is more to it than just picking up a bottle or shooting up.

There is something that they keep to themselves because they are scared to face it and do not believe they are strong enough.

To those people, you are strong enough. You are strong enough to overcome the voices in your head and there are so many people who love you.

Yes, there is only so much we can do.

But if being aware and speaking about it somehow reaches someone who needs to know there is no shame in the struggle then maybe we can make a difference.

After all, is that not what being a community is about.

— Teresa Simpson is a reporter at the Whitman County Gazette. Email her at news@wcgazette.com