PATIENT PERSPECTIVES
Donna May ’ s daughter Jac in happier times .
On the streets Jac knew that her in-laws had a prescription for Oxy- Contin , and started to pilfer some pills . When her in-laws discovered that , Jac turned to the street . She asked her mother for money for food and diapers , but Ms . May now knows that she was using it for drugs . At first OxyContin , then heroin and Fentanyl . Jac lost her relationship , then she lost her kids . She ended up in social housing . Ms . May realizes that Jac had her troubles , long before the drug addiction . She acted out considerably as a child , and Ms . May knows she had undiagnosed mental health issues . Yet the drugs turned her life upside down . Soon , Jac got into criminal behaviour to support her habit , from theft to trafficking to prostitution . In early 2012 , Ms . May got a call from a hospital in Surrey , B . C . Jac had necrotizing fasciitis . The doctors doubted she ’ d make it . Ms . May flew there right away . Jac told her that she didn ’ t think she was going to die just yet . She wanted to go home with Ms . May and help her understand the depths of drug addiction and the need for family support . Ms . May took care of her . Jac was in and out of the hospital constantly . One day in August 2012 , Jac got a call from her eldest daughter , who was pregnant again at 17 ( she had her first child at 15 ). Jac burst into tears . “ This is what I ’ ve caused ,” Ms . May recalls Jac saying .
“ I ’ ve ruined not only my life but my children ’ s lives as well .” Jac was distraught . Ms . May put her to bed . When she went to check on her , Jac was in respiratory distress . The next day , Jac died . The exact cause was undetermined . Ms . May isn ’ t anti-pharmaceuticals . She recognizes that pills , taken appropriately , can be effective . Her message to doctors is : Don ’ t base your practice on what pharma says . Take the time to know your patients . Hear their stories . Be cautious about that first prescription for opioids . If patients are hooked , don ’ t cut them off . Help them taper responsibly . In the time since Jac died , opioid prescriptions have continued to increase . And figures released at the end of August revealed that opioid-related overdoses claimed the lives of 865 people in Ontario in 2016 , a 19-percent increase over the previous year . Ms . May wants her grandchildren to see their mother as a forerunner in harm reduction . “ By her example , I ’ ve shared what addiction truly is . Jac is the bravest person I ever met . If you have a loved one who ’ s abusing drugs , let ’ s not shame and blame them . Let ’ s deal with the underlying issues .” To Ms . May , mumsDU is her mission but Jac ’ s legacy . “ I ’ m driven by her . I feel she guides me along the way ,” says Ms . May . “ The things she couldn ’ t accomplish in her life , she ’ s accomplishing in her death .” MD
ISSUE 3 , 2017 DIALOGUE 35