As an Ottawa-area family laid their 14-year-old daughter to rest Sunday following an apparent overdose, a local father is speaking up about his own teenage daughter鈥檚 struggle with drugs in the hope of saving lives.
鈥淭here鈥檚 many a days where my first concern upon awaking is making sure my beautiful baby girl is still alive,鈥� Sean O鈥橪eary said in an emotional interview with CTV Ottawa.
O鈥橪eary鈥檚 16-year-old daughter Paige has been struggling with drugs for nearly two years. The teen started using drugs at a party in Grade 10, and despite help along the way, has only recently gotten clean.
鈥淚t鈥檚 huge,鈥� Paige told CTV Ottawa. 鈥淚t鈥檚 crazy. I know so many people who are doing them now. Like, it鈥檚 starting to become a really, really big issue.鈥�
One of the biggest issues is fentanyl. Drugs are secretly being laced with the powerful and addictive painkiller and taking users, especially youth, by surprise. Just this Christmas, O鈥橪eary says he came home to find a teenage friend of Paige鈥檚 in his garage with no vital signs. Luckily, O鈥橪eary arrived just in time to help save the overdosed boy鈥檚 life.
鈥淧eople don鈥檛 know what鈥檚 inside some of these drugs,鈥� Paige said. 鈥淵ou don鈥檛 know what you鈥檙e getting.鈥�
In an emotional plea, O鈥橪eary recently shared his family鈥檚 struggles in a in the hopes of getting parents in their community of Kanata, Ont., an Ottawa suburb, to band together to watch over their kids and talk frankly about drugs in order to save lives.
鈥淚f there鈥檚 50 families watching out for 50 kids, it鈥檚 got to be better than what we鈥檙e doing now,鈥� O鈥橪eary said.
On an average day, about ten per cent of all calls to Ottawa paramedics are for overdoses. Many of the victims are in suburbs like Kanata.
Local city councillor Allan Hubley says that since Christmas, there have been at least three deadly overdoses among area teenagers, as well as several other close calls.
鈥淥ut here, there鈥檚 a lot of house parties,鈥� Hubley told CTV Ottawa. 鈥淪omeone can pass you something and say, 鈥楬ere. You know, this will be fun. Try this.鈥� And next thing you know, you鈥檙e a statistic and your parents are grieving.鈥�
The grieving Ottawa-area parents of had to lay their daughter to rest on Sunday after she died from an apparent overdose last Tuesday. They say her death was a mistake and that drugs were not part of her life.
Such an outcome is a fear that Sean O鈥橪eary deals with daily. And the nearby tragedy, Paige adds, has served as a wake-up call.
鈥淚t鈥檚 made me realize that you don鈥檛 know what鈥檚 going to happen,鈥� Paige said. 鈥淵ou can just go to sleep and never wake up. It鈥檚 not like overdosing on something else where it鈥檚 scary and you鈥檙e having a seizure or throwing up鈥� You kind of just go to sleep.鈥�
Paige is clean now and says she is on the right path. She also says that the risk of doing drugs isn鈥檛 worth it -- especially with the growing prevalence of fentanyl.
Her father says there are just not enough detox facilities around to deal with the growing crisis, especially when it comes to facilities geared towards teens. O鈥橪eary also wants parents to talk openly with their kids about drug use, saying it鈥檚 easier to help your children and their friends when you know what they are using.
With files from CTV Ottawa鈥檚 Annie Bergeron-Oliver
