By Erin Beck, The Register-Herald
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — As West Virginia approaches a decade of leading the nation in overdose deaths per capita, some in the state still say Suboxone, a medication shown to reduce overdoses, is just substituting one drug for another.
Greg Carpenter, of Glasglow, says that Cabin Creek Health Center’s addiction treatment program, which provided Suboxone, along with therapy and 12-step classes, saved his life.
A former user of the opioids heroin, pain pills and morphine, Carpenter, 40, has been in recovery for more than two years. “I was headed to the grave or jail — no question,” he said.
The pain of withdrawal, and the pull of the cravings, had always been the biggest hurdle to sobriety in the past. “It’s hard to do anything,” he said. “You’re lucky to get out of bed.” …
