Halifax woman to start support group for families of OD victims
By Dylan McGuinness, Patriot Ledger
Mary Peckham said it was hard to find her way in the year after she lost her son, Matthew, to a heroin overdose in 2012. She found that the stigma surrounding her son’s disease extended to her as well, the Patriot Ledger reported.
“I tried some support groups for those who have lost loved ones in general,” Peckham said. “But there were always people there that thought I was a bad parent; that Matthew was a bad person.”
Parents in other groups always had to differentiate their losses from hers, she said. That’s why Peckham, a member of the The Addict’s Mom, an information and resource group devoted to families of addicts, is starting her own support group now.
The group is called “Matthew’s Candle,” in honor of her son, and will welcome all family members who have lost someone to addiction. The Addict’s Mom runs three similar groups in Massachusetts, called “Helping Hearts Heal,” including one in Boston and one in Marlboro.
Peckham’s group will meet on the third Tuesday of every month, beginning Oct. 20. The meetings will run from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Calvary Baptist Church on Monponsett Street in Halifax.
“It will be a place of healing, of hope, especially hope,” Peckham said. “Hope is the word I hang onto these days.”
Vigils and support groups that aim to bring together victims of substance abuse and their families have become more common on the South Shore and beyond as an opioid and heroin epidemic continues to spread across the region.
There were 1,256 deaths from prescription painkillers and heroin overdoses last year in the state, according to the latest estimates from the State Department of Public Health. That tally is an increase from the 939 fatal overdoses in 2013 and nearly double the 668 confirmed overdoses in 2012.
Norfolk County saw a 50 percent increase in overdose deaths between 2013 and 2014, preliminary figures from the state showed, while Plymouth County saw a 35 percent increase in the same time period.
Peckham said the key to stopping the epidemic is fighting against the stigma.
She welcomes all those who have lost a family member to attend the support group. If you’re interested in attending, you must pre-register by contacting Mary Peckham at matthewscandle922@gmail.com or 781-294-1545.