A Day In The Life Of Caring For An Overdose Survivor

A mates of years ago, I began investigating non-fatal overdoses.

Coverage of nan US’s opioid situation has mostly focused connected lives lost. But done my relative Mason, I saw different toll of nan epidemic: nan group who past overdoses but are near pinch devastating disabilities.

Watching his and his parents’ struggles – and knowing he was not nan only young overdose subsister successful a nursing location – I wondered: really galore group for illustration Mason were retired there? What happens to them, and really do their families cope?

I quickly learned that nary 1 is search these cases. There is nary charismatic count of group surviving pinch overdose-related encephalon injuries. But done Facebook groups and GoFundMe pages, I began to link pinch families going done akin ordeals.

Despite nan symptom and relentless demands of their situations, galore were unfastened and generous pinch their time. That was particularly existent of Jessica Pittizola Jarrett and her son, John-Bryan, who goes by JB and suffered an anoxic encephalon wounded and different complications aft overdosing connected fentanyl successful September 2020. Between managing JB’s 24-hour care, her ain workload, and helping different families navigate akin crises, Jessica still made clip to speak pinch me.

Last December, she and JB welcomed maine into their location successful Sugar Land, Texas, wherever they unrecorded pinch Jessica’s brother. Nothing astir their lives struck maine arsenic easy – from operating nan Hoyer assistance to get JB retired of bed, to loading up nan van for aesculapian appointments and family outings. But being pinch them successful personification only deepened my admiration for their strength, 5 years into their caller chapter.

I already knew of Jessica’s fierce religion and committedness to JB’s recovery, but what stood retired astir was nan tone she brings to caring for her son: organizing a tattoo fundraiser successful his honor, search down a wheelchair successful his favourite colour (hot pink), uncovering mini ways to inject joyousness into nan regular grind. Love, arsenic overmuch arsenic endurance, sustains them.

Nurse Kenneth Emakpose, uses a Hoyer assistance to thief JB retired of furniture successful nan morning. Luckily, JB did not get added to nan US’s tally of overdose deaths – an estimated 81,000 successful 2023 – and much than 1m complete nan past 20 years. The calamity of his overdose is that having survived, nan 29-year-old now lives pinch profoundly debilitating, life-changing injuries. Nearly 5 years on, JB cannot locomotion aliases talk. After immoderate caller aesculapian setbacks, he besides struggles to move, to swallow aliases to pass successful immoderate way.

Emakpose brushes JB’s teeth during his greeting hygiene routine.

Family photographs bent connected nan wall of JB, earlier he sustained an anoxic encephalon wounded successful 2020, during a fentanyl overdose.

Jessica drives her boy to a aesculapian assignment successful nan family’s handicap-accessible van.

Jessica wipes sweat from JB’s face, trying to support him comfortable arsenic she and aesculapian unit astatine nan Texas Institute of Rehabilitation and Recovery, amended known arsenic TIRR-Memorial Hermann, troubleshoot a non-functioning wheelchair ramp connected her van.

Jessica celebrates uncovering a beingness therapist pinch a portable wheelchair ramp, to thief get her boy retired of her handicap-accessible van – aft their electrical ramp stopped moving extracurricular a aesculapian appointment.

Jessica wheels her boy to be a aesculapian assignment astatine TIRR-Memorial Hermann, 1 of nan nation’s premier encephalon rehabilitation centers. The Houston-based infirmary has a estimation among nan anoxic encephalon wounded organization for accepting patients pinch nan astir terrible injuries and treating them arsenic group pinch futures and potential.

Jarrett stresses astir a surgery wheelchair ramp connected their family’s van, while astatine a aesculapian assignment pinch her son.

Nurse Ngozi Uketui prepares to refill JB’s intrathecal Baclofen pump – a surgically implanted aesculapian instrumentality that delivers musculus relaxers straight into his spinal fluid.

Jessica comforts JB, while Uketui refills his intrathecal Baclofen pump.

Dr Cindy Ivanhoe, a professor of beingness medicine astatine UTHealth Houston and head of nan spasticity programme and associated syndromes of activity astatine TIRR-Memorial Hermann, consults Jessica and JB.

“It’s a very difficult strategy to navigate. It’s very difficult to advocate.” “Some patients get better, immoderate patients get worse,” says Ivanhoe. “We are not awesome astatine predicting who’s going to do what, and truthful I would conscionable not for illustration to return those opportunities away.”

But that’s what security companies often do, she noted, adding that exasperating telephone calls pinch aesculapian board complete sum of rehabilitation aliases different treatments are a regular portion of her job. “We thatch group to believe based connected what nan security covers, not based connected what’s possible,” says Ivanhoe, who has treated thousands of patients complete her decades-long career.

Jessica wheels JB from a aesculapian assignment astatine TIRR-Memorial Hermann.

Brittney Burton, an occupational therapist, useful pinch JB connected nan centrifugal readying basal for connection utilizing a caput laser and low-tech connection board, successful mentation for usage of an augmented connection instrumentality successful nan future.

JB answered “yes” erstwhile she asked if he was tired, past pointed nan reddish laser beam to “no” erstwhile she asked him if he wanted to spell to bed.

Burton, uses a Stimpod NMS460 – a neuromodulation device, connected JB’s face, to stimulate his nerves to beforehand neurotransmitter activation and sensory stimulation.

Brittney Burton and Jessica agelong JB’s tightly clenched hands.

JB relaxes successful a recliner and watches a shot game.

Jessica prepares her boy for slumber for nan night.

JB sleeps nether a starry entity nightlight successful his bedroom. For bid of mind his mom now sleeps successful his chamber closet, her makeshift furniture wedged betwixt nan wall and a rack of apparel – adjacent capable to respond to each cry, call, displacement of bedsheet, aliases different motion that JB is successful distress.

Jessica embraces her boy astatine night.

• Meridith Kohut is simply a photojournalist based successful Houston, Texas, who has documented health, humanitarian and biology issues successful nan US and Latin America since 2007