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Colorado mother opens up about losing son to prescription drug abuse

No parent wants to bury a child, but the situation can be even more tragic when the cause of death is something preventable, like prescription drug abuse. In an interview with The Coloradan, Fort Collins, Colorado mother, Dawn Fosket, opened up about about her late son Michael’s battle with addiction in an effort to prevent such an event from happening to other families.

Twenty-four-year-old Michael Fosket died in August of this year of a prescription drug overdose. His mother told the source that his substance abuse problem began in his late teens after taking painkillers and sedatives that he found in his girlfriend’s medicine cabinet. The issue worsened when he was prescribed Oxycontin after a car accident when he was 21. After his initial prescription ran out, he began doctor shopping.

“He had multiple prescribers,” Dawn Fosket told the source. “He hawked his BMX bike, all of his camera equipment, everything. He pawned it. He stole jewelry from us. He took it to the pawn shop to get his drugs.”

Like many other states, Colorado is experiencing a prescription drug abuse epidemic. According to the state’s Center for Behavioral Health Statistics, since 2004, there has been a 164 percent increase in emergency room visits for overdoses of opioid-based painkillers. Individuals aged 18 to 24 make up a significant portion of abusers in the state.

Preventing prescription drug abuse begins in the home. If you suspect that your child has a substance abuse problem, now is the time to intervene. Contact Intervention Services today to learn about how our youth intervention services can help your teen.

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