STERLING HEIGHTS/WARREN/HARRISON TOWNSHIP — David Clayton knows the importance of rescue training in Narcan, or naloxone, as a lifesaving antidote to opioid overdoses.
As the outreach coordinator for the Families Against Narcotics organization — and someone in long-term recovery from drugs, including heroin and alcohol — he is alive to explain it today.
“Narcan saved my life many times, and I always say that those people that are overdosing and being Narcanned, they are not throwaway people,” Clayton said.
“And I always tell people that the person that they were Narcanning two or three times in one week — and what’s the use, because they’re going to be back again? That person now stands in front of you to educate. It is important to know that recovery is possible, and it takes a community to bind together to really make a difference.”
Clayton’s job is now to travel the state and spread awareness about the dangers of opioid abuse. That’s why he joined officials and attorneys from three communities at the Sterling Heights Police Department for an April 24 press conference.
