Over two decades ago there was a shift in medicine to strive to kill pain for patients. The answer was the creation of opioids — prescription pain killers, to ease physical pain. The result was the greatest addiction crisis of modern times.
We are in the fight of our generation but many of us don’t realize it and most of us aren’t talking about it. Killing Pain tells the story of the opioid addiction epidemic that is sweeping the nation from one of the most unsuspecting settings…Oklahoma. This crisis impacts every industry and sector in the state. Prescription rates and opioid overdoses have skyrocketed. The criminal justice system is overworked. State funding for treatment is struggling to keep up…because of a pill that was designed to “kill pain.”
The Killing Pain series dives into several aspects of the opioid crisis. From personal stories of addiction to the economic pain of the crisis and the biology of addiction in the heartland of Oklahoma.