Helpline
Call 1.855.378.4373 to schedule a call time with a specialist or visit scheduler.drugfree.org
Helpline
Helpline
Call 1.855.378.4373 to schedule a call time with a specialist

    August 31 is International Overdose Awareness Day, a global event that aims to raise awareness that overdose death is preventable and to reduce the stigma associated with drug-related death.

    Preventing and responding to overdose

    Overdose death is preventable. It begins with understanding the risks and signs of overdose, and most importantly, equipping one’s self with lifesaving naloxone.

    Opioids (prescription painkillers and heroin) pose a high risk of overdose, for both those in active use and in recovery.
    Learn more
    In the event of an opioid overdose (including heroin and prescribed pain medications), naloxone can reverse an overdose and save a life.
    Learn more about the opioid overdose reversal medication naloxone (also known by the brand name Narcan).
    Learn more
    Some parents might think having life-saving naloxone (Narcan) on hand might encourage their child to continue to use heroin or other opioids. But there's no evidence that that's the case.
    Learn more
    Call to Action
    Honor their memory

    Create a memorial in honor of your loved one as a member of our Partners for Hope community. Join others offering encouragement and changing lives with their support. Partners for Hope provides a dedicated memorial page to share their story, photos and video with others who wish to remember and honor your loved one.

    Get started

    Stories of loss and healing

    Read stories from those who have felt the impact of overdose death and explore our resources for honoring those we have lost, helping overcome the stigma of addiction and preventing future tragedies.

    Partners for Hope Marathon Team member Lauren DiGaimo shares her family's story of loss, and the way it has inspired her own vocal advocacy in support of other families facing the challenges of addiction.
    What happens when some deaths are considered more socially acceptable than others?
    “Tell them my story.” My 20-year-old daughter Casey said these words to me not long before she died of an accidental heroin overdose on January 15, 2017.
    When I saw Neil for the first time after he had left for rehab, I immediately knew my brother was coming back to us.
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    Addiction is a treatable disease and as overdoses continue to climb, we are failing people by not getting them the care we would offer to anyone else with a chronic condition.

    Partnership Staff

    New York, NY