Sean Krofssik, Hartford Courant // Tue, August 27, 2024 at 6:00 AM EDT

Kass Kruh knows the effects of substance abuse and overdoses all too well. The 26-year-old lost both of her parents, Melissa and John, as a result of drug overdoses in her young life.

Kruh, an executive assistant to Connecticut State Comptroller Sean Scanlon, spoke about her experiences at an event at Connecticut State Capitol this week as a part of International Overdose Awareness Day, which will be officially recognized on Saturday.

“Children of addicts have the odds stacked against them,” Kruh said. “Although we come from diverse and different backgrounds, there is an undeniable common thread. We do not get talked about enough, and we often suffer in silence.

“Growing up my deepest fear was losing my parents to the very thing that consumed them. Addiction was a constant shadow over my childhood,” she added. “It forced me to take on responsibilities far beyond my years. Around the age of 9, I developed a routine of staying up late on school nights after my mom had been drinking just to make sure she was still breathing.”

Kruh, who grew up in Naugatuck and lives in Cromwell, said any meaningful sober conversations she had with her dad were often within the walls of a rehab center or during supervised visits.

Kruh lost her mom in 2017 when she was a sophomore in college.

“My deepest fear had come true when I found my mom unresponsive in our apartment,” she said. “She had passed away from an overdose and my entire world was turned upside down. I had to make many decisions I was not ready for at the age of 19, including the decision to stay in school even though I had just lost the most important person in my life.”

Two years later, she lost her father.

“Parent overdose death can have an everlasting impact on their child, young and old, and yet there is still so little data on children who have lost a parent in the United States,” Kruh said. “From what we do know, more than 325,000 children in our country lost a parent to an overdose between 2011 and 2021. Our experiences are crucial in understanding the full impact on substance abuse disorder. Our voices need to be uplifted and heard.”

Kruh had a number of family members in attendance for her emotional speech.

Brian Guyton, the volunteer manager for Connecticut Community for Addiction Recovery‘s Danbury Recovery Community Center, talked about his own recovery journey.

“What that means for me is that I have not used alcohol or other drugs since Aug. 10, 2021,” Guyton said. “I’ve been affected by friends and family members who have had overdoses who are not here with us today.

“That being said, I’m grateful to be alive today because I’ve had my own experiences with overdosing and vivid memories of coming to and going back out,” he added. “First responders surrounding me and trying to keep me awake, catheters, mechanical ventilation, oxygen and luckily surviving. Only through the grace of God and the transformation of the recovery process I’m here today.”

Guyton, who turns 30 next month, said at CCAR he started to feel recovery was possible. He said he entered as a shy, timid and lost individual but started feeling more optimistic about his future after meeting mentors and role models.

“Being able to go to the recovery community centers was a haven for me,” Guyton said. “I was finally allowing myself to receive new information to enter it in my brain instead of shame, regret, remorse and low self-esteem all playing in my mind.”

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