Kelly Gay of Windsor is in long-term recovery from substance use disorder. 

“I was 18 years old, I was using drugs daily, I was homeless, I was in a great deal of trouble,” Gay said. 

She knows first-hand the stigma surrounding the disorder. 

“There is some idea we have some choice in this, there is some idea that we are morally flawed and that we can control this if we wanted to,” she said. 

Gay wants to change the narrative as new data comes out. This week, the Connecticut Department of Public Health released its drug overdose report, showing a 26% decline in overdose deaths across the state in 2024, compared to 2023. During the same time period in Hartford, deaths dropped 33%. Gay said while she is hopeful about the numbers, she is still concerned. 

“Every overdose is a family member, a mother, a child, all things that we all have in our lives, and when you lose someone like that it is never the same,” Gay added. 

In 24 hours, there were seven overdose hospitalizations in Hartford, according to city health officials.

Gay, along with Root Center for Advanced Recovery Senior Counselor Ray Bishop, wants the public to be educated about what resources are available. 

“One death is one too many. I think on a daily basis we do our best to minimize the risk and to cut down on that death rate,” Bishop said. 

The Root Center is the largest methadone provider in the state, serving 5,500 people daily across 14 locations. Bishop said the first step in helping a patient is getting them in the door. 

“So that individual has to want to change for anything to happen,” Bishop added. 

After that, Bishop said it’s about offering a wide range of resources, so the patient knows they are cared for. 

“We have treatment, we have mental health services, we have group support, so it’s not just you come and get the medication, but you have supportive people who are empathic to a situation, with folks who can identify,” Bishop added. 

On June 23, the Root Center is welcoming patients to its new Hartford clinic on Lafayette Street, and next spring, the center will begin accepting patients at its first residential treatment facility in New Britain.