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  • Austin Eubanks, Columbine Survivor, Died Of Heroin Overdose

    Austin Eubanks, Columbine Survivor, Died Of Heroin Overdose

    In the wake of the 1999 Columbine school shooting, Eubanks struggled with opioid use. Eventually, he began speaking publicly about his struggles.

    A well-known addiction advocate and survivor of the Columbine shooting has died of a heroin overdose, reports have confirmed. 

    Austin Eubanks was found dead last month after failing to answer his phone during a welfare check, CNN reports. The coroner’s office has confirmed that the 37-year-old’s death was due to “acute heroin toxicity.”

    “I’m very sad about it myself,” Routt County, Colorado Coroner Robert Ryg tells CNN. “We were hoping for something else, heart attack or something.”

    In the wake of the 1999 Columbine school shooting, which left 13 dead and many injured, Eubanks struggled with opioid use. Eventually, he began speaking publicly about his struggles. 

    “An injured survivor of the Columbine shooting, Austin’s traumatic experience as a teen was the catalyst to his painful journey through addiction,” his website reads. “He has since devoted his career to helping those who have turned to substances as a result of trauma. Austin has spoken to millions across the nation regarding his personal journey as well as strategies for addressing the issues of substance abuse that are plaguing the nation.” 

    Eubanks’ family told KMGH in a statement that he “lost the battle with the very disease he fought so hard to help others face.”

    On the day of the shooting, Eubanks, then 17, was in the library with friends when gunshots broke out.   

    “A teacher ran through the same doors that we just entered into the library, yelling at everybody to get under the tables, that somebody had a gun, and I remember just being in shock,” Eubanks said. 

    Eubanks and his friends hid under the tables in the library, but when the two shooters began firing, Eubanks was struck in the knee and hand and his best friend was fatally wounded.

    “As a result of my injuries, I was pretty significantly medicated about 45 minutes after being shot,” Eubanks said. “I remember immediately being drawn to that feeling, because it took the emotion away.”

    Despite continuing to struggle with opioid use through his 20s, Eubanks eventually settled into long-term recovery and chose to share his experiences to help others. 

    In the wake of more recent school shootings, Eubanks said that he recognizes some differences. 

    “One of the things that I think is so inspiring and so different about the aftermath of the Parkland tragedy is the activism that I’m seeing in the student body, and I think that that’s wonderful,” he said. “What I’m fearful of is that if they get so laser-focused on trying to impact societal change, they’re going to detach from their own healing, and that is a form of medicating.”

    Eubanks’ family plans to continue his work in his memory, according to CNN.

    “Helping to build a community of support is what meant the most to Austin, and we plan to continue his work,” his family said in their statement. 

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Austin Eubanks, Columbine Survivor, Discussed “Emotional Pain” Before His Passing

    Austin Eubanks, Columbine Survivor, Discussed “Emotional Pain” Before His Passing

    Back in April, Eubanks spoke about addiction and trauma at a harm reduction summit. 

    The recent passing of Austin Eubanks, a school shooting survivor who became a vocal advocate for mental health and substance use disorder, was a jarring reminder that recovering from trauma and addiction is a lifelong battle.

    Eubanks, who survived the Columbine High School shooting of 1999, turned the traumatic event that unfolded that day—and his ensuing battle with addiction—into a calling to help others.

    In April, a little over a month before his untimely passing, Eubanks spoke at the Kentucky Harm Reduction Summit. “We live in a culture today that is ill-equipped to address emotional pain in a healthy fashion,” he told attendees, USA Today reported.

    Jeff Howard, the director of the Kentucky Department of Public Health, helped bring Austin to the summit to speak about addiction.

    “It’s an unbelievably heartbreaking scenario, just incredibly sad,” said Howard. “Frankly, it reinforces the message: Even when people seem like they have it together, you have to understand that this disease is chronic and relapsing.”

    Howard mentioned no sign of trouble when he saw Austin at the summit. “For those who suffer from this disorder, it’s a constant battle day in and day out. It’s a lesson to us all, that even when someone seems well, they still need our support.”

    Just this year, Austin had already attended speaking engagements in Florida, Vermont, Georgia, Connecticut and more, with future engagements in Idaho, Iowa and Arizona planned for the summer.

    Eubanks died some time last weekend, found in his home in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. He was 37 years old. While the cause of death has not yet been determined, his family released a statement saying that Austin “lost the battle with the very disease he fought so hard to help others face.”

    The Littleton community, where Columbine High School is located, recently marked the 20th anniversary of the Columbine shooting in April. Then, in early May, there was another shooting at Highlands Ranch STEM School, just a 15-minute drive from Littleton.

    “It’s incredibly difficult to find hope when this kind of thing keeps happening,” said Zachary Cartaya, 38, a former classmate of Austin’s. Cartaya, too, struggled with depression and suicidal thoughts after the shooting. He has since co-founded The Rebels Project, connecting trauma survivors with each other and with professional counseling.

    A supportive community can lift up someone who is going through it alone. People like Austin, who even years later are living with horrific trauma, need support. “Here’s someone 20 years later who had all these demons and was taken as a result,” said Frank DeAngelis, the principal of Columbine at the time.

    Eubanks’ family said in their statement that they will “continue his work” to help build communities of support.

    View the original article at thefix.com

  • Columbine Survivor & Addiction Advocate Austin Eubanks Dies At 37

    Columbine Survivor & Addiction Advocate Austin Eubanks Dies At 37

    A statement from his family said Eubanks “lost the battle with the very disease he fought so hard to help others face.”

    Austin Eubanks, who survived the 1999 Columbine school shooting, has died at the age of 37. Eubanks, who battled an addiction to painkillers used to recover from injuries received during the attack, was found dead in his home in Steamboat Springs, Colorado on May 18, 2019.

    The cause of death was yet to be determined, and while the Routt County coroner told the Associated Press that no signs of foul play were found at the scene.

    His family issued a statement which said that Eubanks “lost the battle with the very disease he fought so hard to help others face.”

    Eubanks was 17 when he gunmen entered the Columbine High School library and fatally shot 10 of his fellow students, including his best friend, Corey DePooter.

    In a 2016 interview with The Fix, Eubanks said that he received a 30-day supply of painkillers for injuries he received to his hand and knee, despite the fact that the wounds “were not to the point of needing opiate pain medication.” Within three months, Eubanks said that he was dependent on the drugs. “I used substances every day, day in and day out,” he recalled.

    The Columbine incident became a means of obtaining more opioids without questions from medical professionals. “I could literally get whatever I wanted,” Eubanks told The Fix. “Telling them I’d been shot at Columbine and lost my best friend was like getting an open prescription book from any doctor.”

    Eubanks eventually completed his high school degree, got married and had a son, and worked in advertising. But his substance abuse issues went unchecked, despite stints in rehab in 2006 and 2008. Eventually, his marriage fell apart, and a series of offenses, including car theft, culminated in a 2011 arrest for probation violation.

    “That was the absolute lowest moment of my life. I had ruined the marriage. I had two children I was estranged from. I told myself, ‘If I don’t stop right now, I’m going to die,’” he recalled.

    Treatment in a 14-month program helped him overcome the emotional pain he had kept inside after the Columbine shooting and gain recovery. Eubanks became an administrator at treatment center, and a speaker on the national circuit on addiction and health care reform. ”

    “I think that it’s really important that – not as survivors of trauma but survivors of addiction – speak out and they share their story,” he said. “Just because you never know when your story is going to change the life of someone else.”

    In their statement to the press, Eubanks’s family thanked the recovery community “for its support.”

    View the original article at thefix.com