9/13/17 – 5:17 A.M.

Recovering addicts talked about their experiences in Findlay Tuesday. The Courier reports Owens Community College hosted the panel discussion to shed light on recovery efforts in the community. Two recovering addicts and the director of addiction services at Century Health spoke at the event.

25-year-old Anna VanWormer told the audience that sexual abuse eventually drove her to drugs. She says it eventually took getting arrested and going to jail to get her sober. She started out in a faith-based recovery program called “Teen Challenge.” She’s now serving as the residential monitor at Tree Line Recovery Center in Findlay.

Jamie Decker told the group he had a good home life but started using alcohol and marijuana at 13. After he graduated high school he lost his job when Whirlpool started drug testing. He said he eventually ended up in the Salvation Army Rehabilitation Center in Dayton.

Overdoses continue to rise in the community. From January through May, Blanchard Valley Hospital had 143 visits due to overdoses. That’s on pace to significantly surpass the 159 visits in all of 2016. It’s already more than the 139 overdose visits the hospital had in 2015.

MORE: The Courier