Newly sober woman sees herself in former addicted NBA player

CHAMBERSBURG - Brea Dennis can relate to former NBA player Chris Herren's story about overdosing in a car and getting picked up by police. 

The 27-year-old Chambersburg woman, who is in her eighth month of recovery from drug addiction, came to hear the former Boston Celtic speak about his battle with drugs Thursday evening to a crowded auditorium at Chambersburg Area Senior High School. 

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For the past seven years, Herren has gone around the country sharing his personal story. During his speech, he talked about his addiction to cocaine, heroin, oxycodone and alcohol, and the impact it had on his basketball career and his relationship with his family.

"I think it's a universal story in a lot of ways," Herren said at a press conference before the event. "I think it resonates with many people, especially people who are dealing with this sickness. It doesn't matter where you're from, you know? That type of struggle knows no boundaries." 

While listening to him speak, Dennis noticed several similarities between herself and Herren. Like Herren, she also overdosed multiple times before getting sober. 

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"He got clean, I got clean. If he can do it, I can do it. Anybody can do it," she said.

Like Herren, Dennis was suffering from addiction while trying to fulfill her role as a parent to her two children, now ages 7 and 11. 

"They can tell when I was high, so they're definitely loving life now that I'm clean," she said. "They can tell." 

Herren's appearance here comes at a time when the opioid epidemic is sweeping across Franklin County and surrounding region. Over the past few years, the amount of overdose deaths in the area has doubled again and again, reaching 39 in 2016, according to the Franklin County coroner.

The county has also seen more responses to those needing the life-saving opioid reversal drug naloxone. Between April and July, Chambersburg Hospital administered the treatment 98 times, and police have used it 22 times this year. 

Dennis said the hundreds of people packing the auditorium at the event shows local people are aware of the drug problem around them. 

"I think if any of the addicts in Franklin County came to this tonight, if they go out and spread the word then it might make a difference," she said. 

Herren's goal is to make an impact on just one person in the audience. He said he has received a wide range of reactions - ranging from someone who decides to reach out to a family member who suffers from addiction to someone else who finally seeks treatment - in the time he's been sharing his story around the country.  

"You just never know," he said. "You hope that's (the) response, you hope people walk out of here and want to recognize their suffering, and the suffering around them because of this illness." 

Fortunately, Herren's speech left a lasting impression on Dennis, who said he motivated her to stay clean. 

"I was already at the point where I lost everything," she said. "I was in the same shoes as him, and I went and got clean. I don't want to waste my clean time, I want to build on it and make it last longer." 

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