More Than 300 N.J. Heroin, Opioid Addicts Tell Their Stories

“Starting out it was fun and amazing, it gave me confidence, endurance, and strength. I could work longer and harder at my job and during intercourse.”

“By the age of 20 I was facing an armed robbery charge sitting in county jail going through withdrawal I hadn’t realized what I have done or how serious this addiction has become until now.”

That is just one of the many stories of an nj.com report that breaks down the heroin epidemic in New Jersey, with 5,217 reportedly dead since 2004.

NJ.com put out a form asking people to tell their stories about how heroin and opioids have affected them, receiving more than 500 responses from more than 200 New Jersey towns.

>>Related: These N.J. Residents Died Of Heroin, Opioid Overdoses Since 2004

Each year, Patch takes a look at how the drug has not only infested New Jersey’s urban areas, but the more unlikely places where suburban stories of abuse have developed into a sad, profound narrative: Brick, Toms River, Lacey, Lower Township, Millville, Gloucester City and Woodbridge.

>>Related: 30 N.J. Towns With The Most Heroin Abuse

Many of these communities had sharp decreases from the 2013 to 2014 (Jersey City dropped from 1,127 to 668). Other smaller communities, such as Lower Township and Millville, saw their heroin treatment cases go up, showing that the heroin scourge is not confined to the urban communities anymore.

>>Click here to go to the nj.com page that shows the stories of more than 300 stories of people who are current or ex-users. On that page, click or tap on the icons to show each person’s story, as told to nj.com. The icons are broken down by county, and each shows the person’s place of residence.<<