Sharing Addiction Story ‘so worth it,’ says First Lady Kathryn Burgum

HONESTY MATTERS –

Oct. 29, 2024 – Holth said he’s been in recovery for more than 16 years, but hadn’t gone public with his personal recovery journey until he was inspired by Burgum after she publicly admitted her struggles with addiction.

The first lady, who shares her personal story of being in long-term recovery, said she’s happy with the positive impacts the office has made. She cited the office’s statewide survey from 2021 that showed 75% of respondents consider addiction to be a disease, an increase of 12% from when the office first asked the question in 2018.

“I was thinking to myself, ‘If the first lady can talk about this, so can I,’” Holth said. “The stigma reduction work that we’ve done is really founded and grounded in giving people license, and giving people permission, to come forward and say, ‘I’m not OK and need help,’ and for communities to wrap their arms around those people without them feeling shame.”

Kurt Snyder, executive director for the Heartview Foundation, a recovery organization that offers inpatient and outpatient services, credited Recovery Reinvented with helping reduce that stigma. Snyder said when he started working with the foundation about 20 years ago, he would have to explain to groups about the misconceptions of recovery before he could address deeper addiction issues.