Father Becomes Advocate For Heroin-Reversal Drug
(CBS) -- It was a heartbreaking end to a fight against heroin addiction.
Twenty-year-old Nick Ryan of Naperville overdosed last Friday.
His father says a new drug could have prevented Nick's death.
And as CBS 2's Roseanne Tellez reports, on Thursday he trained parents and addicts how to use Naloxone.
Nick Ryan loved excitement -- skateboarding, skydiving -- and like his dad, heroin.
Tim Ryan, just 21 months clean, survived what his son could not.
When Nick stumbled, "instead of digging deeper or grasping a recovery program, he'd say, 'You know what? Forget it,' and he'd turn back to the drugs," his father says.
And last Friday, while at a friend's house, Nick overdosed.
"Heroin addiction takes you to a whole 'nother level. You have no morals, you have no values. I stole my wife's wedding ring and pawned it," Tim Ryan says.
But Tim is surviving and Thursday joined parents and addicts in a church meeting room in Naperville to demonstrate a life-saving new drug.
Naloxone reverses the effects of opiates like heroin. Tim says it's not a license to use but can offer friends and family members peace of mind -- and a chance to save a life.
"If my son's friends would have had this, possibly it could have saved his life," the father says.
He says with 16 heroin overdoses in Naperville alone this year, Naloxone could be a game-changer.