From cbc.ca

A former Barrie, Ont., emergency room doctor recovering from a fentanyl addiction says he wants other people struggling with the same issues to know they are not alone.

Darryl Gebien, 45, now a Toronto resident, told CBC's Metro Morning on Friday that recovery was a "very long, tough journey." Gebien plans to tell his story on Sunday on Recovery Day at Mel Lastman Square in suburban North York. The day, being marked on Sunday by 30 Canadian cities, is organized by local groups to celebrate freedom from addiction.

Gebien, who is out on $80,000 bail, is facing 72 charges relating to forged prescriptions and drug trafficking. He is due back in Barrie court on Sept. 21.

"I was so miserable," he said of his addiction. "I wasn't capable of feeling joy. I heard stories in recovery of people promising good things and that, if you just keep it simple and change some things in your life, it will get better. But I didn't want any part of that."

Gebien said his addiction was gradual. It began in 2008, when he began to have chronic back pain and was prescribed the pain reliever percocet, a morphine-like drug. He said that prescription, combined with stress, led to more frequent use as his back pain escalated. When he realized he was suffering from withdrawal at one point, he stop using as much."There were many issues going in my life, that I now recognize in recovery that I didn't see, were contributing to all the stress. It was mainly stress from various sources and that was the main culprit, combined with back pain."

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