Us & Them Encore: The Stigma of Sobriety

Us & Them Encore: The Stigma of Sobriety

From Us & Them by Trey Kay and WVPB

February 26, 2026 · 53 min · Episode 258

About this episode

This episode explores the complexities of sobriety and recovery in the context of America's evolving overdose crisis.

America’s overdose crisis keeps changing shape. In recent years, provisional CDC data have shown a sharp national decline in overdose deaths — even as public officials warn the street drug supply remains volatile and some communities see signs of a rebound. That uncertainty is also reshaping the recovery world — especially around opioids. Some people find abstinence-based recovery works best. Others rely on medication-assisted treatment (MAT), using prescribed medicine like methadone or buprenorphine to stabilize a person and reduce the risk of relapse. But MAT has long divided the recovery community, fueling a stigma around a deceptively simple question: When is someone sober? In this encore episode of Us & Them , Trey Kay visits the Clarksburg Mission in Clarksburg, West Virginia — a Christian-centered recovery facility where people pursue different paths toward sobriety — and where debates about medication, morality, and survival are never abstract.

People in this episode

Host: Trey Kay

Topics covered

  • overdose crisis
  • recovery
  • sobriety
  • opioids
  • medication-assisted treatment
  • stigma

Keywords

  • Clarksburg Mission
  • Christian-centered recovery
  • abstinence-based recovery
  • methadone
  • buprenorphine

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Us & Them

Places: America, Clarksburg, West Virginia

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