On Saturday, October 10th — World Mental Health Day, Toni Cornell, daughter of late Soundgarden frontman Chris Cornell, partnered with Addiction Policy Forum to launch a new campaign “Stop the Stigma: Tackling the Stigma of Addiction through Education.”
Toni accompanied the launch of the resource by penning an open letter about her father and his battle with addiction. As a way to “change the conversation” around addiction and tackle the stigma.
“As a society, despite science proving otherwise, we still blame those struggling with this disease. Addiction is a mental health issue, not a character flaw and it so often left out of the conversation of mental health,” she wrote. “That becomes dangerous because keeps people from sharing and even getting the help they need. It keeps this disease in the shadows even when it comes to doctors and medical professionals.”
The letter delved into the importance of educating society about addiction, and the Cornell families personal mission to work towards changing laws to help prevent deaths like Chris Cornell’s from happening.
“I believe that education needs to start in our communities and homes, but also in our schools. We need doctors and health care providers to be educated on addiction. We lose over 200 people a day to overdoses alone,” she continued.
“The science is there, now it’s up to us as a society to catch up in order to save lives and understand this is a disease and not some moral flaw.
“My family and I will continue to raise awareness and work towards changing laws and policy. If my dad was treated as an individual with a substance use disorder, he would never have been prescribed the medication he was given.
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“Since my dad’s death my mother has created a lot of open dialogue with medical experts in the field who sat with us and explained what happens to a person with a substance use disorder who is given a highly addictive drug. He was not prescribed this medication for anxiety, but for a physical injury.”
Chris Cornell was prescribed the anti-anxiety drug lorazapam — sold under Ativan — despite having a history with addiction.
“My dad’s death was completely preventable. We need to stop the stigma that does not allow us to see that this is a disease and a mental health disorder, not a moral flaw,” wrote Toni. “The former perspective saves lives, the latter ends them.”
Back in May, in the wake of the third anniversary of Chris Cornell’s death, his daughter Lily Cornell Silver announced a podcast about mental health awareness.
Titled Mind Wide Open, the podcast will key on on mental health topics, with a wide range of guests featuring from “mental health professionals, public figures, peers, and others who will share their stories and struggles, as well as provide knowledge and insight.”
Launched as a way to honour the passing of her dad, Chris Cornell, the podcast is set to be a key way to “create change around the stigma” that have surrounded both her and her father.
