Stories delivered during a “community conversation” about substance misuse in Hutchinson Friday, June 25th, included those of a mother, a wife and an addicted young father. The panel also featured a lifetime resident who also suffers from mental health disorders and an addiction counselor. And while each one’s experience differed as much as the teller, they carried a uniform message. Addiction is a disease – not a choice – that can devastate the lives of all those it touches, from users to their families. Yet, the way most people, and even institutions, talk about it and those who suffer from it create a stigma that often prevents those sufferers, and their families, from seeking the help that could change – and save – lives.