My Son’s Austin’s Story A Life Taken To Soon…

I haven’t shared with you yet the specifics of exactly what happened to my 25 year old son Austin.

On December 5th, 2023, at approximately 7:00 PM, Austin came home from work. He worked at King’s Daughters Hospital as a pharmacy tech. That day, he told me how proud he felt because his manager had praised his performance. He was excited. He was confident. He was moving forward in life.

He fixed himself dinner and then went into his bedroom around 8:00 PM.

That was the last time I ever saw or spoke to my son.

On the morning of December 6th, I woke up around 7:00 AM and began working. Not long after, I noticed his car was still in the driveway. That wasn’t normal. I went downstairs and called his name. No response.

I walked into his bedroom and found him face down on the floor.

I turned him over, and he was already gone — stiff, unresponsive, and his body had turned purple. No parent should ever have to see their child like that. No parent should ever have to touch their child and feel that coldness.

When the police and EMTs arrived, they immediately asked what he had taken. I told them the truth:

No illegal drugs. No prescription drugs.

He only took kratom for energy.

None of them knew what that was.

The toxicology report later confirmed exactly what I told them:

No illicit substances.

No prescriptions.

The sole cause of death was Mitragynine intoxication.

The autopsy report stated that mitragynine caused respiratory depression which caused arrest and death. That is what killed him.

Such a traumatic experience I will never recover from and it has given me PTSD. I will likely never be able to stop taking meds. I am so grateful to have found you

Love Dan

Austin forever 25❤️