Dr. Nora Volkow on the state of adolescent mental health and why we urgently need to apply the lessons learned in the pandemic to addiction and mental health

Episode notes

Like many families, Dr. Nora Volkow’s had kept it a secret that her grandfather had a substance use disorder and eventually committed suicide. Today, as the director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse at the National Institutes of Health, she speaks out regularly about how important it is to share these stories to help other families impacted by addiction. Dr. Volkow sits down with Heart of the Matter host Elizabeth Vargas to discuss the growing complexities of fentanyl-laced drugs; the state of mental health in our nation; what the pandemic can teach us about allocating resources to communities in need; and her deeply personal story. For more, see the complete episode transcript . Explore more on topics and themes discussed in this episode: Substance Use + Mental Health: Your Guide to Addressing Co-occurring Disorders Is Your Child at Risk? A Substance Use Risk Assessment Help Us Change the Story of Addiction Editor’s Note: The views and opinions expressed on Heart of the Matter are those of the podcast participants and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Partnership to End Addiction.

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