BUTTE — As Montana grapples with a spike in drug overdoses, the work done at the Butte Spirit Home seems even more important for the women in early recovery who are being connected to the skills that they need to prevent relapse.
"The first time that I tried to shoot up, I actually overdosed," says Amanda McElhany.
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"I woke up to my friend screaming, 'I need Narcan! I need Narcan!' And she was like driving 90 miles an hour to get to the nearest hospital."
MacElhany joined the Butte Spirit Home in December 2024, several months after becoming sober. She says she first overdosed and became addicted to heroin years ago, but her time at the Butte Spirit Home, a facility that provides supportive housing and services to those recovering from substance abuse, has helped her learn how to live a sober life.
MacElhany's first overdose scare did not deter her from using drugs. She eventually became addicted to fentanyl and overdosed again, this time receiving three doses of Narcan, a life-saving drug that helps overdose victims breathe by counteracting the effects of opioids. MacElhany says she became sober after getting arrested shortly after that second overdose.
"Overdoses are often a wake-up call for people. That’s the thing that shakes somebody into the realization of how dangerous their addiction actually is, and so we see a lot of people in the homes that have experienced overdose and survived," says Demetrius Fassas, the director of two Butte Spirit Home facilities.
Recently, the Montana Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS) reported that from March 1 to April 15, 2025, Montana experienced seven fatal overdoses and 132 nonfatal overdoses. The state reports that April is on track to have higher-than-average suspected opioid overdoses in Montana, even as the CDC reports that nationally, opioid overdoses are on the decline.
To help address Montana’s challenges, DPHHS says it is focusing on increasing Montanans’ access to recovery and treatment programs with $300 million to reform Montana's behavioral health and developmental disabilities services systems. DPHHS says part of the funding invests up to $400,000 to provide low-cost, life-saving resources statewide to respond to fentanyl and opioid overdoses, as well as funding to install Wellness Kiosks that will dispense fentanyl testing strips and naloxone.
Programs like the Butte Spirit Homes that serve male and female recovering addicts offer individuals the opportunity to build new communities in a safe, alcohol and drug-free environment, something Fassas says is a key ingredient to succeeding in the program.
"So the biggest and most helpful thing is to plug in with other people that are in recovery, and that’s what the community is about. Some of my favorite studies on addiction say that, you know, the opposite of addiction isn’t sobriety. The opposite of addiction is connection. Plugging into the community is the way out of addiction," says Fassas.
Amanda MacElhaney says learning to live sober while being supported by the community at large is something she is incredibly grateful for on her new life path. The Butte Spirit Home is hosting a Singo fundraiser at the Butte Elks Lodge beginning at 6 p.m. on Saturday, May 3. The event is open to the community, and members of the Butte Spirit Home plan to share their stories of recovery.
"That’s what people need is connection, and if you don’t have that, then you know, you just feel like there’s no hope," says MacElhaney.
