Richmond, VA.—Jerry Barton lost everyone around him to opioids. First he lost his sister. Then his girlfriend. Later, he lost a close friend from suicide stemming from addiction. And this February, he found his childhood best friend dead from an opioid overdose. Before the pandemic and the lockdowns hit, Barton had been 21 months clean from drugs. But the isolation, stress, and lack of human connection soon spurred an itch inside of him. “It was depressing,” Barton told The Epoch Times inside a recovery home provided by the McShin Foundation, a non-profit recovery community organization in Virginia. “It bothered me a lot—it actually led to my relapse.” There were no in-person groups for emotional support. Barton took part in some online meetings but they had a lackluster atmosphere—he hid his true self. Being alone amid the lockdown, he thought he could get away with a one-time hit. That soon led to him …