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Mothers' plea for help for addicts
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| Devastated: Brenda Lennon |
The mothers of a couple hooked on heroin have joined together to call for more help for addicts.
Brenda Lennon and Melanie Slade have seen their children Lee, 26, and Vanessa, 19, sink into drug use and both families say effective treatment has been hard to come by.
They came to the Oxford Mail hoping to tell their stories and warn other parents.
After five years of dealing with her son's addiction, Mrs Lennon has decided to retrain as a youth worker specialising in drug education - hoping that if she cannot save her son, she can save someone else's.
Mrs Lennon said: "I do not know if my son is going to make it now. I pray he will."
The 47-year-old from North Oxford said she believed the help on offer relied too much on giving addicts the heroin substitute methadone.
Lee, she said, was "very good looking, well dressed and well presented" in his teens, but since he was 21 - after dabbling with cocaine as a trainee chef - his life has been ruled by drugs.
She said: "When he lost his job he went on to crack cocaine. I tried to help but there was one incident which threw him completely. He got attacked really badly and came close to dying. That got him deeper and deeper into drugs."
One weekend he ran away and when Mrs Lennon found him, she asked him to roll up his sleeves, only to find his arms covered in needle marks. "I was absolutely devastated," she said.
Since then, it has been a cycle of treatment and drug use for Lee, without ever breaking his habit. Earlier this year, Mrs Lennon told him to leave home.
She said: "When I looked at him I knew my son was still in there, but these drugs are so powerful it was like you have lost your child."
He received treatment in East Oxford but Mrs Lennon felt it was a case of: 'Give them methadone and let them go.'
She believes he is sleeping rough in the Cowley Road area and has only sporadic contact.
Jo Melling, the director of Oxfordshire Drug And Alcohol Team said drug addicts rarely wait more than three weeks for treatment and most seek help themselves or are referred by a doctor or community service.
She said: "The Shared Care scheme underpins the overall treatment system in Oxfordshire and this model has been very successful. It involves community pharmacists, nearly 65 per cent of GP surgeries and the Specialist Community Addictions Service."
She added: "I want to say to young adults thinking of getting into drugs, you do not know how much they are going to destroy your life and family and how much you will break your mother's heart."
Lee's girlfriend Vanessa is also homeless, addicted to heroin and in prison awaiting sentence for theft.
Her mother Melanie Slade said the support given to drug addicts in Oxford is a long way from the kind of rehabilitation afforded to celebrities.
Mrs Slade said her daughter began taking cannabis at 14, has smoked heroin for two years and injected it for five months.
Mrs Slade, 42, who grew up in Greater Leys, said: "She is living on the streets and it scares the hell out of me - it absolutely kills me.
"There seems to be no drying-out facility for these kids, unless you're Amy Winehouse. It's awful what's going on."
6:32am Monday 18th August 2008
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CommentPosted by: enid price, Headington on 7:12am Mon 18 Aug 08
[bold]Try telling your story to people with all types cancer and other unforunate teminal inllness who are in the postcode lottery for treatment. They have no hope of survival, heroin addicts do, they have to want to give up, they can survive and live. There are alot out there that wont including children[/bold] .
Try telling your story to people with all types cancer and other unforunate teminal inllness who are in the postcode lottery for treatment. They have no hope of survival, heroin addicts do, they have to want to give up, they can survive and live. There are alot out there that wont including children .
Posted by: Noodle Bar, Oxford on 7:26am Mon 18 Aug 08
I do sympathise to a small degree because I really do feel drugs is a choice - its something that the user had a choice to do/not to do. I think most people can say they have had a hard time/troubled childhood etc and yet alot of them rise above things and go on to lead normal lives. It is hard to give sympathy when the law abiding folk are usually victims of crime related to drugs and people seem to fall into trouble then want help to get out. If I had a family member hooked on drugs i would feel sorry for them but also know that the only person who can help them really is themselves firstly and then be there for them once they start to try themselves.
We all have our addictions in one form or another - you have to try and beat them on a daily basis.
I do sympathise to a small degree because I really do feel drugs is a choice - its something that the user had a choice to do/not to do. I think most people can say they have had a hard time/troubled childhood etc and yet alot of them rise above things and go on to lead normal lives. It is hard to give sympathy when the law abiding folk are usually victims of crime related to drugs and people seem to fall into trouble then want help to get out. If I had a family member hooked on drugs i would feel sorry for them but also know that the only person who can help them really is themselves firstly and then be there for them once they start to try themselves.
We all have our addictions in one form or another - you have to try and beat them on a daily basis.
Posted by: conkertoes, deadcat on 8:44am Mon 18 Aug 08
i dont think there is a single person over the age of 16 who dosnt know what smack n crack can do to you and people around you.
you dont have to stick the needle in and spark up the pipe you want to play with fire you deserve to get burnt.
i dont think there is a single person over the age of 16 who dosnt know what smack n crack can do to you and people around you.
you dont have to stick the needle in and spark up the pipe you want to play with fire you deserve to get burnt.
Posted by: ros, oxon on 10:27am Mon 18 Aug 08
Its not only people over the age of 16 that know what crack and heroin can do to a person.My 10 year old and her 8 year old friend were discussing these things while on cowley road only 3 days ago. They were trying to guess which person was just drunk and who was as her friend put it a crack head. They should not know about these things at their age but society has made it that they do.
What a sorry world i bought my children into. I would have thought twice about having children if i had known what they were going to face at such an early age.
Its not only people over the age of 16 that know what crack and heroin can do to a person.My 10 year old and her 8 year old friend were discussing these things while on cowley road only 3 days ago. They were trying to guess which person was just drunk and who was as her friend put it a crack head. They should not know about these things at their age but society has made it that they do.
What a sorry world i bought my children into. I would have thought twice about having children if i had known what they were going to face at such an early age.
Posted by: Why Bother?, Oxford on 10:54am Mon 18 Aug 08
There is no point treating addicts until supply is stopped. Supply can't be stopped because the Mr Bigs of the drugs world have greater resources than the Police - e.g. more manpower (footsoldiers provide their services for a rock and younger children below the legal age of responsibility are used as runners) and greater funding (the police have to apply for funding with all that entails - the Mr Bigs can go to their safe deposit box to get their tax free cash). Until Police and Customs are given more powers nothing can be done. In fact, until Governments around the world are uncorruptable (LOL!) the drug trade will never stop.
There is no point treating addicts until supply is stopped. Supply can't be stopped because the Mr Bigs of the drugs world have greater resources than the Police - e.g. more manpower (footsoldiers provide their services for a rock and younger children below the legal age of responsibility are used as runners) and greater funding (the police have to apply for funding with all that entails - the Mr Bigs can go to their safe deposit box to get their tax free cash). Until Police and Customs are given more powers nothing can be done. In fact, until Governments around the world are uncorruptable (LOL!) the drug trade will never stop.
Posted by: Peter, Oxford on 11:04am Mon 18 Aug 08
[quote]Her mother Melanie Slade said the support given to drug addicts in Oxford is a long way from the kind of rehabilitation afforded to celebrities[/quote]
This country has and always will be 'the have and have nots'. If you have the money you'll be fine but if you don't nobody cares. Drug addicts CHOOSE to be drug addicts nobody forces them, nobody forced them to take their first drug it is a matter of choice. Clearly although these people in the story have been offered help they have chosen not to accept it and so I'm afraid I have no sympathy for them. I have gone forty years without ever taking illegal drugs, why, because I chose not to. Stop with the bleding heart stories and accept that some people cannot be helped - it's life.
Her mother Melanie Slade said the support given to drug addicts in Oxford is a long way from the kind of rehabilitation afforded to celebrities
This country has and always will be 'the have and have nots'. If you have the money you'll be fine but if you don't nobody cares. Drug addicts CHOOSE to be drug addicts nobody forces them, nobody forced them to take their first drug it is a matter of choice. Clearly although these people in the story have been offered help they have chosen not to accept it and so I'm afraid I have no sympathy for them. I have gone forty years without ever taking illegal drugs, why, because I chose not to. Stop with the bleding heart stories and accept that some people cannot be helped - it's life.
Posted by: claire, oxford on 11:39am Mon 18 Aug 08
Although I sympathise with these mothers, it has to be said that the support available in Oxford for drug users is huge. Methadone is contraversial and understandably some see it as a quick easy way to brush the problems under the carpet but ultimately it stops addicts from committing crime to fund their habit.
Again, I sympathise with individuals in the grips of addiction but feel it should be highlighted that we have a comprehensive system in Oxford which supports those who wish to access treatment beyond substitute prescribing and ultimately it is the choice of the drug user whether they use the system or not.
Although I sympathise with these mothers, it has to be said that the support available in Oxford for drug users is huge. Methadone is contraversial and understandably some see it as a quick easy way to brush the problems under the carpet but ultimately it stops addicts from committing crime to fund their habit.
Again, I sympathise with individuals in the grips of addiction but feel it should be highlighted that we have a comprehensive system in Oxford which supports those who wish to access treatment beyond substitute prescribing and ultimately it is the choice of the drug user whether they use the system or not.
Posted by: Mr Ison, England on 11:56am Mon 18 Aug 08
Snoting pills replaced methadone.
Snoting pills replaced methadone.
Posted by: Michael on 12:44pm Mon 18 Aug 08
The self-righteousness of those of those who obviously have had no personal experience of addiction [e.g. ''I have gone forty years without ever taking illegal drugs, why, because I chose not to.''] still amazes me. Of course they have a choice BUT addicts usually start their addiction at an early age when peer pressure & a lack of self confidence combine to ensure they are an easy target. When those in positions of authority decide to take the problem seriously, atarting by admitting & correcting their own addictions, perhaps we'll get somewhere.
The self-righteousness of those of those who obviously have had no personal experience of addiction still amazes me. Of course they have a choice BUT addicts usually start their addiction at an early age when peer pressure & a lack of self confidence combine to ensure they are an easy target. When those in positions of authority decide to take the problem seriously, atarting by admitting & correcting their own addictions, perhaps we'll get somewhere.
Posted by: claire, oxford on 12:57pm Mon 18 Aug 08
Michael, how much more seriously would you like addiction to be taken? You want people in authority to admit their own addictions? How exactly will that help in the long and short term?
Michael, how much more seriously would you like addiction to be taken? You want people in authority to admit their own addictions? How exactly will that help in the long and short term?
Posted by: Jay, oxford on 1:00pm Mon 18 Aug 08
Taking drugs is a personal choice, cancer isn't.
The NHS should spend the money on cancer drugs and stop all methadone.
Any caught stealing to feed a drug habit should be jailed for a year and made to go cold turkey.
Taking drugs is a personal choice, cancer isn't.
The NHS should spend the money on cancer drugs and stop all methadone.
Any caught stealing to feed a drug habit should be jailed for a year and made to go cold turkey.
Posted by: M, oxford on 1:32pm Mon 18 Aug 08
Which ever way you look at it there are still two mothers who are watching their children die and want to do what ever they can to keep them alive, it is a natural instinct to protect. People turn to drugs for all sorts of reasons, just the same way that people drink, smoke or over eat.
Which ever way you look at it there are still two mothers who are watching their children die and want to do what ever they can to keep them alive, it is a natural instinct to protect. People turn to drugs for all sorts of reasons, just the same way that people drink, smoke or over eat.
Posted by: Alan Page, Guildford on 3:32pm Mon 18 Aug 08
[quote][bold]Michael[/bold] wrote:
The self-righteousness of those of those who obviously have had no personal experience of addiction [e.g. ''I have gone forty years without ever taking illegal drugs, why, because I chose not to.''] still amazes me. Of course they have a choice BUT addicts usually start their addiction at an early age when peer pressure & a lack of self confidence combine to ensure they are an easy target. When those in positions of authority decide to take the problem seriously, atarting by admitting & correcting their own addictions, perhaps we'll get somewhere.[/quote] Not self righteousness, the plain and simple fact.
These substances are prohibited because they tend to screw people over. If all it takes is a group of people taking the crap around you to make you start then you ar simply a wet weekend.
Junkies care for nothing apart from themselves, which is why Cocaine is taking the place of cannabis. If these bozos can quite happily blow the crap out of countries like Columbia and Bolivia for the honour of talking loud and fast crap for 20 minutes before becoming a self piteous bore, they should be treated with the attitude.
No doubt Michael is one of the corporate arse kissing "legalise it" brigade. "Oh, if we legalised it the taxation raised could be fed into addiction clinics blah blah blah." As with most bourgeois double speak this should read "Oh, if we legalised it, the taxation raised could be swiftly moved to off shore accounts and we could make a cool million. Just think of the economic potential of a captive consumer base."
Michael wrote:
The self-righteousness of those of those who obviously have had no personal experience of addiction still amazes me. Of course they have a choice BUT addicts usually start their addiction at an early age when peer pressure & a lack of self confidence combine to ensure they are an easy target. When those in positions of authority decide to take the problem seriously, atarting by admitting & correcting their own addictions, perhaps we'll get somewhere.
Not self righteousness, the plain and simple fact.
These substances are prohibited because they tend to screw people over. If all it takes is a group of people taking the crap around you to make you start then you ar simply a wet weekend.
Junkies care for nothing apart from themselves, which is why Cocaine is taking the place of cannabis. If these bozos can quite happily blow the crap out of countries like Columbia and Bolivia for the honour of talking loud and fast crap for 20 minutes before becoming a self piteous bore, they should be treated with the attitude.
No doubt Michael is one of the corporate arse kissing "legalise it" brigade. "Oh, if we legalised it the taxation raised could be fed into addiction clinics blah blah blah." As with most bourgeois double speak this should read "Oh, if we legalised it, the taxation raised could be swiftly moved to off shore accounts and we could make a cool million. Just think of the economic potential of a captive consumer base."
Posted by: anon on 4:20pm Mon 18 Aug 08
I honestly don't think a person becoming a drug addict can really be put down to low self esteem and peer pressure. I have always had low self esteem, very low when I was younger and would never even consider taking drugs. I would say 75% of the people I know do drugs, although not heroin, but I would still not be tempted to join them, if anything it has made me more determined not to.
I honestly don't think a person becoming a drug addict can really be put down to low self esteem and peer pressure. I have always had low self esteem, very low when I was younger and would never even consider taking drugs. I would say 75% of the people I know do drugs, although not heroin, but I would still not be tempted to join them, if anything it has made me more determined not to.
Posted by: ellen, didcot on 4:56pm Mon 18 Aug 08
My beautiful daughter also took drugs, the sad thing was I didnt realise it wasnt till my mother pionted out her eyes to me one boxing day that I saw it, I did a drastic thing and do not reconmend it but I looked her in her room barred the windows and put a bolt on her door, I know his can be dangerous but she was 16 only just starting out in the world and I wanted to save her,I do feel sorry for those parents but sometimes you have to nip things in the bud before they get out of hand, she thanks me today and is 20 years old doing well in life, I wish eveyone luck who is trying to come to terms with this problem
( may I add she was not a harden drug user but a user is a user in my eyes and could have easly gone on to worse things)
My beautiful daughter also took drugs, the sad thing was I didnt realise it wasnt till my mother pionted out her eyes to me one boxing day that I saw it, I did a drastic thing and do not reconmend it but I looked her in her room barred the windows and put a bolt on her door, I know his can be dangerous but she was 16 only just starting out in the world and I wanted to save her,I do feel sorry for those parents but sometimes you have to nip things in the bud before they get out of hand, she thanks me today and is 20 years old doing well in life, I wish eveyone luck who is trying to come to terms with this problem
( may I add she was not a harden drug user but a user is a user in my eyes and could have easly gone on to worse things)
Posted by: Jordan, Oxford on 4:57pm Mon 18 Aug 08
I am a drug addict myself. I'm a 29 yr old intelligent womman but made a bad choice one day. You dont know unless you have walked in my shoes what it has been like. The first time i tried heroin I never thought i would get addicted and I'm not blaming anyone but myself. I became dependant on a drug i ended up despising but needed it on a day to day basis to stop withdrawl symptoms. The only person that could help me was myself so i seeked help but came up against a brick wall. I was only offered help after a failed suicide attempt. I dont want anyones sympathy, I just want my old life back which i am now struggling to do every day. I have always worked and paid my national insurance so why shouldn't i be allowed the help on NHS. I think its sad that drug addicts all get tarred with the same brush and have to live with the stigma, its a shame that many of our young intelligent teenagers are getting hooked because it is so easily available. Lives could be saved if the help was available when it is needed.
I am a drug addict myself. I'm a 29 yr old intelligent womman but made a bad choice one day. You dont know unless you have walked in my shoes what it has been like. The first time i tried heroin I never thought i would get addicted and I'm not blaming anyone but myself. I became dependant on a drug i ended up despising but needed it on a day to day basis to stop withdrawl symptoms. The only person that could help me was myself so i seeked help but came up against a brick wall. I was only offered help after a failed suicide attempt. I dont want anyones sympathy, I just want my old life back which i am now struggling to do every day. I have always worked and paid my national insurance so why shouldn't i be allowed the help on NHS. I think its sad that drug addicts all get tarred with the same brush and have to live with the stigma, its a shame that many of our young intelligent teenagers are getting hooked because it is so easily available. Lives could be saved if the help was available when it is needed.
Posted by: Flo, Oxford on 5:03pm Mon 18 Aug 08
As a mother of 3 drug addicts, I know what I'm talking about. It is an epademic that is sweeping through the streets. It is available on every street corner. Most start in their early teens when they don't know what they are doing, and get hooked very quickly, I've also lost my mother and husband to cancer and believe me this is as bad as that.
As a mother of 3 drug addicts, I know what I'm talking about. It is an epademic that is sweeping through the streets. It is available on every street corner. Most start in their early teens when they don't know what they are doing, and get hooked very quickly, I've also lost my mother and husband to cancer and believe me this is as bad as that.
Posted by: J, Grove on 5:09pm Mon 18 Aug 08
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't taking heroin/smack illegal? If smokers, drinkers and overweight people are denied treatment for things that are completely legal why should drug addicts receive any help? I agree with Jay, make them go cold turkey. Preferably in a prison cell.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't taking heroin/smack illegal? If smokers, drinkers and overweight people are denied treatment for things that are completely legal why should drug addicts receive any help? I agree with Jay, make them go cold turkey. Preferably in a prison cell.
Posted by: Jeff Slade (Vanessa's step father), Oxford on 5:15pm Mon 18 Aug 08
Whether you think it's right or wrong to spend money treating addicts; the fact is that there are plenty of addicts out there and our prisons are already full to overflowing with them. Unless they get real help to quit their habits then they will continue to steal to fund their addiction. This causes problems for society in general and inevitably costs a fortune in police, court and prison time. It would be better for the courts to be able to send addicts to a secure rehabilitation unit where they can be given proper help and support to quit for a fixed period of time.This rehabilitation process does not take place in prisons currently and addicts are sent back onto the streets, still addicted and ready to commit more crime and repeat the process all over.
Whether you think it's right or wrong to spend money treating addicts; the fact is that there are plenty of addicts out there and our prisons are already full to overflowing with them. Unless they get real help to quit their habits then they will continue to steal to fund their addiction. This causes problems for society in general and inevitably costs a fortune in police, court and prison time. It would be better for the courts to be able to send addicts to a secure rehabilitation unit where they can be given proper help and support to quit for a fixed period of time.This rehabilitation process does not take place in prisons currently and addicts are sent back onto the streets, still addicted and ready to commit more crime and repeat the process all over.
Posted by: Peter, Oxford on 5:16pm Mon 18 Aug 08
[quote]I have always worked and paid my national insurance so why shouldn't i be allowed the help on NHS.[/quote]
Because you chose to take drugs. Why should you receive help and treatment for choosing to harm yourself when countless others who have not chosen to have cancer etc are being refused the treatment they too have paid into the system for. I know who would get my money if it was my personal choice.
I have always worked and paid my national insurance so why shouldn't i be allowed the help on NHS.
Because you chose to take drugs. Why should you receive help and treatment for choosing to harm yourself when countless others who have not chosen to have cancer etc are being refused the treatment they too have paid into the system for. I know who would get my money if it was my personal choice.
Posted by: Jeff Slade (Vanessa's stepfather), Oxford on 5:46pm Mon 18 Aug 08
[quote][bold]J[/bold] wrote:
Correct me if I\\\'m wrong, but isn\\\'t taking heroin/smack illegal? If smokers, drinkers and overweight people are denied treatment for things that are completely legal why should drug addicts receive any help? I agree with Jay, make them go cold turkey. Preferably in a prison cell.[/quote] Smokers and drinkers seldom steal or engage in other illegal activities to fund their habit. They do cost the NHS a great deal however and they are offered help to quit. The government has spent a fortune on education and help with these problems. The fact is, however, that the government raises a huge amount of duty on the sale of these legal drugs but makes nothing from the sale of heroin. It is vitally important that addicts are helped to quit as the harm that their continued crime does and the cost to the penal services is enormous. Only by quitting the drugs can they be stopped from their anti-social behaviour.
I find myself largely in agreement with those who say addicts have created their own hell and that that is their choice but that doesn't solve the problem. Perhaps they would feel slighty differently if it was their son or daughter who was caught up in this.Believe me; it can happen to anyone and you probably wouldn't know until it's too late. Addiction is every bit as painful for the addict's family as it is for the addict. To see a healthy and bright young person lose their health and dignity is just about the most distressing thing you can experience. We didn't have a choice, this was imposed on us and we just want to see our daughter happy and healthy again and leading an honest life like we do.
J wrote:
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't taking heroin/smack illegal? If smokers, drinkers and overweight people are denied treatment for things that are completely legal why should drug addicts receive any help? I agree with Jay, make them go cold turkey. Preferably in a prison cell.
Smokers and drinkers seldom steal or engage in other illegal activities to fund their habit. They do cost the NHS a great deal however and they are offered help to quit. The government has spent a fortune on education and help with these problems. The fact is, however, that the government raises a huge amount of duty on the sale of these legal drugs but makes nothing from the sale of heroin. It is vitally important that addicts are helped to quit as the harm that their continued crime does and the cost to the penal services is enormous. Only by quitting the drugs can they be stopped from their anti-social behaviour.
I find myself largely in agreement with those who say addicts have created their own hell and that that is their choice but that doesn't solve the problem. Perhaps they would feel slighty differently if it was their son or daughter who was caught up in this.Believe me; it can happen to anyone and you probably wouldn't know until it's too late. Addiction is every bit as painful for the addict's family as it is for the addict. To see a healthy and bright young person lose their health and dignity is just about the most distressing thing you can experience. We didn't have a choice, this was imposed on us and we just want to see our daughter happy and healthy again and leading an honest life like we do.
Posted by: Tom, Nowhere near junkie scum on 5:50pm Mon 18 Aug 08
Addiction is greed,simple as that.
I have no sympathy for those who through greed now claim "they have a problem".
You took drugs.
You liked them.
You chose to F*ck up your own life.
Live with it,but do not expect my tax money to pay for your own greed.
Cancer etc.....now there is a cause.
Addiction is greed,simple as that.
I have no sympathy for those who through greed now claim "they have a problem".
You took drugs.
You liked them.
You chose to F*ck up your own life.
Live with it,but do not expect my tax money to pay for your own greed.
Cancer etc.....now there is a cause.
Posted by: Jay, oxford on 6:28pm Mon 18 Aug 08
[quote][bold]Jordan[/bold] wrote:
I am a drug addict myself. I'm a 29 yr old intelligent womman but made a bad choice one day. You dont know unless you have walked in my shoes what it has been like. The first time i tried heroin I never thought i would get addicted and I'm not blaming anyone but myself. I became dependant on a drug i ended up despising but needed it on a day to day basis to stop withdrawl symptoms. The only person that could help me was myself so i seeked help but came up against a brick wall. I was only offered help after a failed suicide attempt. I dont want anyones sympathy, I just want my old life back which i am now struggling to do every day. I have always worked and paid my national insurance so why shouldn't i be allowed the help on NHS. I think its sad that drug addicts all get tarred with the same brush and have to live with the stigma, its a shame that many of our young intelligent teenagers are getting hooked because it is so easily available. Lives could be saved if the help was available when it is needed.[/quote] I would question the word "intelligent" in your post, given that it is a well known fact that heroin is addictive, and yet you made a decision to take it. An intelligent decision would be to weigh up the odds of getting addicted (very high) and choose not to take heroin.
Perhaps the money spend on methadone should instead be spent on educating kids from an early age about the addictive properties of drugs, and why not to get involved.
[quote][bold]Jordan[/bold] wrote:
Lives could be saved if the help was available when it is needed.[/quote]
Yes, I agree, but lives could be better saved by education, to make sure everyone knows the risks and repercussion of an addiction, so money should be spent on this rather than those who have already made the unintelligent choice of drugs.
Jordan wrote:
I am a drug addict myself. I'm a 29 yr old intelligent womman but made a bad choice one day. You dont know unless you have walked in my shoes what it has been like. The first time i tried heroin I never thought i would get addicted and I'm not blaming anyone but myself. I became dependant on a drug i ended up despising but needed it on a day to day basis to stop withdrawl symptoms. The only person that could help me was myself so i seeked help but came up against a brick wall. I was only offered help after a failed suicide attempt. I dont want anyones sympathy, I just want my old life back which i am now struggling to do every day. I have always worked and paid my national insurance so why shouldn't i be allowed the help on NHS. I think its sad that drug addicts all get tarred with the same brush and have to live with the stigma, its a shame that many of our young intelligent teenagers are getting hooked because it is so easily available. Lives could be saved if the help was available when it is needed.
I would question the word "intelligent" in your post, given that it is a well known fact that heroin is addictive, and yet you made a decision to take it. An intelligent decision would be to weigh up the odds of getting addicted (very high) and choose not to take heroin.
Perhaps the money spend on methadone should instead be spent on educating kids from an early age about the addictive properties of drugs, and why not to get involved.
Jordan wrote:
Lives could be saved if the help was available when it is needed.
Yes, I agree, but lives could be better saved by education, to make sure everyone knows the risks and repercussion of an addiction, so money should be spent on this rather than those who have already made the unintelligent choice of drugs.
Posted by: Jane on 7:41pm Mon 18 Aug 08
Drug addicts need help - plain and simple. In the long run it doesn't just help them, it helps keep a family together, it helps keep their younger siblings from going down that road, it helps society in general. I would guess that all the people booing on the sidelines have never had to deal with addiction and I hope they never do. Because, well, what would they say then?
Drug addicts need help - plain and simple. In the long run it doesn't just help them, it helps keep a family together, it helps keep their younger siblings from going down that road, it helps society in general. I would guess that all the people booing on the sidelines have never had to deal with addiction and I hope they never do. Because, well, what would they say then?
Posted by: the truth will out, the leys on 8:59pm Mon 18 Aug 08
If these mothers really cared about their children they would take out a bank loan and pay for them to get clean. As i see it all they want is for us to pay for their drugs treatment out of our tax. I would prefer to pay for some some little old lady to feel safe in her community from all the junkies
If these mothers really cared about their children they would take out a bank loan and pay for them to get clean. As i see it all they want is for us to pay for their drugs treatment out of our tax. I would prefer to pay for some some little old lady to feel safe in her community from all the junkies
Posted by: clare, oxford on 11:24am Tue 19 Aug 08
When will these parents understand their kids are skag heads which makes them SCUM in the eyes of most and the quicker they OD the better for everyone!! THE ONLY GOOD DRUGGIE IS A DEAD ONE.....
When will these parents understand their kids are skag heads which makes them SCUM in the eyes of most and the quicker they OD the better for everyone!! THE ONLY GOOD DRUGGIE IS A DEAD ONE.....
Posted by: Mr Ison, England on 11:34am Tue 19 Aug 08
Less bloody to allow victims to die than bump off the importers.
Less bloody to allow victims to die than bump off the importers.
Posted by: Michael on 12:39pm Tue 19 Aug 08
To ‘claire, oxford’: I am saying that because Cocaine was originally an expensively acquired drug frequented by & still used by the wealthy & influential classes there is currently insufficient influential pressure being brought to bear to eradicate its importation & until they stop using it as ‘recreational’, i.e. admit their own addictions, nothing will change. To ‘Alan Page, Guildford’: your logic is badly flawed. Nowhere do I suggest legalising & taxing drug use. Where has that come from? I’ve been close to two drug using young relatives who will probably die young, no doubt to the applause of the ignorant, & know the havoc caused to close family. Life sentences for drug pushers would be more apt, assuming the death penalty is not reinstated. I hope that is simple & clear enough not to be misconstrued again
To ‘claire, oxford’: I am saying that because Cocaine was originally an expensively acquired drug frequented by & still used by the wealthy & influential classes there is currently insufficient influential pressure being brought to bear to eradicate its importation & until they stop using it as ‘recreational’, i.e. admit their own addictions, nothing will change. To ‘Alan Page, Guildford’: your logic is badly flawed. Nowhere do I suggest legalising & taxing drug use. Where has that come from? I’ve been close to two drug using young relatives who will probably die young, no doubt to the applause of the ignorant, & know the havoc caused to close family. Life sentences for drug pushers would be more apt, assuming the death penalty is not reinstated. I hope that is simple & clear enough not to be misconstrued again
Posted by: kevin, Oxford on 5:46pm Tue 19 Aug 08
Reffering to Claire,s point about the comprehensive service provided in oxford and speaking as someone who has had drug issues and worked within these services i would say that there are to many services in Oxford. These services roam round oxford pushing addicts into hostels before they are ready to tackle their issues. All this does is makes once safe hostels become drug infested putting pressure on those who want to tackle their problems. Of course these services are pressurised into doing this all in the name of Government statistics.
Reffering to Claire,s point about the comprehensive service provided in oxford and speaking as someone who has had drug issues and worked within these services i would say that there are to many services in Oxford. These services roam round oxford pushing addicts into hostels before they are ready to tackle their issues. All this does is makes once safe hostels become drug infested putting pressure on those who want to tackle their problems. Of course these services are pressurised into doing this all in the name of Government statistics.
Posted by: Alan Page, Guildford on 10:05pm Tue 19 Aug 08
[quote][bold]Michael[/bold] wrote:
To ‘claire, oxford’: I am saying that because Cocaine was originally an expensively acquired drug frequented by & still used by the wealthy & influential classes there is currently insufficient influential pressure being brought to bear to eradicate its importation & until they stop using it as ‘recreational’, i.e. admit their own addictions, nothing will change. To ‘Alan Page, Guildford’: your logic is badly flawed. Nowhere do I suggest legalising & taxing drug use. Where has that come from? I’ve been close to two drug using young relatives who will probably die young, no doubt to the applause of the ignorant, & know the havoc caused to close family. Life sentences for drug pushers would be more apt, assuming the death penalty is not reinstated. I hope that is simple & clear enough not to be misconstrued again[/quote] Apologies. When somebody usually talks about "authorities taking action" it is usually a prelude to a prolegalisation rant.
You are absolutley right of course. The bourgeois have been blowing this crap out of their arses for centuries and see it as harmless fun. Of course that is easy to say when daddies got millions but no use to the average estate dweller.
Rather interesting to see DanOxford being silent here. He reckons I am the only one on here with a family affected negatively by one of his much vaunted liberal causes. It is, largely because of the crap he and his junkie pals have been giving us that this crap has become endemic.
Michael wrote:
To ‘claire, oxford’: I am saying that because Cocaine was originally an expensively acquired drug frequented by & still used by the wealthy & influential classes there is currently insufficient influential pressure being brought to bear to eradicate its importation & until they stop using it as ‘recreational’, i.e. admit their own addictions, nothing will change. To ‘Alan Page, Guildford’: your logic is badly flawed. Nowhere do I suggest legalising & taxing drug use. Where has that come from? I’ve been close to two drug using young relatives who will probably die young, no doubt to the applause of the ignorant, & know the havoc caused to close family. Life sentences for drug pushers would be more apt, assuming the death penalty is not reinstated. I hope that is simple & clear enough not to be misconstrued again
Apologies. When somebody usually talks about "authorities taking action" it is usually a prelude to a prolegalisation rant.
You are absolutley right of course. The bourgeois have been blowing this crap out of their arses for centuries and see it as harmless fun. Of course that is easy to say when daddies got millions but no use to the average estate dweller.
Rather interesting to see DanOxford being silent here. He reckons I am the only one on here with a family affected negatively by one of his much vaunted liberal causes. It is, largely because of the crap he and his junkie pals have been giving us that this crap has become endemic.
Posted by: Michael on 8:43am Wed 20 Aug 08
To Alan Page, Guildford on 10:05pm Tue 19 Aug 08: Apology gratefully accepted
To Alan Page, Guildford on 10:05pm Tue 19 Aug 08: Apology gratefully accepted
Posted by: claire, oxford on 10:33am Wed 20 Aug 08
[quote][bold]kevin[/bold] wrote:
Reffering to Claire,s point about the comprehensive service provided in oxford and speaking as someone who has had drug issues and worked within these services i would say that there are to many services in Oxford. These services roam round oxford pushing addicts into hostels before they are ready to tackle their issues. All this does is makes once safe hostels become drug infested putting pressure on those who want to tackle their problems. Of course these services are pressurised into doing this all in the name of Government statistics.[/quote] Kevin, I agree that probably there are too many services in Oxford and that most of them exist purely to meet government targets. Having been a drug user in another county and also having later worked in drug services in that same county I can reflect that probably having too many services is better than not having enough. I just find it a bit over the top to hear people moaning about the services available to drug users when really shouldn't we be pleased that there are some available rather than none, as is the case in other areas? In terms of hostels, there are over 200 beds available to homeless people in Oxford. Ok there may not be individually tailored support available to each person, but isn't the availability quite impressive? What is available to drug users may not be absolutely ideal but we don't live in an ideal world do we? - if we did then no-one would suffer addiction in the first place.
kevin wrote:
Reffering to Claire,s point about the comprehensive service provided in oxford and speaking as someone who has had drug issues and worked within these services i would say that there are to many services in Oxford. These services roam round oxford pushing addicts into hostels before they are ready to tackle their issues. All this does is makes once safe hostels become drug infested putting pressure on those who want to tackle their problems. Of course these services are pressurised into doing this all in the name of Government statistics.
Kevin, I agree that probably there are too many services in Oxford and that most of them exist purely to meet government targets. Having been a drug user in another county and also having later worked in drug services in that same county I can reflect that probably having too many services is better than not having enough. I just find it a bit over the top to hear people moaning about the services available to drug users when really shouldn't we be pleased that there are some available rather than none, as is the case in other areas? In terms of hostels, there are over 200 beds available to homeless people in Oxford. Ok there may not be individually tailored support available to each person, but isn't the availability quite impressive? What is available to drug users may not be absolutely ideal but we don't live in an ideal world do we? - if we did then no-one would suffer addiction in the first place.
Posted by: tutu much on 1:25pm Wed 20 Aug 08
Treating addicts is like giving prosthesis to land-mine victims but doing nothing to clear land-mines.
I expect the Authorities like a large chunk of society to be chemically subdued, it prevents them asking pertinent and embarrassing questions of those in charge.
Treating addicts is like giving prosthesis to land-mine victims but doing nothing to clear land-mines.
I expect the Authorities like a large chunk of society to be chemically subdued, it prevents them asking pertinent and embarrassing questions of those in charge.
Posted by: kevin, Oxford on 2:10pm Wed 20 Aug 08
Claire, I am not suggesting that it is not great that Oxford has all these services geared towards GUIDING individuals to help themselves. I am saying that it should be drug users approaching services, not the other way round. Commenting on the 200 plus bed spaces in hostels, how many of these places are taken by people who are from Oxford. May i suggest that Oxford has attracted Drug users from all over the country. Yes i know about the reconnection policy but it is to little to late. In response to the woman who wishes for all for all the Scum drug users to die, all i can say is that you are Scum. Just because individuals make the wrong choices, choices that may i add harm themselves more than others does not mean they deserve to die.
Claire, I am not suggesting that it is not great that Oxford has all these services geared towards GUIDING individuals to help themselves. I am saying that it should be drug users approaching services, not the other way round. Commenting on the 200 plus bed spaces in hostels, how many of these places are taken by people who are from Oxford. May i suggest that Oxford has attracted Drug users from all over the country. Yes i know about the reconnection policy but it is to little to late. In response to the woman who wishes for all for all the Scum drug users to die, all i can say is that you are Scum. Just because individuals make the wrong choices, choices that may i add harm themselves more than others does not mean they deserve to die.
Posted by: ISJ, Oxfrod on 2:48pm Wed 20 Aug 08
[italic][quote]
''Treating addicts is like giving prosthesis to land-mine victims but doing nothing to clear land-mines.
I expect the Authorities like a large chunk of society to be chemically subdued, it prevents them asking pertinent and embarrassing questions of those in charge.''[/quote][/italic]
To an extent i agree with this comment, we as a nation are giving useless incorrect support when it's far too late, we are not tackling our countries drug problem, we are just drawing out and making it more painfull...
Drug abuse and addicition is not just a wave, epidemic or infectius desiese like soo many people seem to think it is, IT'S A SYMPTOM! Just like eating disorders. It's symptom of dis-illusioned people (not just kids) who are fed up with the reality of day to day life so they turn to hard drugs to escape the pressures and fears they are faced with every day. Untill we consider a different point of view as a nation and become more humane & understanding, people will continue to press the 'Self Distruct Button' and to turn to hard drugs such Herion or Crack Cocaine.
Non-users can moan about wasted tax payers money and re-hab costs, but the stark and honest truth is more people will continue to take drugs and these alarming stats will keep rising untill the real issue is adressed, not a drug issue but a social one.
Addicts and our children will only quite or avoid the temptation to start when they can clearly see that life is more appealing than being 'smacked out' of one's head 24/7. It's not the addicts or support agencies that need to change their ways IT'S US, as a socity we have to change the way we percieve the problem in order to tackle it, and the real problem is Unhappy people who at some stage havn't recived the support they needed, so they've turned to hard drungs... Only when we truely simplfy or fully understand a problem can we solve it, we can and never will truely be able understand all the issues surrounding individual drug abusers, so lets simplfy and lets finally stop treating the sympton and start treating the cause... Unhappy people who have ultimately turned drugs...
''Treating addicts is like giving prosthesis to land-mine victims but doing nothing to clear land-mines.
I expect the Authorities like a large chunk of society to be chemically subdued, it prevents them asking pertinent and embarrassing questions of those in charge.''
To an extent i agree with this comment, we as a nation are giving useless incorrect support when it's far too late, we are not tackling our countries drug problem, we are just drawing out and making it more painfull...
Drug abuse and addicition is not just a wave, epidemic or infectius desiese like soo many people seem to think it is, IT'S A SYMPTOM! Just like eating disorders. It's symptom of dis-illusioned people (not just kids) who are fed up with the reality of day to day life so they turn to hard drugs to escape the pressures and fears they are faced with every day. Untill we consider a different point of view as a nation and become more humane & understanding, people will continue to press the 'Self Distruct Button' and to turn to hard drugs such Herion or Crack Cocaine.
Non-users can moan about wasted tax payers money and re-hab costs, but the stark and honest truth is more people will continue to take drugs and these alarming stats will keep rising untill the real issue is adressed, not a drug issue but a social one.
Addicts and our children will only quite or avoid the temptation to start when they can clearly see that life is more appealing than being 'smacked out' of one's head 24/7. It's not the addicts or support agencies that need to change their ways IT'S US, as a socity we have to change the way we percieve the problem in order to tackle it, and the real problem is Unhappy people who at some stage havn't recived the support they needed, so they've turned to hard drungs... Only when we truely simplfy or fully understand a problem can we solve it, we can and never will truely be able understand all the issues surrounding individual drug abusers, so lets simplfy and lets finally stop treating the sympton and start treating the cause... Unhappy people who have ultimately turned drugs...
Posted by: claire, oxford on 9:41am Thu 21 Aug 08
[quote][bold]kevin[/bold] wrote:
Claire, I am not suggesting that it is not great that Oxford has all these services geared towards GUIDING individuals to help themselves. I am saying that it should be drug users approaching services, not the other way round. Commenting on the 200 plus bed spaces in hostels, how many of these places are taken by people who are from Oxford. May i suggest that Oxford has attracted Drug users from all over the country. Yes i know about the reconnection policy but it is to little to late. In response to the woman who wishes for all for all the Scum drug users to die, all i can say is that you are Scum. Just because individuals make the wrong choices, choices that may i add harm themselves more than others does not mean they deserve to die.[/quote] Kevin - I completely agree with what you have said to this 'scum' woman, what an idiot. Why bother writing something so vile and offensive?
Regarding all the beds in Oxford being taken by those not from Oxford, firstly I don't beleive the majority are, and the reconnection policy sees to that. However, so what if they were? If someone with addiction problems doesn't have services in their own area, shouldn't they be able to use ours? If you had a heart attack in another area you would expect to use their hospital wouldn't you?
kevin wrote:
Claire, I am not suggesting that it is not great that Oxford has all these services geared towards GUIDING individuals to help themselves. I am saying that it should be drug users approaching services, not the other way round. Commenting on the 200 plus bed spaces in hostels, how many of these places are taken by people who are from Oxford. May i suggest that Oxford has attracted Drug users from all over the country. Yes i know about the reconnection policy but it is to little to late. In response to the woman who wishes for all for all the Scum drug users to die, all i can say is that you are Scum. Just because individuals make the wrong choices, choices that may i add harm themselves more than others does not mean they deserve to die.
Kevin - I completely agree with what you have said to this 'scum' woman, what an idiot. Why bother writing something so vile and offensive?
Regarding all the beds in Oxford being taken by those not from Oxford, firstly I don't beleive the majority are, and the reconnection policy sees to that. However, so what if they were? If someone with addiction problems doesn't have services in their own area, shouldn't they be able to use ours? If you had a heart attack in another area you would expect to use their hospital wouldn't you?
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