Families & Friends Of Addicts Support Group
Addiction affects more than just the individual. This community is dedicated to the families and friends of individuals suffering from any form of addiction. Mental health professionals are increasingly considering alcoholism and addiction as diseases that flourish in and are enabled by family systems. Family members react to the addicted person with particular behavioral...
Im posting this in both groups about heroin addiction.
I need your help.
I want to help raising awareness regarding drug addiction in my city. Problem is, I live in a country where the social stigma related to drug addiction is still very much alive and kicking and is getting even bigger due to the rising levels of criminal activity. Its the first time in the citys history that so many crimes are taking place. We have actual ghettos being formed and we are very new to this. People are getting really, really scared and consequently, angry. Drug addicts are now considered a real plague; they are not regarded as a vulnerable social group. Sometimes, drug addicts are blamed in ways that make me want to shout that ITS A DISEASE, yes, with a very ugly face, but a disease people
The problem is that operating through existing institutions is not smt I want to do as they dont work, they are overwhelmed and state funded, which means closed doors. Anything that has to do with raising awareness is controlled and unfortunately, limited.
Im thinking of using urban guerilla tactics. Things like message on the wall, flyers, stickers, small scale installations that convey messages.
I need your insights regarding the messages. The target group is not families and friends, its the users themselves.
Since I have no experience with drugs, I dont know what addicts would need to hear to start considering asking for help. Thats where I ask you to come in. Which words should I use? What should I say?
Why am do I want to do this? Because I care. Because Im an egoist. I cant just sit a watch. Because, maybe my brother will hear me and maybe hell listen and maybe hell find his way home. Maybe because going through life as I am, doesnt do it for me anymore. I am half a person.
If any of you find this post nave, please dont judge me. Im only trying here.
Any comment will be highly appreciated.
Thank you in advance..
Pen
I need your help.
I want to help raising awareness regarding drug addiction in my city. Problem is, I live in a country where the social stigma related to drug addiction is still very much alive and kicking and is getting even bigger due to the rising levels of criminal activity. Its the first time in the citys history that so many crimes are taking place. We have actual ghettos being formed and we are very new to this. People are getting really, really scared and consequently, angry. Drug addicts are now considered a real plague; they are not regarded as a vulnerable social group. Sometimes, drug addicts are blamed in ways that make me want to shout that ITS A DISEASE, yes, with a very ugly face, but a disease people
The problem is that operating through existing institutions is not smt I want to do as they dont work, they are overwhelmed and state funded, which means closed doors. Anything that has to do with raising awareness is controlled and unfortunately, limited.
Im thinking of using urban guerilla tactics. Things like message on the wall, flyers, stickers, small scale installations that convey messages.
I need your insights regarding the messages. The target group is not families and friends, its the users themselves.
Since I have no experience with drugs, I dont know what addicts would need to hear to start considering asking for help. Thats where I ask you to come in. Which words should I use? What should I say?
Why am do I want to do this? Because I care. Because Im an egoist. I cant just sit a watch. Because, maybe my brother will hear me and maybe hell listen and maybe hell find his way home. Maybe because going through life as I am, doesnt do it for me anymore. I am half a person.
If any of you find this post nave, please dont judge me. Im only trying here.
Any comment will be highly appreciated.
Thank you in advance..
Pen
I went to Al-Anon for a while years ago, and I took from that, the addict is powerless over the substance and we are powerless over changing the behavior. Rock bottom is the only way they will dig theirselves out. Here we have meth addiction campaigns that show pics of meth- heads, with captions like, "like my lipstick"(sores).
Maybe phrases like, "you are powerless over heroin"
In my opinion the only thing you can do for the addcits themselves is to post flyers with information on the nearest facilities. Numbers they can call to get help. Programs that they may be able to qualify for. No amount of negativity about the drug will cause an addict to want to stop, so the best you can do is offer the info up for any addict who may be looking for it but not know where to begin.
In my city the local police and citizens have a lot of joint effort in trying to help our city. One of the most effective things they do, and it is targeted at families and citizens who could become future addicts, is what they call drug education night. It's a free program that is offered up once a year that educates anyone who want's to come for free. The police put it on because for young teens the message is more powerful from someone in uniform but citizens help. The police bring different drugs that have been confiscated so that you can see what they look like up close. Other drugs are simulated. They teach you all the names and all the effects of each and every drug out there currently known to law enforcment. They also give out pamphelts with any and all information possible that you may need to start helping an addict in your life as soon as possible.
In school we also take the DARE program. Drug Abuse Resistance Education. If your city doesn't offer that then I would try suggesting it to them. It was really helpful. And the PARTY program(can't remember what that stands for) where they took us to the local hospital and made us look at photos of people victimized by crack bugs, and heroin addicts in gutters. We had to listen to speeches by former addicts and we got to touch two brains, a regular pigs, and a pigs that had been fed drugs.
Also, on occasion, we have a speaker come to one of our local venues and talk about thier former drug addiction. To get the younger people interested it has always been someone like a former NFL player, or a small time local band leader.
I know you wanted to target the addicts. But I don't think there is much you can do for someone already in the throes of addiction. The best you can do is try and stop others from becoming addicted. Other then the posters with rehab info on them, I don't know what else you can do for actual addicts that they don't have to do themselves.