AN EX-HEROIN ADDICT
This woman is 24 years old and has two young children. She has been off heroin for over two years now and first became hooked on the drug in 1996. At its peak, she was taking around three bags a day, or whatever she could afford. She had an extensive knowledge of the people she was dealing with, and moved in extensive social circles throughout the heroin addict network.
HAVE YOU NOTICED AN INCREASE IN HEROIN ADDICTS IN THIS TOWN OVER THE PAST 5 YEARS?
Yes it has. When I used to be a heroin addict I was always going around people's houses and meeting different people. There was always new people coming into it, even the heroin dealers had new runners all the time.
IS THERE AN EPIDEMIC IN THE TOWN?
Yes. . .I suppose there is an epidemic. There are more pushers and more users. It's a small town and it spreads easily.
WHAT DO YOU THINK IS THE MAIN CAUSE OF THE INCREASE?
The main cause is more drug pushers, pushing it on to other people; the addictiveness and people having problems-they use the drug as comfort or as something new to do. In my case I had a relationship breakdown and I was on my own with two children. I had a nervous breakdown and the tablets from the doctor did not help at all. Someone from my family came round, a heroin addict himself, and he started offering it to me. It was only a few times, then I started doing it with his friend, and then the addictiveness took over.
HAVE YOU/DO YOU SMOKE CANNABIS?
I used to smoke draw all the time when I was younger, and sometimes I still do.
WHAT WAS YOUR DRUG EDUCATION LIKE AT SCHOOL?
I suppose from what I remember, being at an all girl's school, I suppose we had a few talks on drugs, but nothing major. To tell you the truth I cant remember having a talk on it at all, I was quite naughty at school so I didn't really go . . .I already knew about cannabis and other drugs.
WOULD YOU SAY THAT DRUG EDUCATION IN SCHOOLS HAS IMPROVED SINCE YOUR SCHOOLDAYS?
I have been off it for two years, so I would know if my children had taken it. I wouldn't let them hang around with people that I thought were like that. I would like to see schools give more education on drugs, for children to realize how heroin works, its addictiveness, how much money they would lose, how their self-esteem would go. I realize being off it just how bad things were-there was never any food in the house, and I would never want anyone taking that drug if they have children.
HAVE YOU EVER BEEN ARRESTED/KNOW MANY THAT HAVE BEEN ARRESTED FOR HEROIN RELATED CRIMES?
Me, never. I used to always do the drug at nighttime when my kids were in bed, but always in my house. There were never loads of people round here. . . one of my girlfriends used to get arrested a lot with having other people in her car, she would get stopped and searched. I know a lot of people who get arrested for crimes they commit to feed their habit, every week in the Journal I go to the court page and see whose been done.
IN YOUR EXPERIENCE WHAT IS THE ATTITUDE OF THE POLICE TO HEROIN USERS?
A lot of policemen that I know try to help them, but more in the case of the law, like the magistrates and that, they aim to punish them. They would punish them a few times before they offered them help, I mean when they go to prison they probably get more heroin than they would out here. I know a lot of people who got sent to prison a few times before they would get offered detox and rehab.
DO THE POLICE PAY MORE ATTENTION TO HEROIN USERS THAN ANY OTHER CRIMINAL TYPE?
I suppose in some ways yes, because it is a small town and it spreads quite a lot. There are more burglaries nowadays than 5 or 10 years ago because of the fact that heroin addictiveness is so high, people have to go out and rob and steal things to pay for their addiction because they have run out of money.
DID YOU EVER COMMITED CRIME TO FEED YOUR ADDICTION?
Not as such. I wanted to sell my microwave for heroin but a member of my own family was threatening to tell the social services about my drug habit, you know with my kids, and it made me rethink. About a week later I was so bad that I had to sell my video. . .I haven't committed any crimes as such, but I have to my children. If I didn't have my children I probably would have gone out there and committed crimes because I was so bad on it. I would have committed a burglary or gone round friend's house and stole something. Many of my friends have committed crimes, one of them who I used to take heroin with used to go out stealing hair stuff just for an extra tenner for one bag to get her through the day. My family member was always stealing things, and once he started dealing he stole off his dealer, about £150 worth of gear and smoked it all to himself.
HAS HE EVER BEEN IN TROUBLE WITH THE POLICE?
Yes a couple of times. . .he hasn't actually been sent down yet but that is a possibility. He reckons he's been offered rehab but I know he would only get it if he had been to prison because of the drugs.
COULD I ASK THE CONNECTION BETWEEN YOU AND YOUR FAMILY MEMBER?
My half brother, some brother getting me hooked on heroin.
WHAT % OF THE HEROIN POPULATION WOULD YOU SAY COMMIT CRIME?
I met a lot of people while I was on it and I would say around 90%, near enough everybody, was out doing some crime, whether or not it was stealing off their parents, burglaries. There is a shop in our town where you can go in with stolen goods and get money for it.
HOW MANY ADDICTS WOULD YOU SAY ARE IN THIS TOWN?
I'd say over 1000, I know there's probably a lot more.
DOES THE XXXXXX JOURNAL ACCURATELY AND FAIRLY REPORT THE HEROIN PROBLEM IN THIS TOWN?
I think it does exaggerate a lot of things in there. In the court section it doesn't say 'this is what the drug is,' 'this is the addictive nature of it' or 'this is how it brings people down.' People just read it and go 'oh no, not another smackhead, send them down.' Just because someone throws a syringe on a playing field it doesn't mean that everybody does that.
IS THERE A PANIC IN THIS TOWN SURROUNDING HEROIN ABUSE?
Yes there is, because of the way people put things in papers, the way people hear about heroin. When I stopped taking it and banned it from the house, my half brother went round to the field at the back of the house and had a jab and left his needle their. As we said before, it doesn't mean that all addicts are like that, but other people look on things like 'oh yeah, we found needles so every dirty heroin addict is like that.'
HOW DO YOU SEE THE PROBLEM BEING OVERCOME?
Me myself, I did it with a few DFs, but I realized that the cluck wasn't so bad. But a lot of people who are on it don't want to come off it. . .such problems would be overcome if their was a detox centre in this town. Instead of punishment and prison, offer them help.
WOULD YOU THEN SAY THAT SOCIETY IS MISINFORMED ABOUT HEROIN?
I would in some ways. There are some meetings that parents can go to up at the Earlsfield Youth Centre-but there should be more meetings, and not just for parents. There should be meetings for heroin addicts.
WHILST A HEROIN ADDICT, DID YOU FEEL EXCLUDED FROM THE 'NORMAL' POPULATION?
While I was an addict I was self-enclosed myself. My real brother disowned me; he wanted nothing to do with me. I was frauding the benefits office for more money, and the only person I did have was my mother because she didn't really know I was on it. When I did become clean my real brother accepted me again and helped me to stay off it.
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