Aim for recovery

QATHET'S WISDOM ON THE OPIOID CRISIS

BY DOUG LOVE

Being the parent of a deceased child of drug addiction makes me no wiser on the subject at hand although like very many others, I can see some of the obvious issues out there.

When the government announced additional funding via CERB for the COVID-19 pandemic a couple years back, I immediately saw the red flags start to fly. I do know that giving people with addiction problems excess funds is like throwing gas on a fire and it showed almost immediately as the overdose fatality toll rose quickly, sadly surpassing previous drug related death records by large numbers.

And before the chants of ‘good riddance’ come booming through, please try to keep in mind that those people are not just statistics but sons and daughters of parents that still do love them, despite how much they hate the lives they are living. They are not proud of them, many are embarrassed and disgusted by their actions. They hate seeing them like this, but deep down inside they remember the ‘child that once was’ and they just keep hoping that one day...

It is obvious that the system is failing everyone, not just the addicts that need help. Crime is rising, more addicts are appearing, more accidental deaths are occurring and there is no visible end in sight.

It would certainly appear that the current government assistance programs (while perhaps helping somewhat) certainly aren’t causing any noticeable decline in the problem and need a revamping.

I feel that we need multi-level steps to help addicts out of their situations. More detox beds, quicker access to different levels of help.

Shoving someone into a three month recovery program and then tossing them out onto the street afterwards with no support is like filling a bucket that has a hole in it with water and wondering what happened when you see it is empty. Holes in the system cause problems, we know that. There needs to be access to multi-level continuous support for people that want and need it. Not just financial, but mental and physical help as well, the latter two perhaps even more so.

When someone cleans up, they are out there alone. The clean/healthy people are still leery (rightly so) and not comfortable in being with the ‘clean addict’ yet and the ‘unhealthy’ friends are thrilled to welcome them back with open arms into the hell they just climbed out of. With that kind of magnet pulling on you, you really need some strength to hold on, many can’t do it. Without follow-up structure, the odds of success are overwhelmingly sad. Remember when you quit smoking? How many tries did it take you before you beat it?

Bottom line – it’s a mess and needs some serious attention from all channels before it gets worse, because it will.

It’s a sad and challenging time we are living in and if we all try to focus on making it better in some little way or another, perhaps we can get things to change. I know I try my best each day to be who I should be… even when it’s difficult, because it’s the right thing to do.