Drug addicts are difficult to assess sometimes, and therefore it may be helpful to have an interview with one and ask their own opinion of the situation. Here we go:
What do you find to be the most difficult part of being a drug addict?
Well, I think that it is important to always be independent, but I’m not really independent when I have this problem. I need the drugs, and when I don’t have them, then my whole world falls apart. It’s like always needing to have oxygen, but having to pay for the oxygen you breathe.
Why did you become involved with drugs in the first place?
Well, it was really a matter of being stressed out all of the time, and when I couldn’t handle it for long periods of time at a time, then I became more involved with things which made me feel better. I started out with alcohol, but then that eventually led to drugs.
Have you tried to use any rehabilitative programs?
Yeah, I’ve been in rehab quite a bit, but I just couldn’t make it stick. With rehab, you have to take responsibility for everything you’ve ever done while under the influence, and while I could definitely get to a point where I could do without the drugs after I’d gone through withdrawal, I couldn’t handle taking care of myself or dealing with my past mistakes on top of that, too.
What would happen if you just tried to do a partial rehabilitation?
Well, I’d probably be okay at it, but it’s a lot easier to just go back to the drug and let it take care of me. I’m not one for creating extra stress for myself if I don’t have to. Also, I think that’s the same viewpoint that a lot of people or addicts have.
Have you found that drug abuse has changed you at all as a person?
Yeah, I found that I don’t remember what my old personalities used to be like. Old friends and people who have known me for years, if I run across one of them now, they tell me that I’m completely different.
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