Addiction to Drugs/drug abuse

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Expert: Gareth Stubbs - 6/10/2009


Question
A friend of mine down the road where i stay has been taking drugs for quite a long time and recently came to me for help and i want to assist .what advice should i give her him/her?what treatment options should i provide him/her and what necessary contact numbers should i give?

Answer
Hey Thato,

Well done for being there for your friend right now because that is something that they really need - a person who can help them along the way.

My best advise to you would be to look up where you can find an NA (Narcotics Anonymous) meeting and go along to one of them with your friend. Here you will meet many addicts in different phases of recovery and they will also be able to let you know the best treatment options in the area that you are in.

I see that you are from South Africa, and I have a number of friends who went to a place in Cape Town called Stepping Stones, and it was one of the centres that I looked into going to (I ended up doing my recovery through a hospital as in Zimbabwe we did not have that much access to currency and the like so it was bit out of my reach) but if you contact them, they could also put you in touch with other places that can help, which is what they did with me.

Those are the processes that I took when I decided that enough was enough, and some years later, I am glad that I took them because I know that I would not be around today to help out here.

Good luck and let me know if you need any more help or advice, or even just someone to talk to

Gareth

Addiction to Drugs

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Gareth Stubbs

Expertise

Given that I am not a “medical professional” I cannot answer questions on medication and the like, however, I can offer my experiences thereon. I am able to offer answers to questions on the effects of most drugs (street and prescription) as well as advice regarding halting the use of and recovery from active addiction, which plays a very important role in the recovery process as well addressing underlying issues and reasons as to why drugs and the like are abused. I am also able to address any questions regarding dealing with depression, suicide and self-harming, recovery from these and advice on creating a different lifestyle without these afflictions. I can also answer questions from families, friends and partners of drug users and depressed persons, and in addition to this, I have a very good understanding of the 12-step recovery program.

Experience

With a long history of severe clinical depression, self-harming and substance abuse (since the age of 12) I “successfully” managed to lose all that I owned (marriage, home, children) as a result of suicide attempts, numerous hospital visits and severe drug use for 18 years, ranging from street to prescription drugs. I am now about to enter my 8th year free from substance and depression and my 4th year free from cutting myself. I know what it is like to be suicidal and in the grips of active addiction and self harm, how difficult it appears to reach out to people for help, and at the same time, I know how I managed to free myself from the lifestyle and how I continue to create a happy life without the use of medication and constant therapy and the like

Education/Credentials
Life Change Consulting, Master Practitioner of NLP, Advanced Neurological Repatterning, Ericksonian Hypnosis, Master Hypnosis, Performance Consultant, Master Result Coach, as well as a Masters Degree in Life Experience.

Past/Present Clients
Have spoken to school and groups (ages 12-16), ranging in size from 50 to 200 attendees at a time, as well as speaking to parents of school children. Have also worked one-on-one with young adults with successful and continuing results. Currently working on creating and presenting a development program encompassing all areas of change in lifestyle, as well as a magazine and book publication.

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