Drug addiction is a monster living within us and it is feeding on our complacency and ignorance. It was previously referred to as a menace. However, it is more than just a menace now as its severity is snuffing life out of our younger generations. The scourge is so deep-seated and severe that children as young as ten years are getting addicted to some of the worst drugs available.
The doctors involved in the treatment and rehabilitation of drug addicts in Kashmir are painting a really grim picture. The introduction of heroin remains the most horrifying aspect as doctors now warn they are witnessing an alarming increase in the number of heroin addicts. In most cases, the person addicted to the drug faces imminent and miserable death.
There is already an increase in the number of deaths of teenagers and young men caused by heroin overdoses and addiction. The cause of these deaths, however, are being concealed and camouflaged as natural deaths or heart attacks. Instead of creating a worry among the society, the concealment of the cause of heroin-related deaths is further feeding the ignorance and allowing the monster to hide and grow.
Doctors treating drug addicts say they would earlier find two out of ten patients who were addicted to heroin while others were addicted to comparatively benign cannabis. Now, they say, almost 90 percent of the patients are addicted to heroin. Senior doctors warn that the introduction of heroin in a society sounds its death knell.
Most of those addicted to drugs, including the lethal heroin, are from a tender and fragile age group, though addiction is also prevalent in older age groups. These addicts come from all sections of the society: the affluent and the poor, the educated and the illiterate. While the reasons for their addiction vary, the implications are dreadful.
The signs of addiction are for everyone to see. These signs can be sensed by everyone who has an interaction with an addict – whether it is the family members or the school staff or friends and relatives. An early intervention, before the addiction becomes severe and rehabilitation difficult or even impossible, can serve as a telling deterrent. If there is a careful monitoring of these early signs, friends, families and others can save children from an imminent death.
Families should monitor their children, no matter how much trust they place in them or how much innocence they see in them. The drug abuse causes noticeable lifestyle and behavioral changes, which are not hard to miss. The families should also regularly look for signs of needle marks on the arms of their children as heroin and other lethal forms of drugs are consumed via syringes. Other physical signs, not hard to miss, include dry mouth, flushed skin, constricted pupils, sudden sleep, slow breathing and loss of self-control.
Doctors treating the cases of drug addictions are projecting the number of addicts visiting the hospital as ‘tip of the ice berg’ as only the most extreme cases come under treatment. There is a warning already that this iceberg of addiction remains hidden in the society. The monster of drug-addiction can be living inside our houses and feeding on our complacency and failure to identify it.
There is a multi-pronged approach needed to save our children and young generations from miserable lives and deaths. For this approach, all sections of the society need to come forward. Every little bit is going to matter.
The first responsibility lies with the families, which have to be sensitive towards the lives of children and should also carefully monitor any behavioral changes in them. Teenage factors could be a cause of behavioral changes, but it could also be a sign of the worst which should not be ignored. A more interactive atmosphere within families will go a long way in saving lives.
The second stage of the responsibility lies with schools and colleges, and also tuition centers, the latter remaining out of the fold of management rules even as teenagers spend a considerable amount of their time at these institutions. The schools, colleges and tuition centers should adopt modern and scientific approach, utilize services of consultants and therapists, which will help in creating awareness and identifying vulnerable individuals who may be at risk of addiction.
The third stage of responsibility lies with the administration. The administration has to increase its focus on rackets, gangs and individuals involved in the smuggling and distribution of drugs, specifically heroin. The first step in this direction can be accessing information through drug addicts. The information provided by them about the peddlers can prove a milestone in breaking the networks. It will also discourage potential peddlers.
The administration should also make effective use of the NDPS Act and impose stricter clauses of the law . While the patients suffering from drug addiction need to be rehabilitated back into a normal life, there is an urgency to fight those who are pushing the lives of young men and women into darkness. The data emerging from the health institutions is a wake-up call. The number of patients addicted to lethal drugs has registered a massive increase. There is still some time left before this monstrous affair becomes an irreversible process. What is needed is a concerted effort from the level of family right up to that of the administration.
