Methamphetamine does not discriminate.
I am sure we all know someone that has been affected by the drug in one way or another.
I remember speaking to a policeman about six months ago, who told me he was shocked by some people that tested positive to the drug during random road side tests. He said many people he encountered were not be the kind you would expect to be addicted to drugs.
I was talking to someone about it recently and they said it was ‘old news’.
I get what they are saying – that the government and community are aware of the issue it causes and the extraordinary amount that is on our streets.
But by no means is it old news when people are still losing family members to the addictive drug.
Or have friends that suddenly disappear off the face of the earth, only to later appear again after a ‘meth bender’.
If you are not aware of the prominence of meth in the community, sit in on an average day at the local courthouse.
The court is clogged with drug driving offences and meth related crime.
This is why it is great when the community embraces drug rehabilitation programs, such as the new Holyoake specialised methamphetamine service in Northam.
I spoke to a woman who was receiving treatment there recently. To me, she seemed like an ordinary person.
Kind, attentive and funny.
Surprisingly, she had only been off the drug for five months and prior to this she had taken it everyday for 20 years.
She opened up about her rehabilitation experience with me, which can be read on page 9. I really wish her the best on her journey.
Fresh Start clients were cooking a sausage sizzle at the Turn Up in Blue Day event last week.
You can read about the event on page 4 and see pictures on page 12.
They do a great job around the town with volunteering.
Fresh Start program co-ordinator David Gunter nailed it on the head earlier this year in an article, when he said any town with a drug and alcohol rehab centre would have to overcome hurdles, because people do not quite understand addiction.
“At the end of the day we all suffer pain, but their outlet is different – now they are trying to do something about it,” he said.