Ice Addiction in Perth - My Story - Hope Rehab Center Thailand

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Ice Addiction in Perth – My Story

by Jason

My Life Before Addiction

Growing up in Perth my childhood started off happily. I enjoyed school, was a keen sportsman and had lots of support around me. However one day my father walked out on us and to this day I haven’t seen him – I have been very angry with him for abandoning us. Luckily I had a dedicated mother and my grandparents so I never wanted for anything.

Up til the age of 18, graduation year, I had a normal, fun, happy childhood. In 2005 I was introduced to crystal meth. I never touched heroin because of all the horror stories I heard as a young boy in the mid to late 90’s. But I never heard about meth.

My Introduction to Meth

At the time it was called rock or ice. I was already smoking marijuana and drinking so I thought why not? It felt incredible. I felt invincible. I was alert, sociable, could stay awake and party all night – Methamphetamine totally numbed all feelings of inadequacy. After a while my cravings and need for the drug become so over-powering I found myself stealing money from my mother – A rotten horrible thing it is to be a bad son. I am so ashamed.

One day an acquaintance offered me a large amount of pure methamphetamine at a cheap rate. I grabbed the opportunity. I was tired of struggling to pay for my drugs so I became the addict turned drug dealer.

The Impact of Addiction

I lost friends, friends who didn’t want to stick around while I destroyed myself, friends who I pushed away because of their concern for me. Over time my friends who I loved and cared for were replaced by fellow addicts, people pretending to be my friend to get to the drugs. Over the last few years I lost friends to drug related violence, overdoses and suicide, never occurring to me that I could be next. Such is the drugs power to instill a false sense of invincibility.

Escaping Addiction in Thailand

Finally I reached out to my mum and she took me in. We found Hope Rehab Centre in Thailand. Thanks to my mum, I was able to be treated at this wonderful place for 3 months. A place that gave me a sense of safety I hadn’t felt in years. A place free of judgement, only understanding and the place where I found myself again. The person I am today without drugs.

The glorification of crime and drugs that has been spawned from the film industry ie Underbelly, has had an effect on my generation and the next. To dismiss this is ignorance.

The mining boom has served as a massive foundation for this drug culture to grow, with high wages available to young unskilled workers resulting in more disposable income, the work hard play hard system does not help matters either.

Drinking to excess is now a precursor for the majority of young people. The Perth drug scene is awash with methamphetamine, it’s becoming a right of passage these days.
However, this drug does not discriminate either. I sold to lawyers, business owners, ceo’s, accountants, sports figures, fathers, mothers wives, husbands. I’m not proud of it, my story has no glory or glamour to it. I want my story to help people, to show that there is a way out of a hell where I turned to the devil.

When my mother and I searched for treatment options, the severe lack of help was demoralizing. We felt so alone with this. There was only help in Australia if you could afford to pay $30,000 a month. Thankfully we found Hope Rehab Thailand which does not cost a fortune and is a real adventure.

I will never be able to thank Hope and the team enough, my Mum has her son back and I have my life back, I am 1 year clean and back at work. I would not trade the worse day of recovery for the best day of my using.

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