Disapproving

I DON’T approve of the article on page 11 (Berwick News, 15 January), ‘Eaten Alive’.
In my opinion the last six lines of the article glamourises the use of methamphetamine (ice) and doesn’t give illicit drug users a suggested pathway to rehabilitate. The case study says he has recovered, but in no way says how. I imagine he did rehab, counselling and possibly narcotics anonymous. Other drug users will be drawn to reading this article but you offer no helpful solutions for them.
The last six lines of the article, in my opinion, make ice sound like something you might want to try.
Lastly, meth users never beat their addiction. Instead they become clean from drug use. They will always be addicted to meth. The chemistry in their brain has been changed by using meth. This is a concept non-addicts often don’t understand, but easier terminology for the general population is “the drug user is now no longer using and is following a program of recovery”.
The 12-step program of recovery at Narcotics Anonymous is an excellent program of ongoing support for addicts and recovering addicts. In your article also it’s good to use a few names for the drug not just “ice.” Ice, shard and meth are some of the street names that kids will be offered, it’s good if they know what they are being offered, education is a big part of the solution.
Meth addiction is a vicious problem we have in our society and is growing at a frightening rate. It needs to be approached by the media by providing tools to assist in solving it.
Helena Gallant,
Kooweerup Secondary College.