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  • It's a Long & Tough Road to Recovery

It's a Long & Tough Road to Recovery

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Hits: 1677
25 January 2010
By Bella Jaisinghani
Mumbai, India

A rehab facility attached to the Mt Carmel Church in Bandra offers help to a special breed of lost souls. It is here that Fr Joe Pereira helms one of the major centres for recovering drug addicts in the city, the Kripa Foundation. Apart from making them undergo the routine detoxification programme that may involve medication, Fr Pereira points to several addicts, including the new breed of struggling television actors, who have come back from the brink after putting them through yoga therapy.

Not that the entire medical fraternity agrees with his methods. But one point where all the people working in this field come together is that sustained professional help is a must for those who wish to not only come out but stay out of addiction. Achieving sobriety is easy, remaining sober is the tough part.

In fact doctors and psychiatrists seldom differentiate between different kinds of substance abuse. “Be it drugs or alcohol, each has the potential to kill, only drugs will do the job in two years that alcohol would in ten,” says Dr R N Jerajani, consulting psychiatrist and founder member of Kripa, who helped devise the institution’s rehab model.

The doctor now runs an independent practice. He points to 43-year-old Manoj who has managed to pull himself up from the hazy blur his life had become when he fell prey to drug addiction at the age of 15. The son of a well-to-do family, Manoj has been sober for 24 years and still believes the cure comes one day at a time. “Like cancer, addiction is a disease that hits people from all backgrounds. And like cancer, you have to seek help before it is too late and find yourself hitting the dead end at Tata Memorial Hospital,” says the survivor who underwent the Fellowship of the Narcotics Anonymous programme at age 20.”

Another recovering addict, Akshay, who has been in Fr Pereira’s rehab programme for three months, is just beginning to assess his situation. What prodded the Satara native on the route to experimentation was the high that party drugs gave him-and the false feeling that he was in control.

Akshay found himself unable to conquer the demons in his head that soon compelled him to beg, borrow and steal to fund his addiction. “Like all addicts I did not realise when the recreational use of drugs in the company of friends got out of hand. At first, I would consume at parties where substances happened to be available, then wait for these parties, then organise such events. At each step my threshold of tolerance began to heighten.”

Over time, his professional and family life came apart at the seams. “I had received an interview call for a prestigious government job in Mumbai,” says the out-of-towner. “The night before leaving, I hosted a party where I got stoned and missed my interview.” The time Akshay did actually come to Mumbai was to attend the deaddiction programme. The route to recovery calls for painful and sustained effort. The route to recovery calls for painful and sustained effort. Fr Pereira says severe withdrawals have been known to cause death.

Such cases rarely make it to public view, unlike instances of accidental overdose like the recent one at Goa’s Sunburn music festival. “Do you know that the success rate for rehab the world over is about 20%?’ asks Manoj “An addiction is bigger than the self. When people say you lack the willpower to overcome your situation, they are naively underestimating the power of a rare disease that can defeat all willpower. One has to seek professional help.”

Disclaimer: The news story on this page is the copyright of the cited publication. This has been reproduced here for visitors to review, comment on and discuss. This is in keeping with the principle of ‘Fair dealing’ or ‘Fair use’. Visitors may click on the publication name, in the news story, to visit the original article as it appears on the publication’s website.

Source: Times of India

News Year 2010

  • Good Counsellors Transform Addicts’ Lives
  • Think Before You Drink
  • Stop Using Tobacco Products, Betel Nut
  • Second-Hand Smoking Kills 6L People Annually: WHO Study
  • India Ranks A Lowly 100 In Campaign Against Tobacco
  • High Spirits Drive Them Into Danger Zone
  • City Getting High On Cocaine
  • Drunk Driving Can Cost You as Much as 6,000
  • Binge Drinking Makes Men Impulsive
  • Passive Smokers Suffer For no Fault Of Theirs, Enforce Ban: HC
  • Women Smokers Have High Risk Of Getting Brain Stroke
  • Smoking Doubles Risk Of Dementia
  • Kerala To Consider Using Liquor Revenue To Help Alcohol Victims
  • Chain Smoker Or A Controlled One? It's In Your DNA
  • Now, State Gets High On Ganja Chocolates
  • Why Not Ban Gutka Sachets, SC Asks Centre
  • 29 Per Cent Indians Exposed To Second-hand Smoke Outside Home
  • ‘Average Age Of Tobacco Users 17.8 Years’
  • 275 Million Hooked To Tobacco: Survey
  • Teens In High Spirits
  • Alcohol Intake Among Teens On The Rise
  • Stiff Fines In New Excise Act
  • One Of Every 100 Patnaites A Drug Addict
  • 25% Of Liver Failures Occur Due To Alcohol Consumption
  • Harm-reduction strategies proving successful
  • Smoking Ban Goes Up In Smoke
  • Helping E-addicts Sign Out
  • In Gujarat Bank, A Higher Loan Rate For Tobacco Addicts
  • ‘Youngsters Prefer Chewing Tobacco To Taking A Puff’
  • Cancer Patients Want More ‘Realistic’ Warnings On Tobacco Packets
  • Nine-Member Drug Peddler Gang Nabbed
  • Punjab Bans Sale Of Tobacco Products Near Schools
  • Anti-liquor Movement Has No Takers In Urban Areas
  • A GenX Fighter Against Addiction
  • Drug Peddler In Police Net
  • Rape Victims Taken For De-addiction
  • Say No To That First Puff: Doctors To Bring Out Short Film To Educate Teenagers
  • Smoking Can Lead To Spinal Disorders Too
  • Drug That Helps Prevent Relapse In Alcoholics Effectively
  • Postman Among 4 Held For Smuggling Ganja Through Parcels
  • City Turning Into Transit Point For Drug Smuggling
  • Heroin Worth Rs 4cr Seized In Dadri, 4 Held
  • How Drug Abuse Robs Lasting Pleasures
  • Narcotics Gang Busted, Rs 10L Worth Heroin Seized
  • High On Haze: Drugs And The City Campaigns, Impotency Fear Drive Youth Away From Gutkha
  • Sale Of Liquor Has Doubled In Two Years
  • De-addiction: Women Recover Faster Than Men
  • Drug Trade Shows No Signs Of Abating
  • Average age of addicts 34, down 4 in 2 yrs: Muktangan sources
  • `Eyeing Revenue, Govt Helping Alcoholism'
  • Alcoholics: Age Bracket Dips, With Money To Burn
  • Pakistani Among 3 Held With Heroin Worth Rs 10 Crore
  • City A Safe Haven For Drug Peddlers
  • Customs Man, 6 Others Held For Selling Heroin
  • Muktangan Centre Celebrates Silver Jubilee
  • 'Liquor Policy Promotes Addiction'
  • Hearing Impaired Band Strikes Right Chord
  • International Drug Cartel Busted, 8 Foreigners Held
  • Giving Up Smoking Ups Sex Life
  • Big Catch
  • ‘Beer Raises Risk Of Skin Disease In Women By 70%'
  • New Study Shows Fourfold Increase In Substance Abuse Treatment Admissions Involving Non-Medical Use of Prescription Narcotic Pain Relievers In Ten Year Period (1998-2008)
  • Excessive Drinking Can Cause Osteoporosis, Says Expert
  • Film Producer In The Dock
  • Hooked to Hookah?
  • Kick the stick!
  • Tollywood Hooked To Heady ‘stuff’
  • Narcotics Cell Nabs 4, Seizes 272 kg Ganja
  • Heroin Worth Rs 25 cr Seized From Car
  • Smoking ‘Influences Gene Function’
  • Desperate Addicts In Africa Inject Other’s Blood
  • Fatal Addiction
  • Mums’ Booze Binges Cause Disorders In Kids
  • African Drug Peddlers Held
  • Ladakhis Cancel Music Fest Over Alcohol Fears
  • Cancer Catches Them Young
  • Seeing Movies Increases Tobacco Intake
  • Two Nigerians in the Net for Selling Drugs
  • ‘Bail Ok For Carrying Small Drugs Cache’
  • Socking Story In City Temples
  • Illicit Drugs Get a Kick from 'Jhatka'
  • Punjab to Set Up 20 More De-Addiction Centres
  • Internet Addiction, Feel Experts, can Cause People to Become More Impulsive, Impatient and Even Narcissistic
  • India Plans New Policy To Stop Drug Abuse
  • Love Life, Not Drugs: Awachat's Message to the Youth
  • Awareness Camp Held to Mark International Drug Abuse Day
  • Drug Trade: State a Major Transit Point
  • International Day Against Drug Abuse
  • Hide And Go Seek!
  • Try Deaddiction, it Works
  • After 7-yr 'Fun', this Addict Found a Way Out
  • Parenting Style Can Prevent Heavy Drinking
  • Most Women Drug Abusers Below 20 Years
  • Smoking And Alcohol Intake To Blame For Absenteeism
  • Puberty Linked To Sleep Disorders, Alcohol Abuse
  • Govt In A Spot Over Tobacco Meeting
  • Cops Step Up Action Against Drunk Drivers
  • Draft De-addiction Policy To Be Announced Soon
  • 'Alcoholics Are Not Most Deserving For Diver Transplant'
  • Bhutan to Ban Tobacco Sale Again
  • Quitting Smoking Before Pregnancy Could Save Babies Lives
  • Post Accident, 3-Year-Old Takes To Smoking, Drinking
  • Hookah Smoking Not So Harmful? Wrong
  • Three Drug Cartels Busted, Charas Worth Rs 1cr Seized
  • Alcohol Use, Smoking, Coffee Drinking, Linked To Migraines In Teens
  • At 75, Alcoholics Anonymous Plans Poster Exhibition, Meetings
  • Liquor-hit Bank On Aphrodisiac Boost
  • Supervised Use Of Heroin Keeps Addicts Clean
  • No Smoking Zones? Study Finds High Nicotine Levels In Schools, Hospitals
  • Beware! Smoker's Kiss Can Be Deadly
  • Not Passive Air Nicotine Monitor To Gauge What Smokers Leave Behind
  • Police Crack Down On Tobacco Sellers
  • '8% Girls Under 15 Consume Tobacco'
  • Survey Takes Stock Of Docs Who Smoke
  • Read The Smoke Signals
  • New De-Addiction Programme
  • Plans Go up In Smoke
  • Tobacco Addiction Ruins Sex Life: experts
  • $5 Million Grant for Tobacco Control Programme
  • 'No Tobacco Day' at Ahmedabad Medical Association
  • Former Addicts Advocate Self-Control, Firm Faith
  • More People Willing to Stub the Stick: Docs
  • Kids, Adolescents take to Tobacco
  • Women Smokers Gamble with Life
  • Surge in Women Smokers a Cause for Worry for Medical Fraternity
  • World No Tobacco Day Focusing on Women Smokers
  • Study Triggers Smoke Alarm for BPOs
  • A Dubious High for 'Spirited' Women in India's Cities
  • Nation's Health at Risk from Cheap Alcohol
  • Anti-Tobacco Campaign: Kwant Villagers Raze Gutkha Shops
  • 2 de-addiction centres face heat of police probe
  • Stage Shows Spread the Message Against Drugs
  • On The Anvil: Legal Age For Drinking And Purchasing Alcohol To Go Up From 21 To 25
  • Loneliness, Stress Driving Women to Hit the Bottle
  • Substance Abuse in Minors a Worry
  • Gathering urges help, compassion for addicts - Daily Star - Lebanon
  • Shisha 'as Bad as Ciggies'
  • Four Bad Habits Add 12 Years to your Age
  • Lethal Insomnia Drug Plays Havoc with Lives of Techies
  • Govt Stops Beer Sales in Department Stores
  • Genes influence smoking addiction: study - Sydney Morning Herald
  • American college students show drug-like addiction to gadgets and media - Geek.com
  • Study: Prescription Heroin Curbs Addiction, Crime - AHN | All Headline News
  • Canada's largest mental-health centre to ban smoking on property - Globe and Mail
  • Smoking will not make you slim - Sify
  • Stop making habit-forming drugs, govt asked - Times of India
  • Sidon seminar highlights dangers of drug use - Daily Star - Lebanon
  • Now's not the time to turn back on addiction treatment - The Dominion Post
  • From success to addiction to integrity - Hickory Daily Record
  • Non-Smokers Gain More Weight than Smokers
  • Smoking doesn't help in losing weight - Times of India
  • Record number of 'legal high' drugs emerge across EU - BBC News
  • Abbotsford addiction counsellors say drug dealers targeting young kids - News1130
  • Boozing May Lead to Premature Ageing
  • NIH unveils new opioid drug abuse therapy - UPI.com
  • Sex Addiction: Explanation or Excuse? 5 Common Traits - Huffington Post (blog)
  • The Devastating Combination of Psychiatric Illness and Drug Addiction - Psychology Today (blog)
  • Tracking drug addicts to identify, avoid hot spots - CNET
  • More preventive measures needed to curb drug abuse - Kuwait Times
  • Anti-Tobacco Law Enforcement Squads Soon
  • Three Held with 30 kg Ganja
  • Tanning addiction linked to drug abuse, anxiety - CTV.ca
  • New organization established in Azerbaijan to combat drug addiction - Trend News Agency
  • Will Conservative plans to overhaul heroin addiction treatment work? - The Guardian
  • Smoking likened to heroin addiction - BigPond News
  • Tobacco in Candy form Can Lead to Accidental Poisoning in Kids
  • Anti-Tobacco Campaign Launched
  • Man Held for Trying to Plant Drugs
  • Indoor Tanning Addiction Linked to Anxiety, Drug Abuse - WebMD
  • My 'Addiction' To Fighting Drugs - CNBC
  • Research Ushers in New Ray of Hope for Severe Alcoholic Hepatitis Sufferers
  • 'Drug addiction promotes crime, ruins health, lives of people' - Arab Times
  • Project Prevention: Unusual Approach to Dealing with Addiction - TestCountry.com (blog)
  • 'Just say no' approach ineffective at drug addiction prevention - Vancouver Sun
  • Drug addiction a constant battle for some young adults - Junior College
  • Medical rules lead to withdrawal of electronic quit-smoking aid - New Zealand Herald
  • Help for smokers trying to 'STOP' - Northumberland News
  • Depressed Adults Smoke More, Find it Difficult to Quit
  • Smoking ‘Counteracts Moderate Drinking Benefit on Stroke Risk’
  • 400 IMFL Bottles Seized, 1 Arrested
  • Madurai Village to Fine Tipplers
  • Smoking May Up Risk of Multiple Sclerosis
  • A Gene Test to Warn Smokers if They're Heading for Cancer
  • India to Frame Policy for Chewing Tobacco
  • Heroin Users on the Rise in Pearl City
  • Illicit Hooch Kills 9 in UP
  • Mumbai Woman Sold Drugs to Support Family
  • Smoking Lowers IQ
  • 2003 Drug Case: Court Convicts 7, Acquits 6
  • There's a Piggie in Your Ciggie!
  • Tobacco Vendors May Soon Need a Licence
  • 2,500kg Ganja Hidden Inside Oil Tanker Seized
  • Passive Smoking Dangerous for Kids
  • Tobacco Isn’t Cool
  • Liquor Makes Rs 12cr Flow into Government Coffers
  • Even Passive Smoking can Lead to Tuberculosis
  • Reforming Drug Treatment in the US: Two Steps Forward, One Step Back
  • For Indians, Alcohol is Killing
  • Tobacco Gender Bias
  • Overweight Drinkers Face Double Risk of Liver Damage
  • Cop Shields Hooch Seller
  • From June 1, Scarier Picture to Appear on Tobacco Packs
  • State has Highest Number of Registered Drug Addicts
  • Educate People About Illicit Iquor, High Court Tells Cops
  • Seven People Died After Consuming Spurious Liquor
  • Boozers 'Can't Blame Peer Pressure'
  • Study: Nearly One in Ten Gamers Shows Signs of Addiction
  • Desperate Mom Kills Drug-Addict Son
  • More Drug De-Addiction Centres Mooted
  • HC Notice to State, Centre
  • Quitting Smoking Improves Cardiac Health
  • Machines to Help Quit Smoking
  • Prepare Action Plan to Rehabilitate Drug Addicts: HC to Punjab, Haryana
  • It's a Long & Tough Road to Recovery
  • Illegal Drug Trade Scales New Heights
  • 50 Per Cent Drug Users in Nagaland are IDU: Report
  • Alcoholics Anonymous Meet on Sunday
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