Addiction support group remains a shining star for many in Limerick
IT IS a lonely road for those who develop an addiction and endeavour to climb out of that dark hole.
But what is oft forgotten is the effect the addiction has on their loved ones. This is where Northstar Family Support Project comes in.
They support people trying to cope with a family member's substance misuse in the city and county, through education, learning different ways to support the addict and taking care of their own health and wellbeing.
Joe Slattery, co-ordinator of Northstar, said service users have experienced theft of money, physical and mental abuse, exhaustion at helping somebody who doesn't want to be helped.
“There has been drug debt intimidation, with drug dealers contacting family members looking for money. Also, the shame and embarrassment of having a loved one’s pictures in the papers or begging on the streets. This also effects the wider family like uncles, aunts, nieces and nephews. Sometimes the drug user will have children and social work intervention is needed, causing more stress and worry for family members,” said Joe, who began the interview by saying addiction comes in many forms and effects most people.
“I’d go as far as saying we are all addicted to one thing or another. Any activity that activates the pleasure chemical dopamine in the brain has the possibility to cause addiction i.e exercise, food, getting likes on your social media feeds, sex/porn, closing the big contract at work, getting the big story, shopping etc... the list goes on and on,” said Joe.
He says there is still a real stigma towards people and families affected by or trying to deal with substance misuse.
“Because of the stigma involved, people will do everything they can to resolve the problem within the family home before reaching out for support. They could have been dealing with this very stressful situation for a long time before reaching out. It is not uncommon for people to present emotionally exhausted, feeling ashamed and embarrassed that their family is in this situation. Mostly looking for answers on how to fix their family member with little interest in their own self-care.”
Since Northstar, based in John Street in the city, was founded in 2010, how has the spectrum of substance misuse changed?
“Only a very small percentage of the country is actively engaged in heroin or methadone use. This cohort of people get a lot of publicity because the drug has such devastating effect on the user and is very visual in society due to the lack of supervised facilities that will allow people use in a private and safe environment.
“It is my experience that the drugs most abused are cocaine, cannabis and black market street tablets and legal drugs - alcohol, prescription anti-depressants – coined by the Rolling Stones as ‘mother’s little helpers’ – and over the counter tablets with codeine in them.”
Joe says as long as people are hurting in society then drugs will have a market.
“Drugs provide a quick and effective response for people that don’t want to feel or relive difficult experience. The difficulty with this approach is the long-term negative effects far outweigh the short-term positive effects. Tolerance and dependency grow, meaning more drug is needed to provide the same effect. The more chemicals you put in your body the more negative consequences for your mental and physical health.
“Outside this cohort of people, I feel a number of substances commonly known as party drugs have become widely accepted with young adults in Irish society i.e cannabis, cocaine, ecstasy. It is also worth highlighting that not all people who use drugs for recreational use sporadically are at risk of becoming dependent.”
Joe makes the point that alcohol causes more damage to society then all other drugs “combined”. He says it is a mitigating factor in marital breakdowns, driving offences, domestic violence, court appearances and A&E visits.
Covid has caused more people in society to be hurting.
“Now more than ever services like the Northstar are needed. As Covid went on more and more people lost their jobs, their routines, and financial stress causing some people to struggle to find a way to reinvent themselves. Sadly, this has caused some people to drink more as a way of passing the day and the sense of loneliness. The last 18 months have exasperated the issue of drug and alcohol abuse for many people.”
But Joe and his colleagues will endeavour to do everything they can to support families touched by addiction.
The Northstar Family Support Project will host its 12th annual service of commemoration and hope at 7pm on Wednesday, October 20.
The service will be hosted online due to Covid concerns and they hope that past and present participants of their service, partner organisations, families and individuals who have lost loved ones to addiction, will join them.