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Recovery from Addiction

It's popular these days to say that all of us are addicted to something, in some small way. I hear some people talking about those with 'addictive personalities' too. I'm afraid I don't know much about these things from a sociological or psychological perspective (ask my daughter), but I can say this, there are many people in the world addicted to alcohol or drugs (I suppose the former is actually something to do with the latter), and they need help. My burden is to help those in Central Asia who are addicted to heroin. How can we address this issue? What I have noticed, is this:
  • Heroin and opium are much cheaper and more easily available in Central Asia than in some other parts of the world
  • Because of the collectivist culture where there is a desire to gain social capital and stay connected with one's extended family, if someone becomes a narkoman (drug addict) their family will frequently hide them away, and then provide them with the drug to avoid shame coming on the family
This means it is very easy to become and addict, and once somebody is on that path their family will tend to keep them away from help that might be available (if it exists). 

In the minority world there are often a whole range of options for getting off drugs:
  • Hospitals (run by the government or private)
  • Help centres (often run by volunteers)
  • Drying out centres and clinics - 'rehab'
  • Counselling services
In the majority world these are usually unavailable (drying out centres) or not very good (hospitals), depending which country you are talking about. Therefore what is needed is probably some information to help people know the danger of drug addiction, and some courses that can be run at low cost to help sufferers recover from those addictions. This is a real need, even if not a felt one, and I'm guessing if you talked to any members of the extended families where they have a sufferer at home they would be open to help, once they have overcome the shame of admitting the situation (this requires a deep trust relationship built first before someone will be willing to share). If you work in Central Asia and are willing to help start something up, please contact me by email or place a comment below!
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