kaidie77

I have a 24 year old cousin who has used drugs for years. Last spring she went to rehab for an Oxycontin addiction (she smoked it). She was kicked out after 2 weeks and my aunt/uncle and grandmother continued to enable her. In the last few months she has been arrested 6 times for mostly minor offenses (theft 3, paraphernelia). I hadn't seen her in over 18 months since I didn't want her around my kids, but my Mom and I stopped by her mom's house the other day. We knew my aunt was out of town and suspected she would be there. Before she came to the door we watched her through the window as she walked to the kitchen counter and hid sheets of tinfoil that were layed out, in a drawer. This is how she smoked Oxy so I assumed that's what she was doing. There was a torch style lighter and hollowed out pens laying on the counter when we came in and the house smelled like smoke (not cigs or pot, something unfamiliar). When I asked her about the Oxy her friend yelled from upstairs that it wasn't Oxy it was Heroin. My cousin admitted that she had been doing it, but claimed she stopped 2 weeks before. As much as I want to believe her, I don't. Unlike some of my family members, t's been a really long time since I have believed anything that she says. We also found out that she was arrested for meth and heroin possession just weeks earlier. So, my question... is it possible to use heroin and/or meth recreationally? We want to do an intervention, regardless, but I want to get a better idea of what we are dealing with. If you have experience in this area I would really appreciate your thoughts. Thanks so much.

dollydo

There is only one word that comes to my mind: No

Welcome, others will be here to support you. Keep posting, it will help.

keepinon

ummm possible for little while..but what you're describing is 100% not recreational use.case closed

hello-kitty

Reread your post. That's what you are dealing with. She's stealing. She's been to jail. She was just arrested for possession. And she had the dope right there and she denies using it?! ha. That's a good one. Did you believe her?

No. Nope. Nada. She has a serious problem and she doesn't sound the least bit interested in getting help for it. Yet.

Hide your wallet. Stay away from her.

Kjell

I used to smoke meth. It's very, very dangerous and additive. When I wasn't using a pipe, I'd use tin foil, hollowed out pens, and a lighter or torch lighter. That smoke you smelled was meth.

I'm sorry. PM me if I can help (off meth for a long time and alcohol free for 11 months).

Live

Let's see...

I open my Thursday newspaper to check out events, scheduled entertainment and recreation...

"a weekend of heroin" phone 555-1111 for tickets, main event 7pm-4am, opening act meth 3pm-3am"

absurd, right?

Freedom1990

She went to rehab last spring and was kicked out after 2 weeks.

She wasn't ready.

Now she's doing heroin and meth, and has been arrested multiple times.

She's still not ready.

She has the perfect enablers where she's currently living.

I speak as a long-term (20 years) recovering meth addict.

I also speak as the mother of an addict.

I also speak as the ex-wife of a meth addict who is now dead.

Kindeyes

Kaidie
Welcome to SR.......but again....I am sorry for the circumstances that bring us all together.

My son is addicted to meth and has dabbled in heroin. His declared DOC is meth. Sometimes it's a little hard to tell if someone is on meth initially....they can be in such a remarkably good mood, excited even, energetic.....intense. As they come down they become miserable and angry and are generally pretty unpleasant. At least this is my experience with my AS. His once hollywood handsome face is pocked with scars that look like he had a bad case of acne (which he never had) and has new scabs all over it where he has dug at his skin. Meth or heroin......they are both terrible drugs and trying to get her into treatment is a good goal.

Personally, I don't think that someone can "dabble" in meth or heroin for long before it has it's ugly grip on them.

I hope you, your family, your aunt & uncle and grandmother will do what they can to learn as much as they can about drugs, addiction and co-dependence.

Stick around SR. There is so much great information here and people who have been dealing with the issues surrounding addiction for many years. You'll see a lot of slogans used a lot that help us deal with our co-dependence and understand addiction. Everyone here has a lot of wisdom and experience to share with you.

gentle hugs

kaidie77

Thank you everyone for your responses... and for putting it into perspective LIVE. I obvioiusly know she is in trouble, but it's hard to accept that it really could be this bad. I had my share of experimenting in high school, but not once did I consider Heroin or Meth. To me, you have to be in a very dark place in your life to try either of these drugs. This is why we want to do an intervention. Her "friends" are around to get high, not because they care about her life. The recent information that she is doing Heroin and Meth has been a sober reality for all of us, but especially for those who have enabled her. We are gravely concerned and frightened for her life and to us, intervening is not optional. We are not going to let her go without trying to reach her first. If she rejects our help, then we have no choice but to cut her out.

Freedom1990

You obviously are a very caring and concerned person, dear.

All I suggest is have no expectations with the intervention.

She may reject the help.

I can tell you if she does complete rehab, but returns to the same enabling environment, including living with her mother, long-term recovery probably won't happen.

Keeping all of you in my prayers, and please do continue posting, okay?

coffeedrinker

i want to welcome you to sober recovery, kaidie.

you have a lot of questions, and some of the answers will come to you. unfortunately, they never come as quickly as we want them to.

this is a great site. we're open 24/7, we have a lot of experience and strength, and there is no limit on posting.

personally, if you were to ask me what you should do, i'd say take a gigantic step backwards. there is nothing you can do right now for your cousin. she's in the grip, and it doesn't sound as though she's come to terms with the state she's in.

Desertrose

From my experience, meth is bad, bad. No recreation to it.

myernie

I am new to all this and just learning about meth (my BF DOC) but everything I have read show that it is bad, bad, bad. Why someone would put this in their body I do not understand.

Welcome to SR, I am sure you will find a lot of helpful information.

hello-kitty

Intervention is more for the family than it is for the addict. I think it's a great idea if it helps you get to a place where you can set serious boundaries for the kind of behavior you will accept in your life and follow through on them.

Please work with professionals when you do your intervention. Otherwise you can just exacerbate the situation.

kaidie77

Thank you all so much... I really appreciate you sharing your thoughts and offering advice. We did a family intervention for my cousin and she (reluctantly at first) agreed to treatment. She will be at an all-women facility for 28 days and I am very hopeful that it will work for her. Each and every one of our family members read letters to her and we all had the same bottom line: If she does not get treatment and stay sober she can no longer be a part of our lives. As heartbreaking as that is we will have no choice to let her go. We clearly have a very long road ahead of us and as hopeful as I am, I worry that she will eventually go back to her old life. It's all she knows and letting that go will be an extremely difficult challenge for her. For now though, we are taking it one day at a time. If she truly makes an effort I will encourage her and support her through this. Only time will tell.

wicked

It is difficult.
You must stick to your bottom lines, kaidie77.
Get help for yourself and let go of the outcome.
It took me years to get to this place.
It looks like you are hopeful, but realistic.
The only way to go.

Beth

AmandaB

My husband was a coke addict, then got into meth, and is now on alcohol. Meth is a killer, it is never only recreational. It is evil. she will only get better when she wants to and whatever you do it will not change it.

Tomorrow is my birthday and I am going to spend it with a divorce lawyer. I can do nothing for him anymore.

Be strong and don't try to help her. it won't work.
x

Sunshine2

I never get how any drug can be recreational. Playing tennis is recreational. Going to the movies is recreational. Going to the beach is recreational. Having a dinner party for friends is recreational. Taking drugs? No, no, no!