The saying 'been to hell and back' not only rings true in the life of the crack cocaine addict but moreso in that of the family and close friends of the addict who suffer indescribable hurt from the ravages of the drug in the psyche, mind body and soul of the addict, watching him become a zombie to the drug and losing material values and ones sanity from this insidious enemy.
If these loved ones are not helped they will become the perpetual victims of this addict and suffer irreparable damages to their lives and future. But, the consolation in all this is, you dont have to surrender to hurt, you can arm yourself with the necessary information to prevent you from being that next victim of a crack cocaine addict.
Get the Facts:
Other than marijuana (ganja), crack cocaine is the most widely used drug in the Western Hemisphere. Although called the 'rich man's drug' because of the high cost per dose, it addicts are found in both rich and poor social classes as well as those affected by it.
According to www.wikipedia.com/addiction, In medical terminology, an addiction is a chronic neuro-biological disorder that has genetic, psychosocial, and environmental dimensions and is characterized by one of the following: the continued use of a substance despite its detrimental effects, impaired control over the use of a drug (compulsive behavior), and preoccupation with a drug's use for non-therapeutic purposes (i.e. craving the drug). Addiction is often accompanied by the presence of deviant behaviors such as stealing money to obtain a drug.
It all starts in the BRAIN. The brain is an intricate systems organ that controls all body functions that guide and direct behaviour toward stimuli that are critical to one’s natural survival. When a person takes a psychoactive drug (chemicals that cause a psychological effect) such as crack cocaine, and experiences the effect (that is of reward and reinforcement), the normal brain function that controls perception, mood, consciousness and behavior is altered. What happens is that the drug increases the person's need for the drug by activating the normal circuits in the brain that is responsible for responding to stimuli such as environmental, people, objects etc., to make it respond to the drug as though it were normal the stimuli.
The more often the activity is repeated, the more the brain becomes (re-)wired to respond to these stimuli, which gets stronger with time, causing dependence and even when the person has stopped taking the drug, can relapse from what is called ’cravings’. This is when the brain signals the need for the drug by the most minute of stimuli. This could be from the sight or smell of the drug.
Crack cocaine addiction can quickly happen in the first smoke but can take a lifetime to rid of and in the process can destroy countless lives and untold potentials. Don't become a victim
Think Logically not Emotionally
The crack addict is a master manipulator: he knows how, when, what, what where to say in order to gain the advantage over the targeted person in getting his next fix. He will always manipulate the emotions of love, passion and empathy among others to play on your 'soft spot', towards getting his way.
If you allow your heart to do the thinking instead of the brain, be prepared to suffer the consequences of a fool. [While in a session with a crack addict, he tried to get me to accept his reasoning on a rather emotive issue, but I refused to be trapped by him. In my poignant response, pointed out to him that the body is intricately designed with system orgams that were structure-to-function linked. The brain being one, is made up of grey matter and is responsible for cognitive and sun-caranial functions, the heart on the other hand is comprised of cardiac tissue and plays the role of driving force for the circulation of the living fluid tissue in vessels throughout the body. If, I told him, the roles were confussed, we would be dead in minutes]. That is what will happen if the unsuspecting 'victim' becomes prey to the crack addict.
Always be on the defensive (passively though). Being defensive around a crackie sharpens logical thinking and logical thinking preceeds rational behaviour.
Avoid getting emotionally involved with the addict. Sexual interaction is one of the surest way of getting emotionally involved and as such must be totally avoided at all costs. Because females develop emotional bonds through sex, male addicts use it as the gateway to manipulating her for his selfish exploits, that is getting his next fix. But if you do get involved sexually, an effective barrier protection MUST be used. STIs is a common denominator among crack addicts. The Siegal et al., 1992 research have associated crack cocaine use with high-risk sex, including unprotected sex and sex with multiple partners and one crack addict admitted to me that in his perpetual quest for his next fix, he trades his body when no other resource is available for barter. He further explained that the more risqué the behaviour, the higher the rewards in what is known on the streets as sex-for-crack.
Do Not Give or Lend Money
Money is the most enabling of values. Without money, the crack addict will not have crack. Leaving your handbag or wallet in the sight of the addict is a sure way of courting theft of property. Money, no matter how small is always a a magnet for the junkie.
Lending money to an addict is equal to a bad debt. Once you start lending a crackie money you open up the pandora box for problems and conflicts with the crackie and others. Moneys leant will never be repaid. Simply put, you will nbe in a lose-lose situation.
Secure Your Valuables
Nothing is sacred or off-limits for the crackie. If it is tangible, it can be sold, that is his slogan he lives by. In the absence of money, easily movable, small valuable items are a jackpot for the crack addict. Once a cokehead is around please safely secure all personal items. Jewelry, and electronic gadgets such as laptops and accessories, digital cameras, high-end mobile phones,PDAs etc are always in demand on the street, amd are usually the primary target. Other items that will be pawned of are anythingelse such as items of sentimental value, clothing (new and used), furniture,books, just about everything.
It is advised to copy the product identification number of your personal valuables in the event of a theft, you may be able to identify them when recovered.
Do Not Trust A Crack Addict:
Compulsive lying, kleptomania, are just some of the characteristic traits of a crackie, therefore take every precaution when dealing with one. One of the first rule of thumb is DO NOT BELIEVE A WORD HE SAYS. Regardless of how plausible it may sound, the crack addict is a schemer and will falsify anything that will earn him the targeted reactiom to get his next fix.
Keep Your Guard Up:
Do not let your guard down by having him believe you are his friend and ally. This will prove detrimental as he will take your kindness for weakness and prey on your affections. He will make demands of loyalty to the friendship and exploit the relationship to extremes. Parents of addicts can testify of the child's maneauvere tactics to get them at odds with each other in order to get his way, that is to achieve his desired high.
Keep personal interactions at a minimal and leave no avenue available for him to get a foot inside your personal zone and get comfortable because once this happens he will control you at will.
The crackie is a strategist and is always trying to keep ahead of his victims, so once he identifies the smallest loophole, he will take advantage of the situation at the victims painful expense.
Do Not Leave Him Alone in The House:
One sure way of coming home to an empty house is to leave a penniless gick monster (another name for crack addict) alone in the house. He can organize and remove even the flooring in a fraction that of tthe time taken by a removal contingent. Once he has access to the telephone (mobile or fixed) he will rally the troupe of bargain hunters who will come at immediate notice and take your life.
Cases have been documented of horrendous experiences of partners returning home to see bare floor: everything in cluding fixtures, gone except the flooring. Priceless family heirlooms have been pawned off for a miniscule fraction of its monetary value; decades of collectibles have been lost within mere seconds of nefarious negotiations; trust funds and future plans have disappeared in thin air to satisfy a craving or pay off debts incurred from gratifying the addiction
A word to the wise:
A Crack cocaine addict has an excessive psychological dependence on the drug consequently, breaking free requires more than medication: it calls for deep self discipline and self will along with the steadfast support of family or others.
Reduce Easy Access to Crack
Mobility is welcomed 'cofor the crack addct. Restricting him the use of your car puts a dent in his speed, and although is does not prevet him from accessing the drug, it surely reduces the number of his fixes per given period.
Giving access to your car is just as equal to pushing it over a cliff. So if you are not prepared to have your car returned as damaged goods, dont lend it to a crack head
Do not volunteer to take him anywhere. Once out of your site, he will use you to get to the drug. You will suffer the after effects of him using.
DONT BE FOOLED
Crack Cocaine addiction will have a powerfully debilitating effect on the user. Do not challenge its addictiveness, you will be sorry.
Not using crack is the best treatment for addiction and its effects.