Questions for Sarah

Questions for Sarah

Questions for Mandy

Interviewee 2 - Sarah Firth - ex drug abuser

Sarah Firth is a 26 year old woman from Norwich who used to take drugs when she was teenager. She has now stopped taking drugs and is now a carer for her Grandma at her Norwich home.

Interviewee 1 - Mary Gaylard; College Councillor

Mandy has a BA (Hons) Psychology and a Diploma in Therapeutic Counselling. She is an accredited member of the British Association of Counselling and Psychotherapy. She has been a counsellor since 2000 and has been working at the college from March 2009.

Interview Topic - Drug Abuse

Drug abuse, also known as substance abuse, involves the excessive and repeated use of a drug in order to elicit pleasure or escape from problems or reality.

Drug abuse, affects people's relationships as well as day to day functioning at work, home or school. It also leads to poor health and can affect the users mental health. Most drug users don't realise that they will become dependant on the drugs and that it is a long term problem. Drug addiction can be both physical and psychological.

The physical addictions are the users body craving the drug to feel the initial buzz or high. When users stop taking drugs they get withdrawl symptoms and want to take more to keep feeling happy or well.

The psychological addictions of drug abuse are when the user feels that they need the drug to be happy. For example, taking drugs to relax or numb the pain of a difficult situation you are in are all sign of psychological dependance.

It is important to emphasize the fact that the more drug abuse begins to affect and manipulate an individual’s life, the more probable it is that he or she has a drug problem that eventually can become full-blown addiction.
Regrettably, the people who are actively involved in drug abuse are frequently the last persons to identify their own symptoms of abuse and addiction and their negative drug-related behavior.

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