Edward Jeffrey used heroin at 18 to kill the pain of his lonely teenage years. At 42, he twice tried suicide to kill the pain of his heroin addiction. In between, during nearly 25 years of heroin addiction, Jeffrey said he deceived friends, employers and family, committed crimes, sold most of his possessions, turned government disability payments into drugs, watched his brother die of a heroin overdose and his wife die of AIDS. He said his addiction robbed him of any chance for a normal life. He regrets that he didn't go to college or have children. "I lived a life that was constantly going down," he said. [continues 1240 words]
It's the wife who calls the office and says her husband has the flu and won't be at work, while he sleeps off a night of drinking. It's the employer who lets a worker repeatedly show up late because she's good at her job. It's the parents who don't report missing jewelry to the police even though they know their son has been stealing from them for the past year. It's called enabling, behavior by family and friends that allows addicts to continue abusing drugs without consequences. [continues 742 words]
