AFTER DRUG, THE VOICES

Apart from being born prematurely, "Peter" had never been any
trouble. A happy, eager-to-please child, he had grown into an
outgoing young man who did well at school and sports.

So when, in his final year of secondary school, Peter started
sleeping in, skipping school, staying out late and smoking dope, his
mother "Jane" reluctantly put it down to teenage angst.

One day she found he had removed the bathroom air duct. Peter told
her he thought it was a listening device. "I didn't even twig at that
stage," Jane said.

Peter's behavior continued to deteriorate. He stopped seeing friends
who didn't smoke dope and abandoned tertiary studies.

An American rock band kept singing his name in their songs. There was
something happening in the television: "they" were trying to listen
in on his thoughts.

After what can be seen in hindsight as psychotic episodes, Peter was
diagnosed with schizophrenia. He is being treated.

Research indicates that Peter's siblings have a one-in-10 chance of
developing the disease. They have been warned to avoid cannabis, as
it can trigger psychosis.

Despite what happened with Peter, Jane is wary of giving even low
doses of anti-psychotic drugs to prevent schizophrenia.

Yet if one of her other children began to deteriorate as Peter did,
she would support it.

"I feel like a bomb's hit our family. I'd like to say it's not
happening, but it is. I've been grieving for losing the child I knew."