GIVING UP METH TOUGHER THAN QUITTING COCAINE, HEROIN

Mind-expanding hallucinations, contact with spirits and overwhelming
euphoria - these are the reasons a 40-year-old North Shore
professional gave up his job last year, sold his house and moved into
a hotel room with his drug-addicted girlfriend to feed their crystal
meth addiction.

"He's now struggling to give it up," said Bahram Heidari, a
documentary filmmaker who is using the man's story for an upcoming
Channel 10 series called Sufism.

"When I met him he was living in his BMW. He'd lost everything and
wanted help."

But getting treatment for an addiction that causes withdrawal symptoms
reportedly worse than cocaine or heroin is not easy.

Despite an $8-million increase in provincial funding for crystal meth
treatment - bringing the number of addiction treatment beds in B.C. to
1,038 - recovery centres still have lengthy wait lists and some
addiction facilities won't treat crystal meth users because the drug
can cause psychosis.

"We won't take someone who is totally psychotic," said Patrick
Zierten, program director for the Orchard Recovery and Treatment
Center on Bowen Island.

"If they can be stabilized, then we'll take them."

Currently, the privately run Orchard is the only drug and alcohol
residential recovery centre on the North Shore and there is a
four-week wait list for new patients. The centre takes about one or
two crystal meth addicts in a month, the majority of whom are in their
late teens or early 20s.

They come in paranoid and sleep deprived, hearing voices or seeing
hallucinations. They are given anti-psychotic and mood stabilizing
medication before they're put on a 42-day program. The cost is $17,700.

Those who can't afford to pay can call D-Talks (1-866-658-1221), a
government-funded phone line for addicted youth in the Lower Mainland.
Access workers put callers in touch with detox services, such as the
adolescent day program located near 15th Street and Lonsdale Avenue.
The free day program accepts 10 youth at any given time for three to
six months and provides counselling, help with withdrawal and
education. There are often wait lists for these services, but D-Talks
staff can provide information on home detox as well.

Families of crystal meth users should be aware that relapses are
common. Addiction counsellors estimate the relapse rate for crystal
meth is 92 per cent - higher than cocaine. Zierten says part of the
reason is young addicts don't realize they have to kick more than just
their drug habit.

"They also have to kick their culture - the peer group that brought
them in here," he said.

Still, Zierten maintains there is hope for recovery. He recalls the
transformation of a North Shore resident who came into the Orchard
nearly three years ago anxious, thin and wired after four nights
without sleep.

"She left a happy go-lucky girl with plans for the future, dreams and
really charged about recovery."

The young woman has since become an advocate for crystal meth recovery
and prevention.

Addicts or family members looking for help to overcome a crystal meth
addiction can visit: pssg.gov.bc.ca/crystalmeth for information and
links to treatment websites. For information on the Orchard's program
visit: www.orchardrecovery.com