DOWNTOWN DETOX CENTRE WELCOMED BY ADDICT

Donna earned $120,000 a year as a salesperson, she almost had her
mortgage paid off and drove a Volvo.

But after spending as much as $600 a day on morphine and heroin for 11
years, she ended up sleeping on a mat at a homeless shelter. Severe
migraine headaches led her down the path to drug abuse.

At first, it was drugstore painkillers and prescriptions. Pills were
popped at the first twinge of pain to try to avoid the endless
throbbing. Soon Donna felt a twinge in anticipation of the pills.

She worked up to 1,400 mg of morphine a day. But the pills couldn't
dull the pain. Then one day the spouse of a co-worker told Donna she
had just the thing to end her pain, disappeared, and came back with a
syringe and some heroin.

"You just get so tired of not feeling decent. Just once, you take
something to take the pain away and it's like a Godsend," said Donna,
42, who is putting her life back together and did not want her real
name used.

Donna spiraled into chemical dependency, using heroin to prevent
withdrawal symptoms and in order to function.

Now she's been a client at Central Alberta Methadone Program (CAMP) in
Red Deer since April 2003 and she says it's working.

The CAMP clinic is located downtown. A combination of counselling and
methadone is used to wean people off opiates. Methadone is a
non-addictive synthetic drug that prevents physical withdrawal and
reduces drug cravings.

Donna said she may be in recovery, but she's still well aware of Red
Deer's drug problem.

When she moved to Red Deer a few months into her methadone treatment,
she lived "right in the thick of things." All she could afford was a
downtown hotel room and she saw people from every socioeconomic level
buying drugs.

"There are substantial addiction problems in this city. A shocking
number of teens," Donna said.

She hopes the controversy surrounding the location of Red Deer's detox
and homeless shelter will help educate parents and children about drugs.

Drug users caught in the cycle of obsession, search, use and guilt
called the "squirrel cage" may also benefit, she added.

"It's very important to confront the stereotype that impacts our
self-esteem and self-worth."

Donna said downtown is a good place for a detox to help people get
clean, despite the availability of drugs.

"It's a temptation they confront now or later. If they're going to
confront temptation, do it where there's support. If they run into it
alone later, they might not be able to resist."

A proposed site for the detox/shelter is the Scott Block at 4816 Gaetz
Ave. The 20-bed shelter would be available to people under the
influence of alcohol or drugs.

It would be similar to Andy's Place which quietly operated for six
months last winter on the edge of the downtown bar zone.

The 20-bed detox will provide social and nutritional support during
withdrawal, typically for three to 10 days.

Donna said in an ideal world, drug users could disassociate entirely
from the drug scene. But drugs are everywhere.

People are afraid of addicts and the homeless, which is why they don't
want to see the detox/shelter in their neighbourhood. But in reality,
there are some "very respectable addicts," she said.

"It's a rampant social problem people can disguise. To speak with
them, you'd never know.

"I think it's important to a lot of people to believe the system
works, that they are safe from such concerns as homelessness and
addiction. When in reality no one's safe from encountering it, either
themselves or their family."

Downtown business owners already facing vandalism have valid
complaints, but there are "shifty and lazy" people everywhere, she
said. "In Red Deer, the majority of those involved in criminal
activity are involved in the distribution of crack cocaine."

People may have to return to detox several times before they're ready
to enter a treatment program. They may have to go on a treatment
waiting list in another community because Red Deer doesn't have a
treatment centre. But a detox in Red Deer can still make a difference
in people's lives, Donna said.

"It's like saying why wash the floor because it's going to get dirty
again. It's critical to start somewhere."

Mac, another recovering heroin user, said detox shouldn't start in the
Scott building, "a place you can step out of and score."

A better location would be in the vicinity of Super Store, he
said.

"I'm really for a detox, but I don't think downtown is the right place
to put it. You're too close to the source of where the drug is," said
Mac, who also didn't want his real name used.

The 53-year-old was addicted to heroin for 35 years. He spent several
years in prison for drug store robberies to steal pharmaceuticals.

He came to Red Deer almost two years ago and is participating in the
methadone program. He also used to live in a downtown hotel. Mac said
Red Deer's drug problem isn't quite as bad today as when he first
landed in downtown Red Deer.

But he warned that drug dealings continue in downtown alleys, making
it too tempting for people in detox and too dangerous if they owe
money to drug dealers.

An accessible location, within walking distance of downtown, would be
the best location for Red Deer's detox, he said.

"If you cater to them, that's what a junkie wants."