Here’s what Erica had to say about:
When she started using heroin…
I started using cocaine at thirteen. Before, I was using marijuana and alcohol and it didn’t really work for me, so I wanted to step it up a level. I started using heroin when I was fifteen. I began using it to come down from cocaine and get some sleep. But I started liking the heroin high and started using it straight. Everyday, after awhile.
Why she got involved with prescription drugs…
Along with cocaine, I also began taking prescription drugs when I was thirteen, specifically Ritalin®, Xanax®, Percocet® and Vicodin®. They were so easy to get. I never had to buy them or get them from a doctor. I would just get them from friends who had gone through their parent’s medicine cabinet. I also thought that prescription drugs were “safer” than other drugs. I figured that it was okay for people to take them, and if they were legal, I was fine.
Why she started using…
My dad died when I was young. I wanted to fit in with my friends. I wanted to fit in with my sister and her friends who used. I started sniffing heroin in the beginning to calm myself down. It allowed me to sleep. It gave me a mellow feeling – there is no feeling like it. I started taking prescription drugs, specifically Vicodin, to try something new. I also took OxyContin®, but always preferred heroin.
The role drugs played in her social life…
Most of my friends did not do drugs, however, a select few did, and those are the friends I saw everyday. Basically, I became friends with them because they were using. If I didn’t use, I would never have befriended them. They were the kind of people who used others and were sneaky. We teamed together to get what we wanted, at whatever cost.
Her initial fear of heroin and thoughts on addiction…
I was scared of heroin at the beginning. There were certain things I said I would never try, never do. Heroin is one of the things I said I wouldn’t ever do. But when it came to getting high, my morals and beliefs were out the window. I don’t think the thought of addiction ever crossed my mind. I didn’t think that I would go the lengths I did to get high. I never thought I would do those things. I never thought it would go that far.
How her addiction escalated…
Like I said, prescription drugs were incredibly easy to get from friends, and it always seemed to be a last-minute thing. Heroin was also easy to get – all I had to do was go into the city and buy it. In the areas I would go to cop it, it was on every street corner and it was cheap. It was only seven or eight dollars a bag. My heroin use started spiraling out of control. I stopped going to school. I was leaving home for days at a time.
Recognizing the signs of her addiction…
My mom asked me if I was taking drugs, but of course I lied to her. For such a long time, she believed me. She never thought I would do the things I was doing. If she just could have been more aware, maybe she could have stopped it earlier. But nobody’s going to know everything. People miss warning signs and triggers. Many will chalk it up to teenage rebellion. Breaking curfew, things missing, changing friends, dressing differently, etc. My family and friends did everything they could.
How her family confronted her addiction…
When my mom finally realized I had a problem, she knew something had to be done. She made me get help, and eventually, the court mandated me into treatment. It took me a while to actually want to receive treatment – I didn’t want the help. And then about ten months ago (Summer 2003), I did. The last time I got high it had gotten really bad. I lost weight, I had track marks all over my arms – I had been on a three-month binge. It was so hard to realize my addiction and even harder to kick the habit, but I was able to while receiving assistance in a residential treatment center.
Her plans for the future…
Now I’m drug free and ready to live my life. In September I am going to college, and I want to major in psychology. I plan to have a full time job in the summer and, eventually, I plan to be out of the program and out of the court system.
When she started using heroin…
I started using cocaine at thirteen. Before, I was using marijuana and alcohol and it didn’t really work for me, so I wanted to step it up a level. I started using heroin when I was fifteen. I began using it to come down from cocaine and get some sleep. But I started liking the heroin high and started using it straight. Everyday, after awhile.
Why she got involved with prescription drugs…
Along with cocaine, I also began taking prescription drugs when I was thirteen, specifically Ritalin®, Xanax®, Percocet® and Vicodin®. They were so easy to get. I never had to buy them or get them from a doctor. I would just get them from friends who had gone through their parent’s medicine cabinet. I also thought that prescription drugs were “safer” than other drugs. I figured that it was okay for people to take them, and if they were legal, I was fine.
Why she started using…
My dad died when I was young. I wanted to fit in with my friends. I wanted to fit in with my sister and her friends who used. I started sniffing heroin in the beginning to calm myself down. It allowed me to sleep. It gave me a mellow feeling – there is no feeling like it. I started taking prescription drugs, specifically Vicodin, to try something new. I also took OxyContin®, but always preferred heroin.
The role drugs played in her social life…
Most of my friends did not do drugs, however, a select few did, and those are the friends I saw everyday. Basically, I became friends with them because they were using. If I didn’t use, I would never have befriended them. They were the kind of people who used others and were sneaky. We teamed together to get what we wanted, at whatever cost.
Her initial fear of heroin and thoughts on addiction…
I was scared of heroin at the beginning. There were certain things I said I would never try, never do. Heroin is one of the things I said I wouldn’t ever do. But when it came to getting high, my morals and beliefs were out the window. I don’t think the thought of addiction ever crossed my mind. I didn’t think that I would go the lengths I did to get high. I never thought I would do those things. I never thought it would go that far.
How her addiction escalated…
Like I said, prescription drugs were incredibly easy to get from friends, and it always seemed to be a last-minute thing. Heroin was also easy to get – all I had to do was go into the city and buy it. In the areas I would go to cop it, it was on every street corner and it was cheap. It was only seven or eight dollars a bag. My heroin use started spiraling out of control. I stopped going to school. I was leaving home for days at a time.
Recognizing the signs of her addiction…
My mom asked me if I was taking drugs, but of course I lied to her. For such a long time, she believed me. She never thought I would do the things I was doing. If she just could have been more aware, maybe she could have stopped it earlier. But nobody’s going to know everything. People miss warning signs and triggers. Many will chalk it up to teenage rebellion. Breaking curfew, things missing, changing friends, dressing differently, etc. My family and friends did everything they could.
How her family confronted her addiction…
When my mom finally realized I had a problem, she knew something had to be done. She made me get help, and eventually, the court mandated me into treatment. It took me a while to actually want to receive treatment – I didn’t want the help. And then about ten months ago (Summer 2003), I did. The last time I got high it had gotten really bad. I lost weight, I had track marks all over my arms – I had been on a three-month binge. It was so hard to realize my addiction and even harder to kick the habit, but I was able to while receiving assistance in a residential treatment center.
Her plans for the future…
Now I’m drug free and ready to live my life. In September I am going to college, and I want to major in psychology. I plan to have a full time job in the summer and, eventually, I plan to be out of the program and out of the court system.
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