Nyaope addict is desperate for rehab
“A friend of mine offered me weed only but had included nyaope without my knowledge. That was how I got hooked on the stuff.”
A nyaope drug addict has said he wants to go to rehab as he fears he might die of a drug overdose.
Rekord spoke to 26-year-old Steven Masemola (not his real name) at a taxi parking spot in the CBD on Tuesday afternoon.
He said he was tired of his addiction and desperately sought rehabilitation.
Masemola, from Mamelodi, said he started smoking with his friends when he was in high school.
He also admitted that he regularly smoked weed.
It was in grade 11 when Masemola’s friend offered him dagga but had laced it with nyaope without informing him.
“A friend of mine offered me weed only but had included nyaope without my knowledge. That was how I got hooked on the stuff,” he said.
Masemola started to get cramps 14 days after smoking the dagga mixed with >nyaope and decided to go to clinic for a urine test.
“One of the doctors at the clinic did a urine test, but it came back clean. In other words, the test did not show that I was on drugs and at that time I was smoking heavily,” he explained.
His friend later admitted to adding nyaope to the dagga.
Masemola said his drug habit worsened; he dropped out of school and went to live at Heatherly Landfill in Nellmapius, Mamelodi.
“The dump was fun. We could sleep with prostitutes for R30 and access nyaope. I spent almost four years there,” he said.
Eventually, Masemola’s younger brother found him and told him their father had reported him missing, but he still did not go home.
Masemola said later on his mother called a friend of his at the dump to inform him that his father had died of tuberculosis.
“He died without me being there and I regret not being by his side. Whenever I smoke I just want to numb the pain. I went to bury him and it hurt me,” said Masemola.
Masemola now lives with his older sister at a flat in Sunnyside.
He collects recycled goods to get money to buy nyaope.
“I am tired of smoking nyaope now. I just want to live a normal life.”
“Nyaope is only nice when you smoke it, but it is painful when you get cravings because you end up doing whatever it takes (including crime) to get money to buy it,” said Masemola.
Dr Ramodungoane Tabane, a senior lecture at the University of South Africa, said drug usage in teens was multifaceted.
“It can be triggered by a number of things, mainly biological factors that are based on an individual’s susceptibility to become addicted to drugs and environmental factors such as the home environment and peer pressure,” he said.
Tabane said each case differed.
In Masemola’s case, he was mislead by a friend.
“His friend might have wanted a companion to smoke nyaope with,” said Tabane.
He urged parents to be aware of their child’s behavioural patterns and monitor changes.
“If a child’s pockets are burnt, find out why. If the child wants more money, ask why.”
“Know your child’s friends and their family’s background. Check your child’s eyes and don’t ignore smells,” he said.
Karina Bam, head of the Pretoria North Crisis Centre, said Masemola should get professional help.
Bam said should Masemola or his family not be able to afford rehab, they could get assistance from any of the provincial hospitals.
“If he does not have the funds to facilitate a rehab he can go to any of the provincial hospitals and seek assistance from them.”
“Families and friends who suspect loved ones of drug abuse should seek help rather sooner than later,” she said.
She said it was important for people to know that addicts could not be forced to go to rehab.
Also read:
Nyaope cited as one of the causes of mental illness
Nyaope suspect arrested in Erasmia
Former nyaope addicts graduate from rehab
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