This part of Heroin Helper is dedicated to helping the loved ones of heroin users. Sometimes this just means helping them to stay calm. More often it means much more.
Most people want to help "junkie" loved ones. Unfortunately, it is the rule that such people have exactly the opposite effect as they wish. To start with, the "help" is usually just an attempt to control. Being truly helpful starts with understanding. And that means learning about heroin and heroin users.
All of the information on this site will help to educate you about heroin. As an overview, I recommend my book Little Book of Heroin. At just under 80 pages, the book can be read in an evening--and it will explain pretty much everything you will need to know about heroin.
The information in this section of Heroin Helper is directed at helping the non-using loved one have a positive impact on a heroin user. I think you will find that the articles found here are different, and perhaps even revolutionary. This is the place to come for information on understanding and living with a heroin user--and more commonly, a heroin addict. My intent is to make communication better; that is the beginning of everything.
And remember, if you have any questions, you can always...
- What Do You Want?
- When people find out that someone they love uses heroin, they usually want to help. After a while, they give up--feeling betrayed. The problem is usually that people don't know what they mean by "help". But they can learn...
- Heroin Is Different
- Kicking heroin is different from kicking other drugs, such as cocaine. Understanding these differences helps getting and staying clean much easier.
- Encouraging Junkies to "Clean Up"
- This article gives helpful advice on how to encourage heroin addicts to give up their addiction.
- Do As I Say
- This article discusses the problem of helping junkies even when you know what you should be doing.
- A Junkie Dies
- The loved ones of those who die of a heroin related sudden death must deal with special problems.
- Bad Friends
- Two examples of really bad ways to be a good friend to a heroin user.