P centre a place of sadness and hope

People walk in ‘‘defeated, poor and alone’’ but leave with hope and support.

A new methamphetamine walkin centre based at Lower Hutt’s Pomare Taita Community House has been established to help people affected by P use and addiction.

The centre, part of the New Zealand ‘‘P’’ Pull support group, has been open since late last year and drug and alcohol practitioner Lacey Whiting is one of the staff helping people make plans to cope with users or to kick their habit.

Some attend seeking referrals for their addiction, while others came in just to talk about their loved ones. Whiting said some of the saddest stories came from people attending the centre for the first time, who had put up with years of their loved one’s P use.

‘‘People were very quiet about it – taking on the effects of their loved one by themselves. This group is here so they can come along and not do this alone.

‘‘People come in defeated, poor and alone. Many [parents] come in wondering ‘where did I go wrong?’ They try to give their kids the best opportunities but don’t know where to turn when [their child] has lost their job, ruined their life and has turned into someone they don’t know any more,’’ she said.

‘‘It’s about teaching people it’s not about them. It is the choices their loved one has made.’’

Whiting said the advantage of a walk-in centre over a formal institution was that people could seek help without judgment.

It was hard getting help for an A-class drug habit and many people were put off by going to other health agencies for fear of being reported to authorities.

P users did not fit a single stereotype and she found it frustrating that many people still believed users were mostly ‘‘paranoid psychopaths’’.

Whiting has fought her own addiction and while it was not to P, she understood the stigma and problems associated with drug use.

‘‘I’m over the stigma and bullshit we attach to people who use.’’

Users came from all walks of life, irrespective of where they lived, race or their socio-economic status, she said.

Funding for the centre came out of the Hutt City Council’s Community Development Fund which supports non-profit groups that provide social services.