‘Substance abuse another epidemic’
mental health problems and a bleak future among the youth.
It is said many youths resorted to drug abuse and overdose while not going to school during lockdowns, hence opening the door to another epidemic which is destroying and taking lives. Mubatirapamwe Trust, an organisation which has been fighting substance abuse among Zimbabweans by offering relief, co-creating solutions and assisting vulnerable people with food, shelter, medical care and access to education, has been hosting youths warning them of the dangers of drug abuse in various parts of the country.
Mubatirapamwe Trust executive director, Ms Christina Madamombe (56) said the Harare based organisation sought to help individuals and families affected by substance abuse. She said drug abusers enjoy what is known as ‘ukustika’ (to stick), which means one is high on drugs to the point of incapacitation.
“They get ferried away in a series of hallucinations. In other words, one may flee a group of people chasing after him or her when in reality there is no one. This reveals how dead the future is for youths if the misuse of drugs is not curbed,” said Ms Madamombe.
The Trust also deals with Alcohol and other drugs (AODs) by offering medical and psychological support which include screening and assessment using the World Health Organisation (WHO-Assist V 3.0) tool, brief interventions and referrals to a psychologist, psychiatrist and trauma specialist and cognitive behavioural therapy and motivational interviewing as part of psychosocial support services and counselling.
She warned that drug addicts usually relapse after rehabilitation after they get incorporated with wrong crowds.
Therefore, families should play a pivotal role in caring for the patient as a relapse causes more damage. Ms Madamombe said that love and support should be shown towards patients and not hatred and resentment as it may make them flee their homes and resort to drugs again.
“Mubatirapamwe Trust also offers life skill training so that patients can reintegrate into the community after rehabilitation. It also acknowledges continuous systematic therapy for caregivers and the family of the patient to help destroy the mind-set of the patient bouncing back to old ways. The patient has to be reminded about their value to the community so as to revive that which was lost within them and therefore should receive support and not resentful.
“Fighting drug abuse is not as easy as a, b, c as it takes the entire community, that is friends, family, community leaders and pastors to assist the patients. Families should watch over patients especially their whereabouts as the edginess felt by the patients may drive them to take any type of drug just so as to feel the hype again.
“These they may get from friends or drug dealers. Most communities are aware of who are drug dealers in those communities and therefore it will help to expose them so as to help the future generation and be assured of light at the end of the tunnel,” Ms Madamombe said.
The Trust has in the past partnered with churches such as ZCC, United Methodist in Zimbabwe, Salvation Army, the Methodist church in Zimbabwe, Anglican church and the police to raise awareness on drug abuse.