90 days of sobriety: Relapse not an option
WHEN he came to Psychotherapy, Care and Counselling Rehabilitation and Recovery Centre, also simply known as Waneni, Tatenda Makhuyana (not his real name) had someone following behind him each time he went to relieve himself during routine Sunday church services.
Being followed to the wash room was meant to ensure that the 19-year-old would not escape from the rehabilitation and recovery programme.
Days passed and morphed into weeks, weeks into months, until Tatenda completed three months of sobriety in an intensive rehabilitation and recovery programme that was meant to put his life back on the rails.
Last week on Thursday saw Tatenda, together with other two peers who were into drug and alcohol abuse graduating from Waneni Rehabilitation Centre, located in a secluded place in the outskirts of the City of Mutare.
It was an emotional moment as Tatenda Makhuyana, his two colleagues and their relatives gathered for a send-off ceremony at the centre where speaker after speaker gave testimonies on how drugs and alcohol had caused untold suffering and broken relationships in their homes.
The trios’ relatives underscored the need to remain resilient in quitting drug and alcohol abuse, especially after the 90 days of rehabilitation and recovery.
Tatenda’s mother said: “When you were here at the centre, it was a practice session. Dynamos or Manchester United are never said to be good due to their performance in training sessions.
“These teams are said to be good when they perform well against opponents in competitive matches. Now after the 90 days of rehabilitation, you are going into the real test.”
The teary mother of Tatenda’s colleague, Blessing (not his real name), said: “When a child does bad, the child belongs to the mother. When the child does good, the child belongs to the father. You make life so difficult for us as mothers when you do bad things.”
Indeed, society and families is paying such huge prices for youths involved in substance, alcohol and drug abuse.
Guest of honour at the graduation ceremony, Manicaland provincial
youth development director, Mr Alexis Mwakipesile said: “Drug abuse is cutting across social strata. This is the truth. Even in churches, drugs are a problem. It is not only for the unemployed.
“Even those going to work every day are abusing drugs. Drug abuse has no boundaries or age limits. Government is really concerned about the scourge of drug abuse, and this is why numerous initiatives have been undertaken to ensure that it is eradicated across the country.
“This is why we now have provincial and district committees that are tackling community rehabilitation, demand reduction and supply reduction. Other sub committees include harm reduction, media and communication, research and development.”
Dr Mazvita Machinga, the psychotherapist and clinician in charge of Psychotherapy Care, Counselling Services and Recovery Centre said:
“We are soldiering on with the fight against drug abuse as an institution, and we are happy with the support that we are receiving from Government and all stakeholders, including relatives of those fighting substance and drug abuse.
“Above all, we thank God for the help we have been receiving in rehabilitating those who fall into drug and substance abuse. Yes, I am the centre’s psychotherapist and clinician, but at the end of the day, it is God who does the healing.”
Reverend Paul Neshangwe summed it all well by saying: “The mind is a terrible thing to waste. Please do not waste it. Proverbs 4:23 says: ‘Above all things, guard your heart’. Words come through the ears, but stay in the heart. Protect your heart. God will help you. One way of protecting your heart is by surrounding yourself with constructive peers.”