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<\/figure>\n\n\n\nFor Richard (not his real name), Father’s Day is a day unlike any other. It brings him many emotions and memories that take him back to five years ago, in the lightless office of his crumbling business. Here, he hid during what was his first Father’s Day. That day, he left his way and their newborn on a four-day binge on meth<\/a> (shabu) while weaving in and out between casinos. He hasn’t bathed in four days. His cheeks were peppered with unshaven stubbles. He forgot when he last ate. His eyes are hollow. He felt hollow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Richard’s story<\/a> isn’t uncommon. Many addicts, both men and women of different ages, may have gone through their own version of this situation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n One thing is common. They fell into an addiction trap. It may be fun and exhilarating at first, with that high, but it won’t take very long before their own version of hell unfolds. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In Richard’s case, addiction has taken his family hostage. He hasn\u2019t told his wife, who just gave birth to their son, what he\u2019s been doing. She suspects there\u2019s something wrong, but he just told her he\u2019s busy at work and can\u2019t come home. She\u2019s left alone, but in her mind, she\u2019s juggling different emotions\u2013fear, worry, hurt, loneliness, guilt, and despair. Chances are, the nights he hasn\u2019t come home, his wife was wide awake and gripped with worry and suspicion. But Richard will never know\u2013or understand\u2013this. Not in his state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Richard has lost his ability to control himself, empathize with other people, and weigh the consequences of his actions. Whenever he makes that detour to his pusher before heading home, he forgets everything else and only that feeling of having the drugs inside him. Each time this happens, he tells himself that he can handle it, that this won\u2019t take long and he will be home soon\u2013but it never happens. He uses more and more\u2026and he can\u2019t stop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Soon, he used up all his savings, his business went down the drain, his credit cards were all maxed out. He ran up a lot of debt, his wife was about to leave him, and all that he worked hard for was shattering before his eyes. He can\u2019t call his parents anymore, they have given up trying to bail him out each time. So he was stuck hiding out in his office\u2013because he had nowhere else to go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That night in his office, he was faced with a fork in the road.<\/p>\n\n\n\nThe Same Faces of Addiction<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Making a Decision<\/h3>\n\n\n\n