The debate on this site is now closed. We have received over 800 comments from you.
Created: Monday 20-Feb-2006 23:55:49 GMT
Sam, Derby
My uncle has been on and off heroin for a long time. I still think that he is still on it. when i was young i used to look up to him and go places with him and i remember once that he took me to one of his friend's houses and they was smoking something through tin foil. i was at such a young age and just did'nt know what to think. as i grew older i started to find out more and just started to hate him. he stole all my mum's jewelery which made me completly against him. i can't stand to be near him knowing he still on it. he lives with my 80 year old grandma and takes her for a fool. all his relatives are against him bar my mama and i just wish sometimes she could understand what her son is into. she thinks so much of him so anything you say she won't believe it because she thinks he's an angel. a lot of arguements have been caused between the family due to him. It would be great to get him off it fully and just be normal where he could hold down a job because he has thrown so many well paid jobs away. i fear that 1 day he will either be put in jail or found dead after over dosing. i will be watching all week and i hope that the peaople taking part in this get through it and come out clean. thanks for reading.
Created: Tuesday, 21-Feb-2006 00:00:21 GMT
Ann, Glasgow
i have been on methadone for 15 yrs & not one person has ever told me that rehab really works. I tried to get off it & while initally a success 1 week later the dss took me off my sickness benefit while i was still recovering. People think 'oh that's the hard bit over' but it isn't, it's just the beginning & this is where i felt most let down. i'm scared to come off it now as actually no one knows what long term methadone does to your body, will my endorphins kick in after being suppressed for so many yrs? I try & tell myself that i will be off it 1 day, but i've been taking it now for nearly half my life? I started on drugs in the first place to try & forget what was done to me as a child, now i take methadone just to feel 'normal'. Now i just feel let down by the so called nanny state.
Created: Tuesday, 21-Feb-2006 00:08:28 GMT
Sara, London
That was one of the most exploitative, pointless, sensationalist and frankly putrid shows I have ever seen on Channel 4. I sincerely hope you recognise how wrong your actions are in showing this and reconsider before any more programmes air. After 20 years working in the field of substance abuse i could find nothing even remotely educational or objective in this show. You should be ashamed of yourselves. You have made people's lives significantly worse by your intervention.
Created: Tuesday, 21-Feb-2006 00:02:41 GMT
Gemma, Willenhall
i have got a friend who was injecting into his groin and he hadn't long come out of jail, he overdosed and as he collapsed he cut the circulation off in his leg. he has now got 4 15inch scars down both legs and they are about 3 inches wide. he can no longer walk and has got d.v.t and has to take wulfrun tablets everyday to thin his blood out. i myself am on heroin and have been for 6 years, i was too injecting into my groin but recently stopped after my leg swelled through hitting my artery, so i just want to give some advice to people who use their groins to inject to try another place first before going in their groins, i'm still using pins but no longer going in my groin. Good luck to those three people doing their detox hope you stay clean when you all go back home, it has given me hope that i too can do my cold turkey.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:13:50 GMT
Richard, Ruislip
Dr Marsden,I applaud your approach in presenting a programme showing the effects of opiate withdrawal as I myself was a heroin addict for 10 years followed by 10 years of methadone addiction, of which I am now clean for 3 years. I notice that you will show withdrawal over 5 days so I hope you will convey the fact that these people are in no way detoxed especially the person(s) withdrawing from methadone as meth. withdrawal peaks on the 9th day. I have many issues regarding prescribing of meth. as I believe (and so do so many people on it) that it should ONLY be prescribed for a few weeks on a reduction basis prior to complete withdrawal of the drug. Only given to break the cycle of scoring heroin, to stabilise the patient prior to reduction and subsequent abstention. What is in fact happening is that people are given it on a maintance basis which ends up giving a person METHADONE addiction, which I can tell you from experience is ending up with a gorilla on your back, never mind a monkey! ... This maintenance policy needs to be discussed and reviewed in an open forum and your programme might be the perfect vehicle. I wish you all the very best in your endeavours as regards helping addicts who often feel marginalised by the societal stigma associated with opiate addiction.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:55:03 GMT
Anne, Pontefract
Good programme. Shows some of the reality of life on heroin. Just two criticisms; firstly, these people have quite good social circumstances, which unfortunately is not the case in the majority of drug users. The programme at Detox 5 is expensive, and not the answer for people who are more socially isolated. I would have liked the programme to include the availability and benefits of cheaper detox programmes as this is the reality for most users. The other thing is, why offer a helpline that charges? A freephone number would have been more appropriate.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:55:03 GMT
Danny, Bristol
I have been on and off heroin and crack since I was 17 and during that time I have detoxed many times, usually in prison. However I will be interested to see whether or not Channel 4 is genuinely interested in the welfare of the 3 subjects or it is just another form of reality televison. Any body who has been addicted to drugs will tell you that the detox is the easy part – it is what follows that is difficult. Therefore putting the 3 people through a 'Detox 5' programme is going to do nothing other than detox their bodies of opiates. What has Channel 4 got planned for the 3 patients once they have detoxified? If it plans to leave them to their own devices then this is vey unfair as addiction is so much more than simply ridding the body of drugs.
Created: Tuesday, 21-Feb-2006 00:01:01 GMT
Laura, Hampshire
i hope this program makes everyone realise from our area there is help u can get it
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:54:08 GMT
Laura, Hampshire
my ex boyfriend had an heroin addiction he did not inject he smoked it. the whole time he did it he told me heroin is not as bad as everyone makes out. he had a 6 year old daughter as well that he cared for dearly but while taking heroin he didn't take this in to account he smoke it while in the house as her. i also know that his dealer has 2 children one aged 3 and one 6 months old and they deal in that same house. our area is full of heroin addicts and it is starting to become acceptable as when i was at school i caught a 14 year old smoking heroin in the premises .i have now relised she is injecting at the age of 15. i am not a heroin user myself but i think your program will teach anyone child or adult not to start heroin.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:57:23 GMT
Gemma, Willenhall
i have been on heroin for 6 years and haven't yet been able to come off it. i am an iv user and have recently got an infection in my leg through injecting and hitting my artery. i just want to say well done to the 3 people who have found the courage to kick the habit for good, i just hope it gives me the incentive to do the same
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:55:24 GMT
Zack, London
my brother is on heroin, and still affects my family, i think that channel 4 deserves all credit for high-lighting the major problems heroin has on the body and the difficulty addicts face getting off it. there are many social problems that heroin poses, that go ignored, it costs £30k a year to put someone behind bars, proper rehab works for MUCH LESS
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:57:03 GMT
Richard, Reading
i was an addict and where that man got his heroin from was expensive as that was not 10 grand's worth, maybe 200 pound, most 300 ... njust thought i would write in as the public getting the wrong idea. i'm clean by the way :) peace
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:53:23 GMT
Amy, Durham
i know a lot of drug addicts and alcohlics, my social group are crack addicts and one of us has actually been close to death by swallowing her tongue, i take other drugs but would not touch heroin or crack as i've seen the effects it does to close ones, i am helping my best friend go 'cold turky' off crack and she has signed in to the county hospital and is feeling better by the day
Created: Monday 20-Feb-2006 23:54:18 GMT
Trela, London
i just wanna say that i watched the show tonight and i think it's a brilliant thing you guys are doing. there are loads of people out there addicted to not only heroin but other drugs as well. I think it'll make more people aware of the dangers of it have a better understanding.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:16:28 GMT
Adam, Burnley
Get this program off air NOW. I'm an Ex user of Heroin who has had an extremely bad year with my experiences of coming off Heroin and have needed a major lung operation because of the effects of this Drug. What you are doing on this program is absolutely absurd. It's a complete farce. I'm simply not happy about the ideas behind this program at all. I can't believe C4 has the audacity to show this type of thing as if it's in some sort of big brother medical type set-up. Keeping watch on the people involved. They are puppets in Channel fours perverse ratings game. It's absolutely ridiculous and I feel that strongly about this as to never switch C4 on ever again. The Detox they are doing is in fact a short lived Detox program. It's a short term fix to a long term problem. Every Addict knows The real work of any Addiction is after the long after the initial cold turkey and Evey addict who I know who has had these types of detox end up back on the drug as soon as they get home. The doctors prexcribe methadone for the long term and this program is only interested in the Short term ....
Created: Monday 20-Feb-2006 23:57:10 GMT
Gem, Neath
These people need to be helped not judged + punished!
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:53:23 GMT
anon, durham
i know a lot of drug addicts and alcohlics, my best friend is addicted 2 crack but i am helping her get her life back on track. but it is hard
Created: 20-Feb-2006 23:38:47 GMT
Mandi, Wigan
It is a real blessing that Channel 4 have brought up the subject in regards to increased media coverage surrounding the devastating reports to do with drug abuse of recent – you are doing more than the government would ever do about it. It is just hoped that, and with especially children and teenagers in particular being off for half term this week (most in UK), parents will sit their kids down in front of the TV and make them understand the seriousness of the issue of drug addiction – it is a frightening thought of how their quality of life could be dramatically reduced, drug abuse wrecking lives: it's like making the kids take a good, hard look at themselves in the mirror and make them think twice before trying and experimenting with illegal drugs. Well done Channel 4.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:34:37 GMT
Paul, Methil
I think that the show is misleading, as not everyone has the choice or opportunity to receive the medical help. I have tried to get this kind of course or help but i would have to pay £2995 to detox5, where do i get that kind of money on the dole plus also being a heroin addict. PS IT'S NOT EASY ALSO I HAVE A 7 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER AND WOULD LOVE THE CHANCE THOSE PEOPLE HAVE. IF ANYONE LEAVES I WILL WILLINGLY TAKE THEIR PLACE.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:31:01 GMT
Jenna, Highlands
My son started a Methodone Programme today. He is determined this time to stay off Heroin. He has come off it before by the Cold Turkey method and stayed off for several months. But could not sustain it. He has been on it since about 15yrs of age and is now 29. He is from a loving family and was well brought up. He has been arrested for theft and can never hold on to a job. I have searched everywhere to try to get him help but the only rehabs that seem to have a high success rate are private and cost a fortune. Why is there not the same chances for people on NHS? After all it must cost a fortune in crime fighting. Most of the Private clinics realise that it is not just a case of getting someone off drugs, you have teach people how to live their lives and live with themselves. That is the most important part of keeping people off drugs.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:26:21 GMT
Mo, Buckinghamshire
Should it be on TV? Should Amanda's parents be so close to her going through this given that her home circumstance may have played a part in her initial addiction, though also may not have so done? Is there a full set of ethical research procedures in place? Have you had input from counselling psychologists or just drug oriented psychiatrists and psychologists who will naturally focus on biochemistry and behaviour more than emotion and behaviour? I am extremely uneasy that this is the basis of a TV production, about its ethics and safeguards for the individuals concerned, and their families, and wonder what preparation and follow up are built into the design. First programme has made me very uneasy and I know you are trying to be innovative and bring the reality and horror of addiction to people so that they may be wary in the future but still at the moment very uneasy about the safeguards, ethics and research boundaries.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 21:44:31 GMT
Sarah, London
I plunged into the world of substance abuse as a teenager, triggered by various bad personal experiences. Reliance on alcohol, cannabis & other "recreational" drugs then prevailed for 15 years into adulthood, increasing my sense of despondency & decreasing my ability to cope with reality. I have been clean and dry now for a year, and for the first time in my life I wake up glad to be alive and full of joy to be free from the chains of addiction. This was achieved through the love & compassion of Jesus Christ and I praise God for the change that has taken place in my life...
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 23:20:44 GMT
Lorraine, Clydebank
I have been a heroin addict for over 20yrs but have now switched my addiction for methadone about 7yrs now but because of this you always go back & forward I am starting a new job & can only hope this will change my life.
Created: Monday 20-Feb-2006 20:46:10 GMT
Anonamoss, London
i think geting into drugs is an awfull decision. my sister got into them they changed her life for the worse and my dad and mum used to take them for a year. my sister was my mum it was the worst year of my life. i would have thought my sister would be the last person to take drugs as she has seen the consequences that they bring. my mum and dad are both clean but my sister is worse than eva.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 20:21:24 GMT
Lezley, Cumbria
I suffer from Multiple Sclerosis, Cannabis is my miracle herb, I do not consider it a "drug". I have had MS 21 years and was told when diagnosed that I'd be in a wheelchair and incontinent within 5 years, I am neither of these because I use cannabis as my medicine. There Are Two Sides To Every Story!!!
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 19:04:18 GMT
Dianne, Aberdeen
I am an addict but not heroin i have a painkiller dependancy i'm addicted to codeine and sleeping tablets. I have been this way now for 13 years and it's destroyed everything i had. I was in detox twice and i went to hell and back. I watched this morning show the 3 people i wish them all the best. The fight starts when you're on the outside. please could sombody explain the detox 5 program and the normal detox program which we get on the nhs. I think it would help addicts if they had the choice to be sedated for 2 days then the pain isn't so bad and makes most addicts go and get because of the pain when i was in for detox it was so painfull i really wish I had the chance to try this detox 5 prog ... I want to stop but going though the pain terrifies me ...
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 17:48:32 GMT
Name withheld, Ayrshire
As a man who was in a jail where subutex was a trial drug it is open to abuse. It is a drug that is to be taken orally but if crushed and snorted it has a really different effect ... Personally I would give the addicts heroin and save the tax payer millions. I have seen heroin and methadone withdrawal and by all accounts the methadone looked by far the worst and as far as I'm led to believe much, much dearer. So what will the cost of this new drug subutex be to the youngsters that are now going to be addicted to it thanks to yir man and the likes. Yir man on the cannabis would have been more addicted to the nicotine in the joint than the grass itself. And it's people like him who give a bad reputation to a drug that most smokers of it treat with respect and enjoy. Cannabis as far as I'm concerned is not addictive but like all drugs it has users who go OverTheTop and blame all their problems on it ... if they thought about it, they would have been all these things before taking the cannabis and yes, the drug will highten these feelings, so if it does stop!
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 18:20:32 GMT
Dawn, Lincoln
My sister was admitted to detox5 in Harrogate on 4 occasions, after initially being told they rarely took anybody back after the first time. Four times they took thousands of pounds of my mum's money and what we have to show for it is a headstone. The mental addiction Joanne suffered was not dealt with. detox5 may work for some strong willed addicts but i think for the vast majority it does not. It will not for as long as it remains a 5 day programme for clearing heroin from the body and not the mind.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 18:12:19 GMT
Joy, Southampton
Thank you Channel 4 – an honest, shocking account of drug addiction. I am the mother of a (hopefully) recovered addict the possibility of relapse is a constant fear. I am a professional working in NHS. The problems these families have had reflect my own experiences. Yes my son was a heroin addict, a thief, a liar but he was still my son who I loved dearly. How do you turn that love off? I believe that in 200 years' time society will view our treatment of drug addiction the way we viewed the use of leeches – with horror.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 17:40:04 GMT
Jasmine, Dover
My son has had a serious heroin problem for over 10 years, he desperatly wants to come off the drug and has tried, but without the proper support and aftercare, it's very hard to manage. the pain and problems caused by "cold turkey" are terrible for any addict. for my son it's something he can't stand without help, but unless you have thousands of pounds available for these "Detox 5" courses, then the everyday person cannot afford to take this course, making it a vicious circle of hell for them. I approached Detox 5 last year because i wanted to try to get my son on their programme to help him, but they wanted £5000, and i am a full time professional senior nurse and offered my services to help pay for his treatmenmt and bring the costs down, but i was turned down. So i feel that profit is more a consideration than really helping to get these people clean and healthy again.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 17:20:51 GMT
Laurie, Dover
My son is 29 and has had a heroin addiction since he was 16, my wife and i have lived with this for over 10 years, and the times i have literally saved my son from the inevitable is countless. we have been through hell, prison, forced rehab, hospital when he nearly died, and it's just not possible to tell the true horrors and suffering in such a short space here. He was granted DTTO from prison and spent a year in religious rehab and doing well, then it all went wrong, i rescued him and he is now living at home. He is unique in that he never injected, only smokes it, never stolen from me or my wife, i would trust him with anything, he is very loving and caring, but cannot seem to get rid of this addiction. he is a very unhappy young man because it scares him and he doesn't want to be like it. You have to admire him because he works 12 or 14 hours a day and has this addiction to deal with also, so a lot of his money is spent on it. I can't tell you how many times over the past years i have suffered by going to court and supporting him there and going to anywhere i can for help and to be there for him. I have seen friends of his in the past and other young people who have been left to their own devices and their parents dropped them and felt sad that they have no one and no support. I deeply care about this problem, and the government do not do enough to help them. rehab is too expensive for the normal addict, and substitute for heroin is as bad as the stuff itself, a proper detox and rehab programme is needed that is not expensive and evvery town should have one to help these people to get their lives back and not die on our streets because not enough is done or anyone really cares.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 16:44:09 GMT
Sarah, Sheffield
I normally don't have a problem with 'reality tv'. This even for me has gone too far. How much of 'informed choice' can poeple choosing to go on this programme make? Watching TV and seeing people suffering extreme mental distress, insomnia, vomiting and diarrhoea (which is what this will be) is just sick. There are less destructive ways of teaching people about what heroin and drugs do rather than putting 'victims' (addicts) up to public ridicule (voyerism). To try and pass this off as 'tackling the drug problem' is weak in the extreme, it's like using child pornography as a teaching tool to teach children about 'keeping safe'. It may be that this is being filmed within an addiction clinic. I would have grave doubts about the professional integrity of any organisation or professional that lends their name to this spectacle as they can have absolutely no respect for the people taking part. Detox is horrible for anyone go through, even worse in public. How far down must people be to even agree to take part? Yes I do work within mental health services and have had a lot of experience working with drug users.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 16:23:55 GMT
ANON, CREWE
I CAME OFF HEROIN 3YEARS AGO AND HAVE NEVER LOOKED BACK. HEROIN IS AN EVIL DRUG AND WITH THE HELP OF CREWE DRUG CLINIC AND SUBUTEX I'VE STAYED CLEAN AND NOW I'M OFF SUBUTEX WHICH I THINK REALLY HELPED. GOOD LUCK TO ALL ON THE PROGRAMME
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 15:10:13 GMT
John, Manchester
What I could not do, JESUS did!! I was trying to read the Bible whilst in prison, but sadly there are more drugs in prison than outside!! but I was always stoned 24/7, I asked the LORD to take away the Desire, and that was 19 years ago, GOD is GOOD, and though there were times when I stumbled, I have been FREE and and HAPPY with JESUS as my BEST FRIEND, and HE gives me PURPOSE and PEACE, I really enjoyed the honesty of J Rock, GOD Bless you all. In America there are many christian rehab programmes, but here in England sadly, it ain't politically correct!
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 14:47:44 GMT
David, London
This is broadcasting in the public interest of the highest order: congratulations on the sensitivity and intelligence with which you are handling this 'taboo' subject.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 14:29:46 GMT
James, Blackburn
A friend of mine has recently stopped using heroin after a 10yr+ period. Having successfully gone through the initial 'Cold Turkey' stage, he was successfully rehabilitated at a local drug rehabilitation organisation following a 12 'step' programme (which continues outside rehab working with a 'sponsor'). Since then he has continued to work with the organisation to help others. He had previously tried to go through Cold Turkey but unsuccessfully. I believe that a user will not be willing to go the 'whole hog' unless he/she is completely wanting to in their own mind and with the love and support of family.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 13:53:35 GMT
Chris, Oxford
As someone that has already detoxed off heroin it seems that although detox 5 is getting them clean, what is being done to help them mentally as the mental adddiction is just as bad and doing a detox without confronting their problems as to why they are on heroin, is likely to put them back in the same situation as they aren't dealing with the problems.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 13:23:19 GMT
David, Burntisland
Well done for highlighting the issue of addiction. This is not realy a question but a query. I, myself, have suffered from heroin addiction for about 15 years. My personal view of the detox 5 system is that it does work but the hard work starts when you leave. I have found that some addicts in this area do not get funding for residential treatment but make the 3 grand needed for treatment through dealing thinking that they can do better bussiness and make money without taking the drug themselves. I personally know 3 people who have done this.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 13:00:57 GMT
Shaun, Lancing
I went though detox 5 4 years ago and i think it's the worst detox ever devised. channel 4 is using desperate people to get ratings and detox 5 are only after more money. I was an addict for 8 years and I am finally clean after 2 years counselling and a subutex prescription. Detox 5 are vultures who are only interested in the money and do not truly understand heroin addiction, I have known 8 other people who used detox 5 over the years and we all relapsed soon after coming out.
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 12:35:06 GMT
Tim, Chichester
Channel 4, addicted to peddling anti-drug propaganda via cheap non-reality / reality televison, with the usual British media's one dimentional negative bias. How refreshing it would be to hear some positive illegal drug taking stories, instead of this totalitarian government sponsered propoganda. The net result of this will be to encourage more young people to take up the use of illegal drugs. If you paint your picture with only one colour then no one will accept what they see. For a start how about coming clean and true as to the benefits drugs have had on all aspects of human creativity. Firm evidence that the human race may never have evolved into the creative being that exists today, without the introduction of mind altering substances, drugs...
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 12:18:11 GMT
Abbie, Swindon
Drugs and alcohol, good? bad? well people think you it's a good buzz from both. Short term it's good, but long term it's not. i have seen people die from drugs and people i know who are dying from alcohlol. i thought i was going to die before when i was taking drugs and drinking. it's really scary. i thought i could handle more than i really could. That's how poeple die from it. It's not good and it's not clever. I am clean now and i am a better person for it. i think it's good channel 4 are doing this, as i think it can help. People who are drinking and taking drugs should take a look around them. Thier never in reality and are seriously damaging themselves. I think it's horrible people do die from drugs and drink. But drug and alcohol users ever going to ever going to listen?
Created: Monday, 20-Feb-2006 11:44:11 GMT
Shirley, Lochgilphead
I watched the programme's Monday 20th inst. As a parent I feel for the families and the individual. Good luck to all. Hope all goes well for J as he is so honest and trying so hard to make a change. It must be so hard but keep going. Touched by you all and your desire to change. All the best