2 stories in the NY Times today relating to heroin addictions and the consequences thereof, which i’m posting here following my year last year in a psychology internship working with opiate addicts. i wrote less than i thought i might about that experience as it was going on – though in retrospect the idea that i would have the energy to write when i got home seems pretty idealistic considering that even doing my schoolwork was extremely challenging. the year did bring issues of drug addiction much more alive for me of course, leading to strong responses of
1. touching: a one-man show that i really wish i was in new york to see sometime over the next 6 weeks, by a man raised by heroin addicts who both died of AIDS when he was a teenager. we had many discussions in our intern group about working with clients who were struggling to parent while drug-addicted, so the story of a child who grew up in this situation who worked through adversity to recovery through the arts is powerful. the article mentions a documentary about him, which hopefully i can see since i’m too far from the play performance.
and
2. troubling: a report of heroin use on the rise among affluent teens in new york, as it becomes more accessible, more “cool”, and cheaper than other drugs. scary.
