‘Na competition with my friends make me begin smoke igbo’ - Former addict

Dis na di personal tori of drug addicts wey don do plenti battle to try stop drug abuse.

E don reach five years wey Ogochukwu dey try stop smoke Igbo. But if im stop am, small time e go start again.

But for di past six months now, e dey try to stop am again.

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Ogochukwu say, "e first start as competition among my friends wen we dey school but before I know, e don take over my life." Dat na how im take start to abuse cannabis aka Igbo, five years ago.

Im tell BBC Pidgin tori pesin Karina Igonikon say, "di first time I high, e be like say I dey drive motor new new. Di tin shack me well well, make me feel like say I fit do anytin."

Now, Ogochukwu dey do counselling and take treatment to stop di habit, but e say, e no easy at all because di urge dey always come back.

One of di tin wey dey make am go back na wen sometin make am vex well well, e be like na di Igbo na im dey make am calm down. But e say na constant struggle to stop di habit because di urge always dey tempt am to take am as "e dey like wen you take panadol to stop headache, dat feeling go always dey to want to dey feel dat relief."

Na dis wan Ogochukwu say dey make most drug addicts tiff, sell anytin even property or do anytin to get money to get di next fix.

For im rehabilitation, Ogochukwu say if im say na im take in hand stop to take igbo say na lie. "Na as my pipo see as I don depreciate na im dem carry me come here to start counselling and treatment."

E come advice parents wey get pikin wey dey abuse drugs not to give up on dia pikin because di pesin fit no know how bad e dey affect am.

Im say di biggest tin in don lose na time. "Wetin I don lose na time. You no go fit measure di time you lose. Di time wey you fit take do better tin, you don waste am wia you dey one bunker dey wait for pesin to give you Igbo. Any time you lose you no fit get am back."

For Michael, im start to smoke Igbo to feel among as many of im friends for secondary school dey smoke am. E come dey take am to ginger am for im music career, but na im parents na im carry am come start treatment to stop di habit and e don reach five months wey e neva take am and e hope to kontinue to stay clean.

Mrs Stella Maris Amede na di Principal Staff Officer Drug Demand Reduction Unit, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency NDLEA Rivers State Command. She dey in charge of counselling and rehabilitation for pipo wey dey abuse drugs.

She tell BBC Pidgin say e dey very important for parents to monitor and listen to dia children to know wetin dey happen to dem.

She say apart from di constant urge to wan take drugs anoda tin wey make e easy for pipo wey dey try to stop drugs to go back na wen dem dey vex, dey depressed or dey bored. She say for many of dem wey dey into music, dem dey feel say dem need sometin to ginger dem to get mind to perform like di case of Michael.

Mrs Amede say dis na im make family support dey very important to help pipo wey dey addicted to drugs as e go ginger dia self esteem to know say dem fit do anytin without drugs.