Admire Chatindo
A 32 year old man who was a drug addict and quitted after 20 years has said though his journey was not easy, it was just possible and encouraged others involved in drugs to quit before it was too late.
George Mahlahla spoke to TellZim News at an Anti- Drug organized by ZRP and other stakeholders at Mamutse stadium recently.
He said started he taking drugs at the age of 13, when he was a seventh grader. He continued to indulge in drugs until he was expelled from school in form 2 because of mischief but that didn’t stop him as he continued taking more drugs.
He said he had to stop going to school for three years and during this three year period he had abandoned thoughts of continuing with school.
He then relocated to Harare and decided to continue with school where he did form 3 – 4 and passed four subjects including bible knowledge, but he never turned to God.
“I started taking drugs at the age of 13, I did my primary school at Runyararo primary and my secondary education at Ndarama Secondary and I was expelled when I was in form 2 and I stayed for 3 years without going to school.
“I then relocated to Harare and decided to continue with school and I passed four subjects at form 4 but by then I was now getting drugs in Mbare and I had to spend more of my time there taking drugs with friends,” he said.
Mahlahla said he abused every drug that was available including; crystal meth, marijuana and would inject some of these drugs into his blood stream.
The drugs had a negative bearing on him physically, he lose weight terribly, his skin color turned black, always sick, and got even more sick when he tried to stop.
“I used to take crystal meth, broncleer, pills, skunk, marijuana and I would use syringe to inject some of the substances into my blood stream.
Physically, I lost weight, my skin color was black completely, always feeling sick and dropping when I couldn’t get the drugs, I was affected physically.
“After taking drugs I would become energetic and the feeling back then was ‘pleasurable’ and led me to take more drugs” he said.
In trying to stop he resorted to, distance himself from friends of bad influence on taking drugs, and the more he tried to resist the temptation of drugs, the more the appetite to take would get hold of him;
“It was hard for me to stop taking drugs, I had to isolate myself from friends with whom I used to take drugs with, out of the community, chose to be alone
The more I wanted to stop the more those drug friends would come and offered me the substance for free” he said.
Mahlahla said was almost impossible for him to leave drugs, and said the journey to freedom from drugs was a fight against self, as cravings become more and friends would come in the period when he was reforming, giving him free drugs and money was also readily available;
“It’s not easy, it’s not an easy road, I have to say it, the more you want to come out of it the more you need more of drugs
You will be fighting against your own decision to leave drugs, the more you want to leave them, the more they are at your disposal and money to purchase them is available, more friends and more people willing to give you drugs freely” said Mahlahla
Mahlalha said he later managed and he is now a man of the cloth, a church pastor at a local church and he is inspirited to conscientious those into drugs to stop taking them as nothing is gleaned by taking them but with one’s strong, personal decision to leave drugs;
“I am now a pastor at Alliance church and I graduated as a man of the cloth.
I am now here to educate those who are taking drugs, and those planning to start taking drugs that, you benefit nothing in them. You have to make a strong decision and stop. Make a decision and sought for help from pastors or rehab centers,” he said.
