Behind bar: Drug users a path to recovery

Drug abuse is one of the most serious social problems which is being faced worldwide. It is essential not only to take measures to reduce the supply and demand of abused drugs but also to put into practice a wide range of policies in the areas of criminal, medical, social, economic and welfare policy, etc. This study was designed to acquire the life experience of a drug addict in determining the profile of the respondents, the life of the respondents in using illegal drugs, the effects of the illegal drugs to the respondents, and the coping mechanism of the illegal drug user. The respondents of the study were the 50 illegal drug users under the custody of the Rehabilitation Centre and Bureau of Jail Management and Penology. Findings revealed that the present age of the illegal drug users are still young and still have the chance to change for the betterment. The civil status also plays an important role in engaging in drug addiction, and the respondents who were earning before they were placed in the rehabilitation center and prison shows that they are capable of earning and having the abilities to work. Using illegal drugs not only happen at an early age, but there are also some who were at the stage of their adulthood who started using illegal drugs. Friends and acquaintances can have an increasingly strong influence during adolescence. Mental/emotional, physiological/psychological, family, peers, community, financial, behavioral, and academic were some of the factors that affect the respondents after they used illegal drugs. The respondents often think of how to cope up with the consequences brought to them by using illegal drugs.