[liz levasa]

he is 24 years old.he is addicted to opiates.he is a pill head.but he also smokes weed.does heroine .and takes any other pill that he can get his hands on.he takes up to forty pills everyday plus smokes weed everyday.and he drink an abundance of alcohol.he cannot survive withut drugs in his system.he has been this way for about 10 years.he has lost his family and caused pther people to lose theirs.my father saves money and he is old and tired and handicapped and he on numerous occasion has stolen money from me and my mom and dad and a lot of other family members but tonight he stole thousands of dollars from my father .on his wedding anniversary too.anyway my dad is pretty broken by the whole situation and is ready to beat my brother like a man and one that isnt his son.i am scared for him and i know that he wont go voluntarily to a rehab so is there any way i an save him?

[amb]

Sorry to hear this. Drugs are a bad habit to break. Just know that it's hard to stop once you are addicted. He isn't going to be able to just stop all of a sudden.It's good that you are about him and want to help him. Sadly, he's not going to get better until he wants to. He's an adult so your parents can't put him in rehab. A drug addict has to want to change for it to work. What your family needs to do is cut off all contact with him. Tell him that none of you will talk to him while he's on drugs. You wont have anything to do with him until he stops using. It will be hard but if he wants in your lives it will make him wake up. Maybe he'll realize that drugs are making his family disown him and that if he wants his family in his life he needs to get rid of drugs. Maybe he will then come and ask for help. Set him down and talk to him. Look up stuff online about what the drugs that he is doing can do to his body. Print it off and show it to him. The t.v. network A&E has a show called Intervention. They ask drug addicts to be on a show about drugs and addiction. The addict agrees to it and they follow them around for awhile so the addict can show what his life is like with drugs. At the end they have family and friends come together and stage an intervention the person usually ends up going to rehab. Contacting them is always an option. A really harsh thing to do would be to call the cops on him when you know he's high and driving a vehicle. He will get arrested and go to jail and that will be sad to see happen but they will get him help. They will put him in rehab but like I said, if he doesn't want to stop rehab isn't going to do anything for him. Sitting in jail will clean him out though and maybe it will help. No one wants to see a family member go to jail but no one wants to see them die either and that's what will happen if he keeps this up. He will either kill himself or kill someone else.Good Luck I hope he gets help. You are a great sister!

[btb 4/18/09!]

if he won't go voluntary then there is nothing you can do...i know its hard to coop with..but thats something that he has to do on his own.. trust me..just pray.

[jenibug]

Usually, if a doctor knows the situation, you could possibly get the doctor to help you but it takes at least 2 family members to sign him in...and that is if he is or has been mentally unstable and that can be proven. Otherwise, it can be a real struggle. Your Brother has to want to get better sweetie and no one can make him even if he gets into emergency rehab. If your dad wants him to pay for what he done...tell him to file criminal charges on your brother for theft and see them through all the way. It is really hard...and no one wants to put their family in jail, but if no one holds him accountable for what he is doing to you and your dad and the rest of your family, things are just going to get worse and he will end up hurting himself or someone else physically, or worse than that he could die. Good Luck in your struggle...God Bless

[letterstoheather]

I'm sorry hon... addicts only care about one thing, and that is their addiction.Your brother won't get help until HE wants help.Please get help for yourself -- you can go to an OPEN narcotics anonymous meeting, or check out the Narcotics Anonymous website. it has a lot of helpfulr information for people whose lives are affected by an addict... you can check out the"NA Literature Online"link.sending hugs.

[Harley]

sorry to hear about your brother ,and the whole family and all the friends.I have been involved In very little drugs ,and that was years ago.My son was getting into the drugs and starting to get locked you a few times,but nothing like your brother .All I can tell you and your family is he has to go to the bottom and go back up.and that maybe calling the law,and haveing him lock up,because obeious this is getting wores quick,and Pray gor his .Best of luck