I always have a good laugh when I read people’s opinions on something they have no clue of, and yet are deeply opinionated. Addiction in particular.
It is by no means a simple issue. People don’t decide one day “Hmmm, I feel like being addicted to a devastating habit that will ruin my life, leaving me penniless and alone... sounds swell!”.
There are many economic and personal factors at play; people don’t get the help they need before they make bad decisions. The psychological support offered by the NHS is, unfortunately, woefully inadequate.
To enter the spiral of addiction you have to be in a pretty dark place, it catches up with people while they still believe they’re just having a bit of fun. By the time they realise they’re in a terrible position, it’s often far too late. Once you’re there, the willpower and effort required to get out is unimaginably great, and required when someone is at their lowest ebb.
If you’re thinking ‘it’s simple, just don’t do it’, then you’re both very ignorant, and far more privileged (and I hate how that word is used these days) than you realise. Be grateful you don’t understand how easily someone’s life, and their addiction, can spiral out of control.
Homelessness is something that really bothers me - I wish it on nobody...
