Drug abuse in BKK

[Plainsdrifter]

Just returned a few days ago and I now see I have a serious problem with my GF.

 

Apologies in advace for the length of this post.

 

While I have been away for the past 6 weeks my gf has been staying in my apartment in BKK alone. One of the ways she seemed to deal with the fact that she was alone was to smoke something she called "ganga" which is an orange colored pill that smells a lot like vanilla. I have smelled this in the bathroom in the past but she finally broke down yesterday and told me that she cannot quit and if she stops smoking this for one day she has physical pain inside her joints. She says that she needs me to be with her for about a month to help her quit....to massage her when she has this pain,to keep her eating and to generally stay with her.

 

This has hit me from left fiels and I don't know what to do. who do I/We turn to. I don't even know what this substance is so I have no way of figuring out how serious her problem is. Is there a cure?

 

She says she wants to quit but she must have time but I cannot stand to see her go out early in the morning to get her

supply of this stuff, am worried that she may be arrested, may come to some harm...sometimes I have visions of police knocking on our door and taking us both away for this.

 

I know some will say to just walk away and get another soul to take her place, but I just will not let her sink into this. Except for this she is an angel that I would like to spend the rest of my life with but I am beginning to fear for my own safety.

 

She speaks of gf's of hers that also into this scene. Today she told me of her neighbor across the hall, a university student, who also smokes this stuff and today gave her one pill and was going to get her some for tomorrow. I would never guess that this university, so clean cut would be into this.

 

Has anyone ever come across with a similar experience and what is the implication for a farang in BKK being in the same apartment with this going on? Am I being overly paranoid?

 

Any help on this matter from anyone would be really appreciated.

[think_too_mut]

>Am I being overly paranoid?

 

Anything less than that would be, to put it mildly, irresponsible.

 

Would you want to be in the apartment when police comes for whatever reason and the "substance" is around? Your ass is grass.

 

Too serious, hope this is not a troll. Moderators, are you keeping an eye on this thread?

 

[Plainsdrifter]

May I add that the apartment is in my name not hers and she has all these telltale signs of smoking this stuff in the bathroom, aluminium foil, paper tubes, lighters etc.

 

All she has told me in the past that the police have arrived at the apartrment building in the past and arrested people.....this apartment building is near a university campus and most of the residents are students. All this combined gives me cause for alarm.

[Guest]

You got two choices here. Walk away...fast. Or if you really care about her, enroll her in an in-house (out of yours) drug abuse program. Bumrungrad should be able to provide you with info., even if they do not have a program themselves.

 

Are you listening? Two choices. And make your decision fast.

 

HT

[bibblies]

Hi Plainsdrifter (still can't resist it - you shouldn't have chosen that name)

 

From your description it sounds a lot like "yaa baa" although the pills are more often red than orange. I wouldn't be too paranoid about the police finding out - there's a lot of abuse out there so their resources are stretched and the chances of your apartment being raided are slim.

 

I had a similar problem last year (actually it was worse, with a lot of complications). There didn't seem to be a lot of help immediately available. I went to Bumrungrad, asked the doc and he told me the Police Hospital was about the only place he knew that had a special program. But he also told me that a specialist comes in to Bumrungrad a few times a week and that he knew more about it. The problem then went out of my hands a bit so I didn't follow it up. (It's OK now btw - she's kicked it of her own volition. And she was a very troublesome abuser - schizophrenic symptoms, etc.)

[Guest]

I concurr sounds like "yaa baa". Um, as with any drug problem the effort to quit must come from the abuser. My advice is to make your decision on leaving if you see any evidence of continued drug use while making suggetions for treatment. Be firm as nobody will be interested in your side of the story should the police show up.

 

Sounds harsh but if it was me I would hit the road, quickly.

 

best of luck

[Hidy Ho]

Has anyone ever come across with a similar experience and what is the implication for a farang in BKK being in the same apartment with this going on? Am I being overly paranoid?

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If your concern is about her, then you might want to start by reading the following website:

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http://www.thailandlife.com/diary_interview1.html

 

You are about to read the first of ten harrowing interviews with a young Thai drug addict. What makes this account so fascinating is that the whole story was played out live on the internet. Thousands of people from around the world visited the web site between April and November 2001. This first interview was meant to be a one-off to show the situation of drugs in a Thai school. At that time, young Gor had only just started experimenting with drugs and he was determined that he would never become a drug addict. What happened next took everyone by surprise and brought tears to the eyes of many of his regular visitors.

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The Thai kid in the story "Gor" used to post on this board in the Language section as "Nattawud" and also have a weekly in Bangkok Post.

 

And there have been recent discussion on the subject on this board as well.

 

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If your primary concern is about YOU then I don't think you can be overconcerned ... especially as you are not aware of the subject.

 

You may have to make a choice of taking a risk (exactly what that is I don't know, Fly???) and try to help her or think of yourself and do what it takes to cut the tie. I don't think you can be wishy-washy about it though ... IMHO, 100% commitment one way or the other.

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[Plainsdrifter]

Further to yesterday's post. We spent the whole of last night talking about her problem with her showing me where in the apartment she kept all her stuff. She says she wants to quit and wants to enter a program in Bangkok for one or two weeks, but the problem she says is that someone needs to be with her as support for a few weeks after so she wouldn't slip back into that life again. We finally went to sleep this morning at 8AM. This afternoon she wakes me up that she has the pain again in her joints and must smoke again....she wants me to give her permission.

 

The problem with all this is that I am not here to help her through withdrawal if she goes to a treatment program. I am scheduled to leave in another 9 days and will return early December.

 

Am afraid that when I come back next time she may not want to quit then.

[bibblies]

I went through a phase of trying to be with her as support but despite my best efforts she'd always sneak off sooner or later. The quitting only occured once I was out of the way - basically she realised the destruction she was wreaking on herself and her loved ones and quit for them, by herself.

 

The one thing that might be beneficial is to get her away from her current environment. It's all too easy to slip back if she's still in the circle of her same old druggy firends.

 

The 'pain in the joints' isn't that bad btw. It's just that, after the initial rush, the drug takes away your energy. Basically, it gives a large portion of your happiness/energy store as an advance payment, but it all comes from the same overall pot so you have to pay with reduced levels later. I remember a time I smoked about eight pills after not having done it for a long time. It was fun for a while but after it wore off I spent most of the next three days in bed feeling completely exhausted, sleeping.

 

 

[Plainsdrifter]

Bibblies:

You seem to know exactly what she is going through.

But in your opinion can this be licked? Can she stop and stay off or is it something like alcohol--once an alcoholic always an alcoholic.

 

I think I can deal with the usual crafty, evasive tg but this presents another complication that may not be able to be handled by me or by anyone else.