My Son is an Addict

My name is Sandy and my son is addicted to crack cocaine. My son started out smoking marijuana when he was 14 I didn't know at first because I didn't know anything about drugs then I noticed his eyes were red he was laughing a lot eating more than usual. We fought a lot Jon said oh mom everyone gets high its not bad. It then got to the point when he was getting high from the time he got up until he went to bed. When he was 16 he started smoking crack cocaine. That is when my hellish nightmare began crack is a highly addictive drug the first time you smoke crack they say its the highest high you can get its a 20 minute high and once you come down from it you want more and you cant stop. He only did it once in a while but then it got worse. I've had my son in 4 different rehabs and the list goes on. He started to steal out of the house I would cry every day I didn't know what to do. Rehab only works if you want the help it cant change you you have to want to change. My son is the kindest person and would do anything for anyone, he has a problem. "Mom I'm sorry I don't want to hurt you, I love you" he would say to me as he cried. Crack cocaine is a mental addiction but its always in the back of your mind to do. A person can be clean for 10 years and you could relapse at any time. Well at the age of 18 Jon decided to rob a store and the worker at the store new Jon for 8 years . He walked in and said to the clerk give me the money in the drawer the clerk looked at Jon and said "Get out of here Jon!" Jon ran out of the store, a few minutes after the state police called me and told me Jon tried to rob a convenient store. He went to jail and the judge released him. He had never been in trouble before. I could sit here and write a book, the bottom line is he ended up going to state prison for 2 years he didn't have to go but Jon kept violating his probation by failing his drug tests. Jon has been home since July but in October last year it started again. How can a person be clean for two years then start over again I asked myself? I told Jon you are either going to die or spend the rest of your life in jail. He tries so hard to stay clean, marijuana is a gate way drug. Jon and I are very close I love him more than anything I also have an 18 year old daughter who has never tried drugs and is a good girl and my 12 year old daughter is an honor roll student. What happened to Jon?

Doctors and lawyers and judges that have kids that are addicted to drugs its not always the parents fault. Just don"t turn your back and not believe your child could never be an addict you have to catch it right away before its to late. Talk to your child they need you, please don't be ashamed its not your fault. You can be the best parent in the world and don"t worry about what your friends will say, they can't judge you if they have anything to say about you or your family you don"t need them remember that. Yelling isn't the answer if you need to talk to someone please talk to me I can tell u a lot more help your child before its to late. This is just a little of what I've been through. I know the signs of what to look for and what to help you do to find out from your child on whats going on. you cant watch them 24 hours a day but you can notice if they"re behavior is changing a lot. They will also get angry when questioned if they are using, very defensive. Please talk to you child and help. Addiction is a disease.