Athukoralage Bandara
National Dangerous Drugs Control Board of Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka
Title: Relationship between heroin dependency and the desire levels of the heroin users
Biography
Biography: Athukoralage Bandara
Abstract
The heroin dependency develop with the perceptions persuade by the drug user through past experiences. The drug users, peers, people in the community and even some service providers develop associations with heroin. Most of the associations connect with primary human motives as well as secondary and social motives of the human beings. The drug users internalize the associations in to their unconscious minds and project perceptions towards drug use. The perceptions create high level of desire to consume a particular drug and develop psychological dependency. There is no absolute truth in those perceptions but the drug dependents believe that there is a real relationship between the drug and the associate factor.
The working sample of 120 selected from the heroin dependents were admitted for the residential at the Galle treatment and rehabilitation centre. The control group of 20 clients has been selected from another treatment and rehabilitation centre situated in Kandy. The very first day after the admissions, the desire levels of the heroin dependents have been measured using appropriate indicators. During the period of the residential treatment programme, the counselors extensively used individual and group counseling sessions as well as group discussions to change the perceptions, illogical thinking patterns and myths of the heroin users. The past experience re-examine technique was vastly used to re- examine the past experiences of the heroin use of the clients. For the control group we did not do any therapeutic interventions to influence their perceptions, illogical thinking patterns and beliefs of myths. After completion of the treatment programme, using the same set of indicators the desire levels of the both groups were measured. After analyzing the data I found that the desire levels of the working group had been reduced immensely and the clients who belong to the control group has not projected much reduction in their desire levels.
Regular monthly follow-up programmes were conducted for both groups for one year and at the end of the year I found that those who have reduced the desire levels were living longer periods without consuming heroin and those who have not reduced the desire levels relapsed within few months. The clients who belong to the control group were unable to reduce their desire levels, relapsed immediately after releasing from the treatment centre.
Finally I found strong evidence to prove the hypothesis, that there is a positive relationship between desire levels and heroin dependency. The replications of similar programmes are widely open for further research.
Key words: Desire levels, dependency, Perceptions, association