I want to break free

Jasmine Singh

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It shouldn’t startle us that as per United Nations Drug Report, India is the biggest consumer of heroin. Cocaine or coke or Charlie as it's commonly known, is another favourite among the 25-34 age group. Recently, celebrity rapper Yo Yo Honey Singh shared his stories on battling substance abuse, only to come out victorious by giving the addiction a tough fight.

For Honey Singh it was an error of judgement, something that the youngster of Punjab is commonly known to do. In the end, however, all is well, if it ends well. Here are some youngsters from the Tricity and the region who had the courage to say ‘no’ to substance abuse.

Battling it out

They don’t take pride talking about it. In fact, they never did. Today, however, is an all-together different story, as they have tested their inner strength, established restraint, and came out real winners.

Gurkirat Sidhu from Chandigarh is one of the brave souls. What started as ‘just for fun sake trial’, ended up as a big time substance addiction. “Before I realised, I was neck-deep in it, I was losing out on health and everything that made my little world.” He was going towards an irrevocable damage. “I decided to leave it once and for all. It wasn’t easy; after all it was an addiction, and something I was used to for a very long time.”This good-looking youngster reached out for life. “My parents are my biggest strength, and I could do this only because I want them to be with me always.”

What makes these youngsters different from the other addicts is their willingness and strength to come out of the habit. It’s never easy, but they seem to be enticed way too much by the prospects of a drug-free life!

Varun Sharma from Chandigarh is yet another young lad who would feel high with his hard liquor intake. “Marijuana is the drug that gave me the signal that something bad was happening to me, I decoded the signal.” Handling addiction... “Phew, an addict would understand how your blood asks for it. Self-restraint is the only biggest challenge; once this is taken care of rest is easy.” Asking friends to call him after every hour, deciding to share his room with his elder sister, saying no to any kind of party, even a school reunion, were some of the ways, Samir Prashar resorted to overcome addiction.

Realisation of the fact that life cannot be wasted in such a useless affair also works in getting out of the substance problem. Ravinderjit Singh Vicky from Dhuri, Patiala, who drives private vehicles, and also pursues his studies simultaneously, “At one point, I started questioning my addiction; I found the whole exercise fruitless. I didn’t want to die for nothing. Who would take care of my family? Getting over it... “I would feel someone tearing me from inside, I had gallons of water during that phase,” says Vicky who has resumed studies now.

Holly’s tough fight to substance abuse

• Robert Downey Jr was arrested numerous times on various drug charges. He even went to rehab numerous times but kept on relapsing until he kicked the habit. 
• Samuel Jackson also battled drug addiction in the past and even overdosed on heroin several times. 
• Oprah Winfrey admitted to doing crack cocaine during her troubled youth when she was also abused. 
• Angelina Jolie had once said in an interview, ‘I have done just about every drug possible— cocaine, ecstasy, LSD and, my favourite, heroin.’ 

Bollywood celebs too

• Sanjay Dutt in the early years of his career was into drugs and under his father's insistence, got treated at a drug rehab centre in the US.
• Fardeen Khan, the actor had to undergo a detoxification course for drugs addiction. 
• Geetanjali Nagpal, a former model went to the extremes of drug addiction. 
• Yo Yo Honey Singh, rapper has openly spoken about his battle with alcohol addiction.