Diary: Avoidable and Senseless Death

DIARY: My step-niece died last week from a heroin overdose. She leaves behind her young daughter, her partner, family and friends. Although I wasn’t close with Kelly, her death did hurt people around me. This is the hardest part of any death. What drives me crazy though is that her death was unnecessary. The pain I am witnessing from her family was avoidable but still the politicians rumble along with policies that ignore deaths like this. This is going to change the life of her family forever especially her mother who I know very well. I am always going to see a broken woman from now on. Her pain or Kelly’s death though, will not effect the lives of those who set the foundations for this event to take place or those who support that we further alienate addicts. Even as I write this, I received another email from Jo Baxter of DFA on the ANCD email forum pushing her selfish agenda that was the basis of Kelly’s death. Ironic? Kelly was trying to get clean from heroin so she could have her child returned to her. After a rash decision to use heroin, she took her usual dose which was somewhat stronger than she was used to. After being clean for several months, her normal dose was too strong for her but it was the random extra strength that killed her. Added to this, she was alone because she was shameful of her use. She has been told repeatedly that she was a disgusting junkie for being addicted to heroin so rather than have someone around to make sure she was safe, she did the opposite and hid from everyone. Kelly’s partner found her slumped in a chair in the lounge room without life. Being a non user, he must be wondering why his loved one felt it necessary to purchase her drug of addiction from some criminal in a back alley which ultimately killed her. He must be confused why she even needed it. If someone who lives with an addict can’t understand, how do the politicians and lawmakers who ignore the advice from addiction experts understand? I suppose, dead people don’t vote. How can we as a society refuse to acknowledge that addiction is much stronger than a simple desire to quit. How many people have to die before politicians, moral crusaders and the likes of Jo Baxter/DFA stop pushing their selfish agenda on us all and cease their fantasy of a drug free world? When will reality and facts start to protect our loved ones from something as powerful as addiction? These are questions that have been burned onto the minds of Kelly’s family but for them it is too late. I hope the bastards who make these draconian policies and the supporters are happy with their result. R.I.P. Kelly.