'I was terrified': Mother of drug addict speaks of intimidation her family suffered from gangs

Speaking at the event, the mother of a man in recovery from a drug addiction said problems with drugs such as cocaine are “not just confined to cities” and people may not be aware of this until they have a first-hand experience of it.

“Unless it actually comes to your door, you don’t realise it,” Eileen said. “I started seeing a change in his behaviour. He’d never let me in, he’d never talk to me. But things started to get worse.” 

She said when she was made aware he had “gone from alcohol to weed to cocaine”, it was like the pieces of a puzzle coming together as she understood what was happening.

The event had heard about intimidation from drug-dealing gangs, a problem plaguing many families, and this mother said it was something she had also experienced.

“Unfortunately, the intimidation started, and that was absolutely terrifying because I was terrified for my son,” she said. 

“I thought one of these days he’d not come home. I was terrified for every other member of my family, for their safety.

“I eventually realised I can’t do this anymore. I needed help.” 

She went to a meeting of a support group for families and did not look back from there. 

Three years on, her son is in recovery and has “never looked back”.

The event, chaired by Irish Examiner security correspondent Cormac O’Keeffe, also heard from addiction counsellor Greg Christodolou, who has authored a new report on “trauma in the community”, published to coincide with the launch of Fari.

This report estimated there are between 191,000 and 278,000 family members in Ireland impacted by the addiction of a loved one to drugs or alcohol. 

This is based on publicly-available data but the true figure could be far greater if gambling addiction was factored in, he said. 

He said projects such as Drive, a Government initiative to support families affected by drug-related intimidation, were positive but could benefit from changes.

“It is a wonderful initiative, but it’s only funded on a yearly basis and to date, there is no family representation on that,” Mr Christodolou said. 

“The best people to identify what they need are the individuals that are affected.

Instead of a top-down approach, which we’re used to in this country, we need to get back to the community development aspect. This is the hidden reality facing families.

FARI spokesperson Breda Fell said the new organisation was built on years of hard work from groups around the country.

She said the new national drugs strategy must meet the needs of those who use drugs, as well as their families and communities.

“Some of us have been involved in the consultation process, but that’s not the same thing as being involved in the decision-making process. I hope now, from today on, that will change.”