European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - November 19, 1985, Darmstadt, Hesse A craving stronger than the work ethic Crft glom of South America. Five been testing for cocaine Lor some time i staff officer involved with the army s urinalysis ram in Europe and we re not seeing much of a Tern with the 19.000 soldiers tested for cocaine use in Timber less than 30 had positive test results he those statistics Are in spite of the fact that the of cocaine has dropped significantly in Europe. He old Story of you having to be a doctor or a � to afford it is no longer the Case at least not in Europe he said. Ice and those familiar with the drug Trade in a Peg the current Price of cocaine at around i per Gram enough for a weekend for the atonal user and affordable for disposable a Rich service members. Mana l Afleur inevitably affects non users. Craig a South Miami resident can attest to the Impact on his tranquil neighbourhood. Morning last year he was forced to evacuate iffy from their Home As police prepared a raid on peeled lab across the Street. Three deliveries of me and Ether chemicals used in cocaine jct on reportedly had been delivered during the to new neighbors in a Cement Block Home. After rest Mccall was stunned to learn that the Cato had a destructive Power of 500 pounds of i a these houses could have been blown up. Of those houses was mine he said. A class of the Federal drug enforcement Tetra ton Dea readily admit they Don t have a 1� on the problem. While Miami s cocaine labs ate innovative traffickers invent new " a Button methods As cultivation areas expand. In Al a new Type of coca Bush Padu is reportedly thing in Low lying areas without the High Altitude cements of its andean sister the coca Plant. Prt8 familiar with Padu say it could grow in _ 1 Florida but they believe traffickers won t risk ing crops because the harvests Are easily Ivi ast month Dea s top administrator info pledged that cocaine was the nation s no. 1 of Choice. It is available said John an t go out and say that with added resources Ca to going to go out and solve the problem he i reporter because we Aren t. The problem is a than Law enforcement is Able to Cope in writer j. L Kohl Nickl contributed to this report. 1985 by Jeanne Dequine Cox news service t he Story is frequently the same. First comes the Heady sensational High. But something goes wrong. Over a period of months often years. The desire Lor cocaine turns into a craving stronger than the professional work ethic. Some Days i would go into the bathroom to shoot up while clients were in my of lace. I was sweating in front of them and saying i was sick. Sometimes i had blood running Down my neck where i had been shooting cocaine. I was going to court late he said. I did not prepare adequately. I tried to Wing it All the the lawyer with the Gold rolex watch behind the immense desk Speaks openly about the cocaine and other drugs he used. He still practices Law. In fact he always practice Law even while heavily addicted. But even he questions How Well he might have managed. For Tom. A pseudonym of a Miami trial lawyer in his Early 30s, the Power of attorney took on a new meaning during three years he was addicted to cocaine and other drugs his Story is one of a fallen overachiever. He came from a family of prestige professionals among whom High grades and achievement were the Norm. Tom began snorting cocaine in Law school about 10 years ago and gradually began shooting cocaine with a Friend. Coke made me feel like i could do anything he said. He functioned Well during his first few years out of Law school. Then he found he needed More. To me there was no such thing As a Little he said. There were people who could do a Little bit but i could for while Tom confined shooting up to Home because he was afraid to step outside. I was too paranoid. I imagined people were following he graduated to heroin. His business began to fall off but he managed to maintain a front. I still had a few clients and was Able to look Good. I still had t crossed the but there was a line to Cross and he did. Tom reached a Point at which there was no turning Back. His habit which had been limited to weekends became a daily one. Nothing seemed to Stop him not hepatitis no psychiatric treatment. The psychiatrists approached addiction As a secondary symptom to a More conventional illness such As by now the cocaine was t delivering. The highs were Shorter the depressions longer. I hated Coke but i always shot it. Immediate gratification was what i his addiction began eating up his earnings. I maxed out every credit card i he said. He limited his practice to routine Legal cases wills divorce and real estate closings. He never stole Money from his clients he said but things were getting worse. I would shoot massive quantities of Coke and go into emergency rooms announcing i was an attorney and i was dying. It Felt like the like most addicts who recover Tom hit a Bottom. I was married. We were both using. We had no Money Lor food or electricity. My Wile went into a mental altar at a local treatment Center Tom joined narcotics Anonymous a Fellowship Lor drug users trying to quit. Although there have been ups and Downs. Tom has been straight Lor nearly three years. He socialize with other recovering addicts from a avoiding bars and his old haunts. He works with the Florida bar association s recovery network helping alcoholic and drug using lawyers. He has remarried. I m thinking about babies the stuff everybody thinks about that i never dreamed was possible for me. Look at How i lived he said breaking into sobs at his desk recently. I m grateful Lor what god has left me. He left me my Sharon twas psychological problems linked to cocaine abuse incidence of cocaine associated problems Imons soc users who called the National. Cocaine helpline. At Elepha in advisory 1 service Wilh head fair Oaks Hospital. Summit. N j depression. To anxiety. H3 irritability. 82 apathy d paranoia 1 i Iti cult y co n cd n t a l i i g 65 -\ienv0r-Ylpr-qblcms_5.7c- loss sex Cirive 530 panic attacks Atter tipped suicide i 9o Early afternoon one Day in 1981 in Paris. Or was it London wakened by the Sun s Flicker into her hotel room she rolled Over to face a sleeping stranger. She wondered who the Man was and went Back to Steep. It was another hazy Day during the years she spent addicted to cocaine other drugs and alcohol. She was a flight attendant with a major commercial Carrier and she still is. When she s not in the air Sharon. 34, helps other flight attendants struggling with the weakness that shadowed her for years the lure of easy to get cocaine. For single attractive women cocaine is always available. You get this Aura about you. And people know who you Are. The look in your eyes says let s party you can get it in bars in restaurants and with a charge card there s always a network in any profession. We All knew who got High and who carried for flight attendant a cocaine habit is easy to conceal Sharon said. You re away from Home and you can do whatever you want on layovers. Your friends Don t see you every night getting drunk or using women have a special weakness she said. It gives you a sense of Power a feeling that you Are in control. It also keeps you thin. I could go without lunch the whole Day. I would do a couple of lines instead of having lunch. You feel pretty Good. Then you Start crashing and you do a Lew More. But you never get the same High you originally got. You lose your Freedom of Choice. You lose All your natural Lears. I was in drug houses with people with guns. I went to living with a drug dealer. My eyes were hollow dead looking. I was crying All the like Many drug abusers. Sharon used other stimulants including alcohol. She eventually went to a psychiatrist who referred her to a 28-Day treatment program with the help of her Union which got her the time Oil Wilh no questions asked by her employer. Although her work masked her problems from her employers she knew she had a big problem. She sought help from alcoholics Anonymous. Sharon has t used cocaine or taken a drink in two years. For the first time. I m beginning to know who Sharon is. The most important three words i Ever said were i need help " the stars and stripes Page 15
