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Last week, WW examined the resurgence of meth in Portland and its effects on emergency rooms, which have turned into de facto detox centers ("Over-Amped," Feb. 26, 2020). The drug has become extremely cheap, and meth-related overdose deaths are on the rise, already surpassing fatal heroin overdoses. Here's what our readers had to say:
Eli Lynch via Facebook: "Glad to know making Sudafed near impossible to buy has helped. (Sarcasm.)"
EsseJ, via wweek.com: "I have to drive to Vancouver to get Sudafed. So I am pretty sure that fixed the meth problem. Just like locking up the spray paint has ended graffiti in our city. Just like banning straws will stop plastic from going into the oceans. We Portlanders are pretty smart."
Susie Windwalker McGee, via Facebook: "Sounds like the police stopping the arrests has a lot to do with this epidemic. They just dumped all responsibility on health care system."
Jeremy Andreson, via Facebook: "You get one chance to be on this planet, and people just utterly throw away what they've been given."
Erin Fennessy, via Facebook: "Former meth addict here (17 years free and clear of that disaster) only to, years later, battle a raging bout with alcoholism (two years free of that one). I can assure you my intention with life was never to throw it all away. It's a dark, hellacious place we end up, and it's never on purpose. The majority of our time in that hole we wonder how we got there, hate ourselves for the pain we cause, and wish we could escape (hence the continued destruction and abuse)."
Letter: The Only Sure Fix for Meth is Hope
I am glad you are reporting about hospital emergency rooms being overwhelmed by meth-related issues such as meth psychosis. I am concerned you are not focusing on the root cause—hopelessness. Meth is a great, short-term fix for feeling hopeless. Sadness and fear go away when a person is high on meth. It is one of the cheapest quick fixes.
I personally saw meth devastate the already devastated gay community in the 1990s. The men I knew who regularly used meth were facing a terrifying, humiliating and painful death from AIDS. Meth gave them a break from the sadness and fear that was overwhelming their lives.
Today it is a different population, poor people, who are facing a terrifying, humiliating and painful death from the effects of poverty. Many are homeless. Many need to work ridiculously long hours to live in slums. They have come to a similar solution to address their sadness and fear—meth. Some of these people are going to the hospital emergency room for meth-induced psychosis.
If we want to address the problems caused by meth, we need to address the factor that causes people to want to do meth—hopelessness. The major cause of hopelessness for many people today is poverty. Until we address poverty, we can expect problems caused by methamphetamine abuse.
Stephen Arnold, LCSW
Technical Counseling
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