The Responsibility is Yours. TheReview. Wednesday, October 31,1990 — B6 =e —eEeEeEeEeEeEeEeEeEeE—E——————___—_—_—_—_— Help here for people with subsiance abuse problems : No one needs to know your name — except the counselor and she won't tell. That’s the confidential approach the Dallas Society’s Susan Cros- kery takes when a substance abus- er reaches out for help. Croskery counsels part-time in a new office recently opened next to Sidney Elementary School. “T’ve been counselling here since August and it’s amazing how many people have come forward already and we haven’t publicized it in any way,” Croskery said. The alcohol and drug counsel- ling service is welcoming new clients and suggests those interest- ed call 655-4681 or 727-3544 to make a confidential appointment. After all, that first phone call is the biggest step that alcoholics or chronic drug abusers will take toward recovery. “Three-quarters of the battle to tecovery is being aware and know- ing what the problem is,” said Dallas Society executive director Kulli Meyer. “People are good at laying blame. Denial can be very well entrenched. “Once awareness through true acceptance is there, the person can take charge of recovery,” Meyer BRENTWOOD IDA PHARMACY 7181 WEST SAANICH RD. BRENTWOOD 652-1821 Sponsors of #220 R.C.S.C.C Admiral Budge #122 N.L.C.C. Admiral Martin SAANICH PENINSULA BRANCH NAVY LEAGUE OF CANADA 656-3344 PENINSULA CO-OP CONSUMER SERVICES 9429 CANORA RD. 656-2921 CAFE MOZART 2470 BEACON AVE BUTLER BROTHERS 2046 KEATING X RD 652-1121 SIDNEY SEAFOOD HOUSE 9819 5TH ST SIDNEY 656-7666 PANORAMA LEISURE CENTRE 656-7271 UNITED CARPET 103-9810 7TH ST SIDNEY 656-4858 SIDNEY PHARMACY 2416 BEACON AVE 656-1168 2425 B BEVAN AVE 656-0744 SIDNEY’S TOBACCO FREE PHARMACIES OAKCREST 7816 E. SAANICH RD NRS PENINSULA PROPERTIES LTD GOOD PEOPLE GOOD SERVICE #1 2475 MT. NEWTON X RD (NEXT TO McDONALD'S) 652-5171 OLD COUNTRY RENTALS 9769 5TH ST SIDNEY 656-5541 2200 KEATING X RD VICTORIA 652-2311 Working for you 4452A WEST SAANICH RD. (ROYAL OAK SHOPPING CENTRE) Please Call 479-6777 TERRY HUBERTS MLA SAANICH & THE ISLANDS SUSAN CROSKERY said. The most common substance abuse problem is abuse of alcohol — The Great Equalizer. “Usually it’s symptomatic of a -person’s discontent with them- selves,” Meyer said. “Counselling: makes people aware of their own | capacity, abilities and ability to change — do things differently.” Most people with problems don*t get up in the moming and say “I'm going drinking,” but as people go through the day they look for a solution and head for the bottle, or whatever, she said. There are certain types of sub- stances that are more popular than others, with alcohol always topp- ing the list. Others include cocaine, marijuana, opium and prescription drugs like Ativan (a newer form of Valium). — “People who have a need to be impaired seem to have a drug of choice, but when they don’t have the first choice theyll do whatever they can get,” Croskery said. The Dallas Society refers clients tO various programs depending on the client’s problem. Available on the Peninsula are Alcoholics Anonymous, Narcotics Anony- mous, Overeaters Anonymous, Families Anonymous, Alateen (for teenagers) and Alanon (a support group for families of alcoholics). Clients are referred by doctors, probation officers, other clients or by other counselors. Sometimes people are required to take coun- selling as part of a judge’s order. “Our primary goal is to help you understand and deal with the disease of addiction. If alcohol, or any other drug, is causing a prob- lem in your life — through your. Own use or someone else’s — we would like to help.” Currently the Sidney office is open for two days each week. Other Dallas Society offices in Greater Victoria offer programs, including group counselling. The society's message to sub- stance abusers who want help is clear: “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, courage to change the things I can, and wisdom to know the difference.” THE EIGHTH MAN to have walked on the moon, Apollo 11 astronaut Col. James Irwin was on hand at North Saanich Middle School on Oct. 22 to speak about how anyone can make their childhood dreams come frue. As a young boy, Irwin dreamed of visiting ofher planets. Truck driver brings across message “When a little car collides with a big truck, usually it’s the person in the car that is the worst to suffer from it,” said Suzanne Patton, an Arizona truck driver and member of America’s Road Team. In three presentations to Saanich School District secondary schools, Patton emphasized her program — Sharing the Road with a Truck — but also touched on the danger posed by drivers who are impaired. “Drinking and driving and drugs and driving don’t mix,” she said. “50 per cent of the fatalities in the United Sates are caused by drinking and driving. “Two per cent of drivers are impaired by drugs or alcohol and two per cent is too high for my industry.” Patton said that the trucking company she works for has a random drug testing program and “that’s important because every one of us has the right to know that the person behind the wheel is fully aware.” Patton runs a 500-mile loop every night she works, going about 250 miles through the desert tow- ard Los Angeles, then turning around for the drive back toward Phoenix after switching trailers. Sometimes there is 100 miles between towns and “I’ve been the first truck to too many accidents.” She became a member of Amer- ica’s Road Team after being awarded for travelling 1.2 million miles accident-free. One of the team’s major con- cems is caused by drivers moving their vehicle into a blind spot on the right-hand side of trucks as the truck driver is preparing to make a wide right-hand tum. “To avoid an accident, don’t pass a truck on the right if there is a possibility that it might make a right-hand tum.” “Those tandems on a trailer can go up and over a hood — it’s ugly,’” Patton said. There is also a blind spot behind a truck. Position your vehicle so you can see the driver through his side mirrors to ensure you are travelling where the truck driver can see you. Patton gave students other hints on driving safely around trucks, all emphasizing the fact that large trucks need lots of room to tum and stop. Drugs don’t stand a chance against these guys Students in Grade 5 at Sansbury School learned about saying “No” to drugs during a recent special presentation of a cartoon all-star video, followed by a question-and- answer period with a local Moun- fe. Cst. Kim Horsman of the Sidney RCMP told students about the hazards of drugs, then carried through the message by showing a 30-minute video — Cartoon All Stars To The Rescue. “What would you do if a friend asked you to jump into a fire,” ~ asked Horsman. After students promptly said they wouldn’t jump into the fire Horsman responded with the reply: “A real friend wouldn’t tell you to jump into a fire and a real YOU HOLD THE KEY TO YOUR FUTURE = ey ag fete) eo WHY RISK IT ALL? DRINKING DRIVING @ COUNTERATIACK friend wouldn’t offer you drugs either.” In the video, a young man by the name of Michael steals money from his younger sister’s piggy bank to buy drugs. He seems to be pressured into using drugs by his so-called friends and his consci- ence, a fictional character called Smoke. A Saanich School District coun- selor and coordinator for the Learning for Living program, Dav- id Hardcastle, has some reserva- tions about the showing of the video, which is produced with the help of funding from McDonald’s Restaurants. “Tt’s certainly entertaining but I’m not sure it’s instructional and informative,” Hardcastle said. The school district prefers social skill building programs and pro- grams that inform students about the hazards of drug use, he said. “The video practically ignores the gateway drugs, like tobacco and alcohol,” Hardcastle said. Substance awareness is part of the Learning for Living school curriculum that is taught to Saa- nich School District students, he said. Hardcastle’s main concern — that a fear-based message may not be effective — was partly support- ed by students. One student said: “I was scared when they went inside his brain.” Another said: “I was scared when he wasn’t nice to his sister.” However, the entire class of about 27 students agreed the video should be shown to all students from Grades 1 through 6. “It’s am easy way to get the message through,” said one stu- dent. The video features such comic superstars as Garfield, Don- ald Duck and Bugs Bunny. One of the 10- and 11-year-olds, when asked what he learned, replied: “If someone offers you drugs they could be after your money.” However, most students said they had tried drugs in one form or another — either a sip of beer from dad’s glass, wine at a wed- ding or a puff from a cigarette with an older friend. About 50,000 of the videos were produced for cross-Canada distri- bution during National Drug & 7 Awareness week and are endorsed s by the federal Solicitor General, the Minister of Health and the City of Winnipeg’s police chief. |