Battling illegal drugs

Makeada Greenidge is the Community Programme Officer at the National Council on Substance Abuse (NCSA), committed to fighting the use of illegal drugs in Barbados. (Picture by Lennox Devonish.)

By Anesta Henry | Wed, February 01, 2012 - 11:45 AM

Makeada Greenidge is passionate about the battle against illegal drugs.

And she is aware that the fight can be fierce and long, with some disappointments. There are times when she will win and times when she will lose.

In her fight, she intends to make full use of literature, speech and the harsh realities of the dark side of drugs as her weapons.

This 27-year-old is the Community Programme Officer at the National Council on Substance Abuse (NCSA), which is committed to helping young people on drugs to get off and also those who are not involved with drugs to steer clear.

Whether she is carrying out her work in the schools or communities, Greenidge is faced with challenges. She often meets people who refuse help because they see nothing wrong with using drugs. She is excited by the prospect of helping those who say they want assistance.

Greenidge, who designs and implements drug-fighting programmes, said: “I love my job. This is my dream job. In my work I have a variety [of people and concerns]. Some might come in and just need one counselling session and that one sense of direction is clear for them.

“Counselling is really hearing their story because they are the professional in the room; all I do is guide them. I am so excited when I follow up on them a year later and I hear some of them doing well.

“Most of the time, curiosity at a young age is what triggers some of us to make decisions at a young age. But the thing is to make a decision that is informed.

“It is very important that people in general know the impact of any type of drug use, even the abuse of medicine. They need to know how drugs can affect the brain, the body, the family and their friends,” said Greenidge, who trains NCSA volunteers.

The social worker told the MIDWEEK NATION that she is often confronted with a number of myths about drugs and this causes her to get involved in many debates.

“The first area of argument that people bring to me is that if it is marijuana that it is natural and that it is the healing herb,” she noted. “I hear that God put marijuana on earth and whatever God puts here is good. They bring different scriptures in the Bible that speak about herb but when you really read the Bible, herb speaks of vegetation.

“. . . I always have my rebut and I bring the argument that God creates the forbidden tree, too, and he did say not to use it. There are things that are created that man and even animals should not use. And there are certain things you find that animals would not use.

“There are certain things that are good for the body and certain things that are harmful. If you want to argue that all things are good, I tell people to go ahead and use the nettle, the cowitch and the other thousands and thousands of poisonous plants that are out there,” she said.

Having been attached to the NCSA from age 14, as a youth ambassador and peer supporter while at The Lodge School, Greenidge says she is equipped with sufficient knowledge about drugs to encourage people to stay away from them “and find an alternative such as reading, travelling, writing songs or poems, to help you relax”.

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Posted by young dennis 3 months, 2 weeks ago

Good luck Makeada. I commend you for taking this path,even though it will be full of pitfalls. Once drugs take hold of one’s mind only strong words can loosen the grip.

Believe.