Methamphetamine: A Love Story Summary
Class Concepts Rashi K. Shukla’s “Methamphetamine: A Love Story” could be a textbook itself about social problems. Many different concepts discussed in “Social Problems: Community, Policy, and Social Action” can be observed through the lives of only 33 participants from Oklahoma. Each adult described the world of methamphetamine in necessary, but excruciating detail. They told of traumatic childhoods, the impact of the drug on their mental well being, and the burden it had on those closest to them. They also explained how they broke free from its tempting grasp, what type of treatment they received, and how their lives were forever altered by their involvement with methamphetamines. One of the first social concepts that can be found in the
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Sobriety presents a whole different set of challenges for recovering methamphetamine addicts. Matthew is “going through a lot of tests. He took my house. He hasn’t took my wife…I have to fight my way through that hallway, but when I get to the other side, its gonna be glorious” (Shukla 185). Once an addict decides to turn their life around they face the challenge of finding a legal job, a home they can afford, and find a community that will support their sobriety. Some find difficulty in receiving treatment. Katie, the mother of 7 kids and recipient of 7 felonies, had trouble finding help. Once she met with an attorney she expressed “’I don’t understand, y’all are always wanting to put me in prison, I’m a drug addict. I need help” (Shukla 199). Even after Katie begged the court they turned her down because she had too many white-collar crimes. After finally being admitted to a hospital she was diagnosed as a bipolar paranoid schizophrenic. Jackson experienced trouble earning his drivers license back. To get his drivers license back “it’d cost [him] $1,000” and “without any way to get back and forth to work” it’s hard to come up with that type of money. It seems that the odds are stacked against recovering addicts, even when they seek help. Lucy states, “you get this, you’re charged with that, you’re condemned for life” (Shukla 200). The crux of
Sobriety presents a whole different set of challenges for recovering methamphetamine addicts. Matthew is “going through a lot of tests. He took my house. He hasn’t took my wife…I have to fight my way through that hallway, but when I get to the other side, its gonna be glorious” (Shukla 185). Once an addict decides to turn their life around they face the challenge of finding a legal job, a home they can afford, and find a community that will support their sobriety. Some find difficulty in receiving treatment. Katie, the mother of 7 kids and recipient of 7 felonies, had trouble finding help. Once she met with an attorney she expressed “’I don’t understand, y’all are always wanting to put me in prison, I’m a drug addict. I need help” (Shukla 199). Even after Katie begged the court they turned her down because she had too many white-collar crimes. After finally being admitted to a hospital she was diagnosed as a bipolar paranoid schizophrenic. Jackson experienced trouble earning his drivers license back. To get his drivers license back “it’d cost [him] $1,000” and “without any way to get back and forth to work” it’s hard to come up with that type of money. It seems that the odds are stacked against recovering addicts, even when they seek help. Lucy states, “you get this, you’re charged with that, you’re condemned for life” (Shukla 200). The crux of