Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru
Mangaluru, Jun 26: In a deeply moving session held on the eve of the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking 2025, Beena, a former drug addict who battled addiction for 13 years and has now become a certified counsellor, shared her powerful story of transformation. Her testimony served as a beacon of hope to the youth, reminding them that recovery is possible and that life can be reclaimed, no matter how dark the path may seem.
Beena recounted how she, once a high-achieving student and athlete from a conservative family, was gradually pulled into the world of substance abuse. “I was the youngest of four daughters. I had all the facilities, but what I thought I lacked was ‘freedom.’ I misunderstood what freedom meant and did not know how to lead life independently,” she shared.
Her descent into addiction began innocently enough—with cigarettes, then alcohol, and eventually ganja (marijuana), which she described as ‘the gateway to drugs’. Despite a successful academic track record and a career in HR, Beena’s addiction consumed her. “I worked in top companies, earned well, travelled abroad, but as my salary increased, so did my drug consumption. I spent Rs 30,000 to 35,000 a month on drugs alone,” she revealed.
Over time, her life spiralled out of control. “I had reached a point where I needed alcohol as soon as I woke up. I was no longer controlling the drug—it was controlling me. I had become an emotionless body.”
When she finally decided to end it all, a moment of clarity led her to call her mother. “She simply said, ‘Just come back’. That was the turning point,” Beena said. What followed was an extremely difficult recovery journey. “The day you decide to quit is the most painful. My body trembled, my mind was in chaos. My mother, clueless about what to do, admitted me to a psychiatric ward. I kept asking myself—what is the use of my degrees, my skills—if this is where I have landed?”
Beena emphasized how addiction continues to destroy lives around us. “Where are the youth now? In jails, hospitals, rehab centers, or lost to accidents and overdoses. What is the future of our country if we don’t act now?”
Watch Video: