the tale of dusty & amphetamine annie

Kopf

I'm looking for advice for some friends of mine. They met, in quite unusual circumstances, last year in or around October. My friend dusty (of course it's not his real name) i had known since i was a kid and annie was in my year in school. Dusty's parents divorced when he was going into 4th year in school, he and his father moving to england, his mother moving to austria. He eventually moved back here to ireland, living in his family home which he was trying to sell.

The house was constantly thick with herb-smoke which suited everybody and life was peachy. Amphetamine annie visited the house with a few friends from school one weekend and ended up staying. She has had a very traumatic life at home and school, has attempted suicide more than once and is on anti-depressants. She also has a history of hash/cocaine/speed/E use. She developed a 'thing' with dusty which was grand, until the news came that she was pregnant.

Dusty is 19, Annie is 17.

The baby is due early into August. Annie is still smoking hash, despite her friends' attempts to persuade her otherwise. She maintains that "it is the hash smoked before conception which does the damage, if any at all, to the baby". This, to me, is total bull****, since if she continues to smoke hash it continues to go into her bloodstream and continues to be fed to the baby. At least she has cut out (at least, she says she has, but i believe her) all other drug use, apart from her anti-depressants.

Her mother has offered to pay for all expenses for having an abortion in England but she refuses on moral grounds. She also doesn't like the idea of giving the baby up for adoption; she feels she wouldn't be able for the trauma of giving up a baby she held for 9 months and bore.

Their plan is to get an apartment in dublin. How they'll do this is totally beyond me. Dusty's just got a new job, the pay for which is around 300 euro a week.

The two of them seem to be floating along oblivious to the huge change that's about to occur in their lives. They don't seem to understand that this means the next 18 years of their lives is paved out for them and they've lost whatever freedom they enjoyed previously.

Anyone have any ideas on what advice i can give them ? If the child is born I cannot imagine it having anything else than a totally warped life down to drugs and how inappropriate and unable its parents are to be parents but the preparation can be made now, perhaps, to make them more able parents.

Nevyn

Has she had check ups yet with a materinty hospital ?
they would have done blood tests done that would show up the drug use and she will be pulled aside at the hospital.

Or you could ring the hospital and ask to speak to the socail worker on call . Every materiny unit has one. OR get the number of ur local health clinc and get the local health nurse to pay a visit.
They can just say it is a drop in call they do it all the time and are will be more concerned about thier situation then dragging you into it

She is still a minor and the anti depressants alone could be a big worry esp if the doc that subscribed them does not know she is pregant.

if have been so worried that you posted here do them and thier child a big favour and ring someone who can intervien and has access to the right resorces.

DeVore

What Thead said...

DeV.

Beruthiel

I totally agree with Thaed, I have a friend who was also on anti depressants, as soon as she became pregnant she had to be taken off them, they can do untold damage to a baby and yes, if she is smoking hash then it is now also in the baby's bloodstream.
I cannot imagine a 17 year old being able to get her head around what has been happening to her and being stoned all the time certainly will not help her to make a decision based on logic, she needs help, she is still a child herself.

Kopf

Cheers for the replies.. I feel re-assured now after hearing what thaed has had to say about her getting her blood tested.

Victor

Anti-depressants and pregnancy are a big no-no. A woman I know was on anti-depressants and ended up having a surprise pregnancy (she's about 40). She is really afraid of what they have said about her chances of losing the baby (age won't help her).

I don't want to know what effect the rest of the concoction will have on the anti-depressants and jointly on the baby.

And what Thead said...