WITH her own life having spiraled out of control because of drug use, recovered addict Bianca Holman of Illovo Beach, is now reaching out to other young people to prevent them from making the same mistakes she did.
Bianca (21) is part of Bikers Against Drugs (BAD), a group of bikers who are working together to fight the scourge of drug abuse in Toti. The group kicked off an awareness campaign at Toti High School last week, with intentions to take the campaign to the wider community.
Her foray into the world of drugs started with alcohol abuse. “I started drinking at the age of 12 or 13. I was a keen sailor, so I was hanging out with people in their 20s. To fit in, I started drinking – anything I could get my hands on.” In spite of having blacked out at a sailing event due to her over-drinking, she did not see the ‘bigger picture’. “I was so young, I was not thinking with a clear mind.”
While she moved to the area about three years ago, Bianca schooled in Johannesburg, where most of her drug abuse took place. At school, she was part of a group who introduced her to weed. “I started off smoking once a week, but moved on to smoking between classes in the bathrooms.”
She was caught twice, but thought of the whole experience as a joke. Her dagga intake increased when a new boy moved to her school and they started dating. However, unbeknown to her, he had started spiking her joints with heroin. This she only found out months later.
Along with the drug use, the coupled impact of her parents’ divorce and with her brother off-shore, she was out of control. “I was alone, had no-one to talk to, no friends, no emotional support. Although my teachers tried to talk to me, I was not interested.” A drug raid at the school did nothing to stop the use. “It was a scare, but not a big enough one.”
Bianca concealed drugs in her hair, stole her mother’s car to go out to buy drugs and staged a robbery at her home to feed her habit.
On her first visit to her dad in Toti, he picked up that something was wrong. “I had lost a lot of weight.” On a second visit during the school holidays, her grandmother found sugars straws in the bathroom. “My dad confronted me. But it was the way that he approached me, he held out a helping hand, more like a friend than a parent.”
But on her return to Johannesburg, despite attending therapy, she continued to use and cheated on her drug tests. Her relapse saw her placed in a six-week rehab programme. “After my first weekend out, I was kicked out for smoking my medication.”
She fared no better during an 18-month stint at a halfway house under house arrest. Having not completed matric, on turning 18 she decided to pursue hairdressing, but her dreams fell apart when she stole from her work place to buy drugs.
Having hit rock bottom, she moved to Durban. She has since overcome her addiction and completed a counselling course through correspondence in the UK. “Every single day is a battle. As a recovered addict my lifestyle has changed for the better. I don’t go to nightclubs as that scene is a trigger.”
Her drug abuse has resulted in health problems, she is more prone to chest infections, has memory loss and mood swings. “I am here to help, I don’t want other young people to make the same mistakes I have.”
Bianca thanks those who have helped her on the road to recovery. “I have had my ups and downs, but without the support of the Mac’s and Christian Motorcycle Clubs, I would not be where I am today, and for that I am grateful.”
For more information about BAD, visit www.bikersagainstdrugs.co.za; Facebook page – KZN bikers against drugs or WhatsApp anonymous tip-offs to 073-486-7423.
