Ask Sam letter

Hi there,

Thanks for your message, it sounds like your friend's situation is on your mind a lot at the moment.

Crack (a form of a drug called cocaine) is really addictive and it can be very, very difficult for someone who is using it to stop. It sounds like your friend is having that problem and it can take a lot of help and support for someone to beat their addiction.

It might be that the kind of support you can give as a friend is limited – realistically someone who has an addiction to a drug like crack is probably going to need some professional help as well. The way you could be there for them is perhaps by offering encouragement and emotional support, if you feel able to do that.

It’s also important to look after yourself too. If you feel like what’s going on for your friend is too much for you to cope with then it’s ok to take a step back and allow other people to support them – that doesn’t make you a bad friend.

It sounds like you’re worried about your friend’s child and it is really important that if you think their child is at risk of being hurt because of their dad’s addiction you should talk to an adult you trust or to ChildLine. We would be happy to talk through with you what to do if you think his child is not safe – as well as how to support your friend.

There are some other organisations you might want to get in touch with. If you want more information about the kind of drug he is using and the effects it has then you can “Talk to Frank” – Frank is a friendly and confidential drugs advice service. You can call them on 0800 77 66 00 – they have an online chat service.

If you feel like you want to give you friend some information to then you might want to consider giving him the link to addaction – a specialist drug treatment charity. If he is 18 or under he can also talk to ChildLine himself if he wants to, he just needs to call 0800 11 11 or come to our website to chat online. Your friend is also able to go to his GP for help and they will be able to put him in touch with people who can help.

I’m really glad you've written to me - if you would like to talk some more about this then do get in touch with us on the phone, by e-mail or by 1-2-1 chat – our counsellors are here for you and are ready to listen.

Take care

Sam