“I need help. Will you help me?”
Those were the heartbreaking words of a 25-year-old university student whose promising future had become overshadowed by drug dependence. Her story is not just her own, it is the story of thousands of young Nigerians whose lives have been altered by peer pressure, curiosity, and substance abuse.
Drug and substance abuse has become one of Nigeria’s most pressing public health and social challenges. It affects individuals, families, schools, workplaces, and entire communities. While young men have traditionally been the focus of anti-drug campaigns, an increasing number of young women are now becoming involved in the misuse of psychoactive substances, often beginning with what appears to be harmless experimentation.
Experts have consistently identified peer influence as one of the leading factors contributing to drug initiation among adolescents and young adults. What often starts as an attempt to “fit in” or satisfy curiosity can gradually develop into dependence, affecting physical health, mental well-being, academic performance, relationships, and future opportunities.
For ethical reasons, the young woman featured in this story will be referred to as Ladi.
A Promising Future
Ladi was a final-year Computer Science student at one of the leading universities in Northern Nigeria. Intelligent, ambitious, and full of dreams, she never imagined she would one day find herself answering questions from officials after being apprehended during an operation targeting illicit drug activities.
She was arrested alongside a female friend and a male companion. During routine questioning, she openly admitted that she had been abusing drugs.
When asked how it all began, her answer was painfully simple.
“It started because of a friend.”
Curiosity Became Addiction
According to Ladi, one of her closest friends regularly consumed cough syrup containing codeine, used sedative medications without medical supervision, and smoked cigarettes.
Initially, Ladi strongly disapproved.
She repeatedly warned her friend about the dangers of drug abuse and insisted she would never touch drugs herself.
Then one evening, everything changed.
While visiting her friend’s house, she watched her prepare to drink cough syrup containing codeine with added unknown substances.
Curious, Ladi asked what it felt like.
Her friend smiled and offered her a taste.
After a few moments of hesitation and gentle persuasion, she accepted.
She drank two spoonful.
Within half an hour, she felt unusually relaxed and sleepy.
“It was the deepest sleep I had ever experienced,” she recalled.
The following morning, her friend laughed and jokingly welcomed her “to the club.”
That single moment marked the beginning of a journey she never intended to take.
Living with Dependence
What started as an experiment quickly became a daily habit.
Ladi soon found herself unable to function without cough syrup containing codeine. She also began smoking cigarettes, believing they prolonged the effects of the drug.
To finance her addiction, she sought money from boyfriends, invented excuses to request financial support, and occasionally deceived her parents.
Like many people struggling with substance dependence, she gradually became trapped in a cycle that was difficult to break.
A Mother’s Silent Pain
As Ladi shared her story, her mother quietly entered the room.
She sat silently across from her daughter.
Moments later, tears rolled down her cheeks.
Ladi paused.
The room became unusually quiet.
Her mother had known about the addiction for some time.
Many nights, she quietly helped her daughter into her room after she returned home under the influence, protecting her dignity while hoping she would eventually seek help.
“I don’t know what would have become of me without my mother,” Ladi admitted.
A Cry for Help
Unable to control her emotions, Ladi walked over, knelt before her mother, held her hands, and tearfully pleaded:
“Please forgive me, Mum. I promise I want to stop. I know it won’t happen overnight because I’m already addicted. Please don’t cry anymore.”
Then she turned toward me.
Looking directly into my eyes, she quietly asked:
“I need help. Will you help me?”
For a brief moment, words failed me.
I simply nodded.
Because, addiction is not overcome through condemnation but compassion and support.
Recovery begins when someone is willing to ask for help—and when others are willing to offer it.
Lessons from Ladi’s Story
Ladi’s experience reminds us that addiction rarely begins with a desire to destroy one’s future. More often, it begins with curiosity, peer pressure, emotional vulnerability, or the desire to fit in.
Her story also teaches us several important lessons:
- Choose your friends wisely. The people we spend time with often influence our decisions and behaviour.
- Never experiment with drugs simply to satisfy curiosity or gain acceptance.
- Parents should maintain open communication with their children and recognize early warning signs of substance misuse.
- Schools, religious institutions, community leaders, and civil society organizations should strengthen drug prevention education and life-skills programmes.
- Individuals struggling with substance dependence deserve timely access to treatment, counseling, rehabilitation, and family support rather than stigma.
A Collective Responsibility
Drug prevention is not solely the responsibility of law enforcement agencies. It requires collaboration among families, schools, healthcare professionals, community leaders, faith-based organizations, government institutions, and the media.
Every young person reached through awareness, education, and positive mentorship is one less life likely to be consumed by addiction.
Ladi’s story is painful, but it is also hopeful.
Her courage to admit her addiction is the first step toward recovery.
May her experience inspire young people to resist negative peer influence, encourage families to support loved ones without enabling harmful behavior, and remind communities that recovery is possible when compassion is matched with appropriate professional care.
If one life is changed because this story was told, then Ladi’s painful experience will not have been in vain.