“This was probably as expected.” “It must now be easy and”. “It must now be good for him to let go more”. The statement above is an example of how people who have just lost a loved one are met by friends or colleagues. People who mean well, but who have no basis for understanding that it is just as shocking and sad to lose a son, a daughter, a brother or a sister, who has struggled with addiction. – These deaths are stigmatized. Society does not accept that this is a great grief for the relatives. That’s it, says professor emerita at the University of Western Norway, Kari Dyregrov. The crisis psychologist is behind a large research project that has looked at what it is like to be a relative after a drug-related death. Now she is one of the initiators of a newly started organization that will help this group. Kari Dyregrov is one of the initiators of the National Association for Survivors of Addiction. Photo: Oddgeir Øystese / news – People don’t understand In 2018, Renate Larsen lost her brother. For many years he had struggled with drug addiction. Larsen describes the fight as brutal. But it was still a big shock when the hope that he could get better was crushed. – You meet people who think you should have been warned. But I wasn’t. It was unexpected and sudden. A shock! After the death, she experienced that few could understand how she felt. That there was a lot of stigma around drug addicts. Therefore she withdrew with her grief. – I didn’t get the help I most needed. I really wish there was someone I could talk to who had the same experience as me. And not everyone is offered crisis assistance, unfortunately. Larsen says it is difficult to get help for those who lose their loved ones to drug-related deaths, that there is a need for someone who understands. That is why he has now become involved in the board of the newly started organization Nationalsforeningen for utlattne ved rus. – People lack knowledge about what it’s like to be left behind by an addict. We want to be a voice. A voice that is missing in society today. Renate Larsen says they are already experiencing great interest in the organisation. Complicated grief and peer support Kari Dyregrov has a PhD in grief. She says through the research project they have discovered that the bereavement reaction of those left behind after drug-related deaths is often complicated and complex. They therefore need help both from professionals, their social networks and people with similar experiences. It is especially the last thing the association will help with, what is called “peer support”. In addition, it must be an interest organization for people who are close to drug addicts. Dyregrov believes this group has been overlooked. – They meet the requirements set by the Norwegian Directorate of Health for getting help after sudden and unnatural deaths. But still, it’s just as if these people have gone into oblivion. The national association was presented earlier this month, and has not yet been given its own website.
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– Didn’t get the help I needed – news Vestland
