- Mary McCall and Chris Clements
- BBC News Scotland
9 hours ago
Farid Bari
Fred Barry credits his overcoming addiction over the past 20 years with his stint at the private Castle Craig Rehabilitation Clinic in the Scottish Borders.
Barry, 66, says recovering from alcoholism is the best thing that has happened in his life, and he is now a cellist, music teacher, husband and father.
When his son Adam started his struggle with addiction, he sent him to the same clinic in the hope that he would be cured of his addiction.
But on May 6, 2021, Adam died in his bedroom following suffering a suspected seizure, or a sudden increase in electrical activity in the brain, caused by alcohol withdrawal symptoms. He was no more than thirty-two years old.
Adam Barry died at the age of 32 of a convulsive seizure suspected to be related to his alcoholism.
“I mightn’t go into his room to see him, but had to call the firefighters to help me,” says Barry. “It was awful, very awful. It shouldn’t have happened.”
“We often feel angry regarding addicts, but for their families, they feel tormented when they see what is happening to their loved ones.
“But I was also aware of the torment Adam was going through, he was suffering but he mightn’t find a way out.”
Barry, from the Scottish city of Glasgow, describes his son Adam as a sweet-talking, very intelligent young man who would always read two or three books at the same time.
“We have this idea of what an alcoholic would look like, but Adam wasn’t,” he says.
Adam (left) and his younger brother Fraser
Adam’s addiction began to take hold when he began studying chemistry at the University of St Andrews, failing some of his exams, which led to him dropping out of school altogether.
Disillusioned with substance abuse workers, Barry paid £15,000 to rehabilitate Adam at Castle Craig Clinic, which he said helped his son keep his alcohol-free body for nearly a period of time. 3 Years.
When he received treatment at the same clinic in 2000, Barry says, the National Health Insurance Agency and the Social Services Authority paid for his treatment.
But in 2017, when Adam entered the University of Glasgow, his addiction problems began.
Adam dropped out of St Andrews University following his addiction deteriorated
“During that whole time we thought Adam had mental health issues related to his addiction,” Barry says.
“But trying to face these problems was impossible. It was not possible to show him to a psychiatrist. The help that was given to us was few and in separate stages, and it was his responsibility to go to a specific place at a specific time.
“When you suffer from addiction, chaos is the dominant feature of your life, and you don’t know what time or what day it is, and yet they wait for you to go on the dates they specify.”
“All you can do is lock him up.”
Eventually, Adam’s addiction began to spiral out of control, and he was then unemployed and still living with his parents.
His father says he used to spend his unemployment benefits on alcohol, then stop drinking them when the money runs out – a process that led to him being hospitalized for seizures.
During the first six months before his death, Adam was hospitalized 6 times for treatment of seizures.
The family wanted to send him to the rehab clinic once more, but they mightn’t afford it. At the time, Barry says, Adam was too ill to agree to further treatment as his health deteriorated.
Barry is calling on the Scottish government to improve addiction treatment services, including residential rehabilitation centers and clinics.
“One of the doctors told me there was nothing you might do to help the addict, all you might do was lock him up and get rid of the key – he told me in front of Adam in the hospital,” Barry says.
“[إعادة التأهيل] It is the treatment that Adam would have chosen. But not only did he need to spend 6 weeks in rehabilitation, he needed much longer, and he needed to follow a specific regimen following he was discharged.”
Record number of deaths resulting from addiction
In August, Scotland’s National Statistics Office showed that alcohol-related deaths had risen to a 10-year high.
It increased 17 percent from the previous year to 1,190 deaths, the most since 2008.
The Scottish Conservative Party has proposed a “right to recovery” bill that would guarantee everyone the right to receive treatment for addiction, including accommodation in rehabilitation centres.
The party said last Friday that a poll conducted to consult the public showed that 77 percent of those polled supported the bill.
Dr Sandesh Gulhani, a party member and shadow health minister, says: “We believe the right to recover [من الإدمان] It is a very important part of the solution, and I am pleased with the very positive response to it from stakeholders, who know that it is a reasonable bill that was drafted in consultation with addiction experts.
“Currently, there are far too many people with addiction issues who are not getting the help they need, but this legislation will preserve their right to receive potentially life-saving treatment, including in residential rehabilitation.”
And Angela Constance, the minister for drug policy, says the Scottish government has committed £250m to improve addiction services over five years.
Constance adds: “The Scottish Government is well prepared to consider the bill, and we also look forward to studying the public consultation analysis and the draft bill.
“While that process continues, we are focused on taking action now, and directing new investments to improve services and save lives.”
SLP spokeswoman for anti-drug policy, Claire Baker, says the party will support any proposals that save lives.
“There is no magic bullet for this issue – we need to use everything we have now to provide the treatment and support needed to help people,” she says.