10/22/07

A woman who lost her brother to methamphetamine is getting the word out about the dangers of this drug.

This is Red Ribbon Week in Southern Idaho, an annual push to prevent illegal drug use in Magic Valley. Thousands of high school students in Twin Falls, Hailey, the Mini-Cassia and Shoshone areas will find out more about the realities of methamphetamine.

Founder of Mothers Against Methamphetamine Dr. Mary Holley says, "I founded Mothers Against Methamphetamine in 2001, after my brother committed suicide on July 4-th of 2000. He was under the influence of methamphetamine when he took his life. And after that, I as a physician, wanted to know what methamphetamine was, and what it does.'"

Dr. Holley says meth attacks the areas of the brain that control your urges, drives, and cravings. She says once those areas are destroyed, you don't control your cravings any more they control you.

"There are also some scans that show holes in the brain, actual tissue damage, places that have been destroyed. And you learn to work around those areas, you learn to use other parts of the brain, but things are never the same after using methamphetamine."

Dr. Holley says she wants to tell as many people as possible what meth does to the human brain, how it changes personalities and relationships. She says the damage caused by using meth is a lot easier to prevent by just never doing it than it is to treat.

"Getting off methamphetamine is a 12 to 18 month process, a very slow and gradual healing, where they very gradually get the depression to lift and the anxiety to fade and the nightmares to go away. And some healing is not complete. Some people are changed by their experience with methamphetamine. And we can prevent that."

If you'd like to hear Dr. Holley in person, she has several more meetings in Magic Valley this week. Tonight she'll be speaking in the CSI Fine Arts Auditorium at 7 pm to a faith based audience. She'll also speak to the community and professionals again at CSI 7pm Thursday.