Human life is full of challenges and hardships. Some people use these obstacles as fuel for progress and try to overcome them, while others fall prey to moments of weakness that lead them to dangerous paths such as addiction in all its different forms.
Drug addiction is one of the most dangerous forms of addiction that takes the person's mind and body towards the abyss and destruction.
Artist Manal Al Hinaai used her artistic skills to highlight through her 3-piece artwork the feelings that an addict experiences. She believes that art is a message and she can convey meaningful messages to society. This was the motivation for her work, which she called "Between Destruction and Survival".
This project represents three stages of the emotional state that an addicted person experiences. The first two stages (represented by the part hanging from the ceiling and the other that has drugs scattered around it) express the stage of surrender to addiction, which is the path that ends with death.
Manal used many materials to highlight the idea. "The wires express the beginning of the body’s separation from its various forces, and the thick rope knot at the top only and its subsequent separation is evidence of the loss of hope," she mentioned.
Manal described the third stage that an addict may go through as the stage of resistance. "The third part of the artwork expresses the addicted person's attempt to leave the cemetery and the doom that is embodied in the artwork by skulls. The person's position, which suggests that he is resisting and trying to get out of this situation with all his might, represents hope for salvation," she shared.
She executed the details of this part with great care. As she pointed out, "Executing the body in a state close to decomposition is expressing the stage of years of trying to either "survive" and return to normal life, or "perish" and reach the surrender that is represented by the other two artworks.
Manal's choice of body colour is not random either. She explained, "Coming out of the bleak black and moving towards the grey indicates the beginning of light and salvation."
Manal wanted to convey a message to the addict that there is always hope for salvation, and this is achieved through the will and striving to achieve this goal.
Social support represents an essential pillar in the journey of psychological treatment and recovery because it plays a major role in enhancing adherence to treatment and alleviating feelings of loneliness and psychological pain.
Jihan Sulaiman, the Clinical Psychologist, shares simple steps to provide social support to someone undergoing addiction treatment. "Family members must understand that addiction is not just a negative behaviour, but rather a mental illness that requires treatment and support. The family need to learn strategies for managing stress and dealing with the challenges that the addict may face in recovery," she confirmed.
listening carefully to what the addict says and understanding his feelings and fears accurately is very important. "Active listening helps the support's provider better identify the addict's needs and thus provide appropriate support whether that is by offering practical help, or simply being there for the Addict to express his feelings," she highlighted.
Encouraging the addict to follow healthy practices will make a big difference in accelerating recovery and distracting him from addiction resulting from the abundance of free time and lack of goals. "Adequate sleep, regular physical activity, balanced nutrition and maintaining a regular healthy routine is a very great idea," she noted.
She pointed out the importance of enhancing the addict's sense of belonging to his community, whether through participating in local social activities or getting involved in community support groups. "Supporting the addict in setting goals, planning to achieve them, and providing support in achieving those goals is very important too," she said.
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