A Brisbane mother of five who flies to Melbourne every week to watch over her homeless, drug-addicted son has called for an “involuntary rehab program” to be introduced in Victoria.
Leanne Thompson told 3AW‘s Tony Jones on Monday that she frequently travels to Melbourne from Brisbane to visit her son Daniel, 25, who she says is addicted to synthetic marijuana and living on the streets of the CBD.
“I have on a number of occasions slept nearby him on the street,” she said. “I’ve taken a sleeping bag, blankets and garbage bags to sit on.”
Added Thompson: “I’m keeping an eye on him to make sure he’s okay and to let him know that we still care about him and we’re there for him if he needs us.”
Thompson says she doesn't understand what caused her son to begin taking drugs. Homeless since March, Daniel has refused offers from his parents to attend a rehabilitation clinic.
"He doesn’t feel that he has a problem," Thompson said. "I think he sees us as authority figures, but we're just loving parents who want to make sure our son's okay.
"There are plenty of voluntary [rehab] programs," she noted. "I would put our son into one tomorrow if he were to agree but he won't and that's where we need that involuntary program."
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Currently, compulsory or involuntary admission to rehabilitation in Victoria is used as a last resort life-saving measure. It is available through an application to the Magistrates’ Court of Victoria for a maximum of 14 days.
There are no options for parents like Thompson, who hopes to stop the "less-immediate" damage caused by her son's drug addiction.
"I'm at a point where I'm just desperate to get some help," she said. "I don't think he'll react very well [to the media attention] but I'm doing it for the right reasons, not the wrong reasons.
"And not just for him but there are lots of people in that situation," she added. "Some people are in a far far worse position than he is."
Top Comments
sad but he seems content with this life otherwise he would see he has a problem. You can lead a horse to water but cannot make it drink. The same applies to getting help for someone who doesn't see they have a problem or that they need to change. I'm not sure any treatment would help that at this stage. I do feel for this mother and it's a shame he isn't closer to her distance wise, but maybe there is something in that?
Involuntary rehab wouldn't work in this situation as the addict doesn't think he has a problem. Hard to help someone who doesn't want help.