Drug Abuse on the Rise in War-Torn Gaza
As war surges in Gaza, so does the use of highly addictive painkillers and tranquilizers among its anxiety-ridden citizens. To cope with the stress of Israeli blockades, bombing, extensive destruction, and the resulting poverty, unemployment, and overcrowding, people are abusing prescription drugs at an alarming rate. Recreational drug use has also increased, as drugs can easily be smuggled in through tunnels from Egypt, making their way to pharmacy counters and black markets.
Among the commonly abused prescription drugs are Elatrol (amitriptyline hydrochloride), Valium, Anafranil (clomipramine), and the more popular Tramadol (sold under the brand name Tramal), a synthetic opioid used to treat moderate to severe pain. Tramal has caught on with many high-school students, both male and female. It also improves and prolongs sexual performance, making it popular among married men between the ages of 18 and 30. A mystery drug called Sa’ada (Arabic for “pleasure”) is also popular, though much more expensive than the other drugs.
“To deal with the depression here in Gaza, many take these drugs, especially youths who’ve lost their jobs, who sit at home and don’t have a salary,” said Taysir Diab, a psychiatrist at the Gaza Community Mental Health Program. The president of the program, Eyad el-Sarraj, said that Gaza lacks professionally trained psychiatrists and psychologists, and that doctors with limited knowledge often prescribe medication for the physical symptoms of psychosomatic problems.
Salim, a doctor and pharmacist who declined to give his full name, said that the consumption of anti-anxiety medication and anti-depressants has risen dramatically. “During the war people were tense, afraid, and they lacked the ability to concentrate,” he said. “The situation continued after the war because of the continued state of internal division and the possibility of a renewal of war.”
A 36-year-old taxi driver said that he had to take pills to function, and that he couldn’t drive down the street without panicking. “During the war, I would take them constantly because dead bodies were everywhere to be seen. Now I still take them because they help calm me down,” he explained.
A survey published in April 2009 by the United Nations Gender Task Force showed that many Gaza residents reported health issues such as stress and psychological problems after a 22-day Israeli offensive last January. “With increased trauma and stress and limited access to professional psychosocial services, there is a rising problem of self-medication with unsupervised pharmaceutical therapies among the Gaza population,” said a summary presented in Jerusalem.
The health ministry, now run by Hamas, renewed instructions not to sell medication without prescriptions, and had policemen go undercover to test pharmacies. Police have also warned against smuggling drugs and have confiscated many boxes. However, many drugs like Tramal are being sold privately.
Source: Reuters, Nidal al-Mughrabi and Ivan Karakashian, Gazans struggling with rising drug abuse, May 8, 2009
