site.btaAddiction No Pastime Activity but Vice, Rehab Centre Founder Says

In a BTA interview, the founder of the I A. M. Way rehab centre in the village of Bistritsa, near Sofia, Plamen Yotinski, said that one realizes they have an addiction the moment they lose control of themselves and their whole life revolves around the next high whatever it may be. 

Yotinski visited the city of Kazanlak (Central Bulgaria) to participate in a discussion devoted to addictions and the ways to fight them.

"When taking part in such discussions aimed at preventing addiction, I always begin with my bitter personal experience: what I have gone through, what I have lost, and what the abuse of alcohol, psychoactive substances and gambling has led me to," Yotinski said. He added that his addiction lasted for a very long time, turning into polysubstance abuse in recent years. "I share not only my personal experiences but also my observations of the people around me during this period. I have seen all kinds of people, from near-homeless people to politicians, businessmen, and influential people. What I emphasize every time is that these things bring us to one and the same state," Yotinski noted.

"The moment your entire existence is reliant on the high, whatever that may be, it becomes clear that you have a serious problem," he said. In his words, it makes little difference whether one is using it every day or once or twice a month, because in both cases, it all comes down to the "reward" one will receive. Yotinski explained that every type of addiction, from alcoholism to gambling, affects the same centre of the brain. "There is also a scientific explanation: the use of substances produces rapid dopamine surges, which at some point start to fool us into thinking that this is the best thing that can happen to us. Then we ignore our personal development, our family, and everything, and start caring only about how to get more of the high. I have resorted to stealing, lying, and all kinds of deplorable things that become everyday life," he added.

Yotinski is adamant that there is no fight against addiction in Bulgaria. He noted that there are hundreds of billboards advertising gambling but not a single information centre that can inform people what will happen if they take to it. "Our state neither provides such centres nor ensures that people are informed so that they can seek help from them, and we as citizens have absolutely no self-awareness to find the root cause of the problem," he said. Yotinski added that parents neither have nor want to have enough knowledge to recognize the signs of addiction in their children.

"There is no point in blaming the state. If each one of us takes responsibility, this will not happen. When there is demand, there is supply. And when a person is in such difficult situation, they become defensive and do not want to admit they have a problem. There is also the Bulgarian perception of shame: people should not know that my child is a drug addict," Yotinski said. He stressed that for an addict to rehabilitate, their loved ones must also be involved. "It is very important that once they take their child to an adequate centre, they do not get in the way of the rehabilitation process, because for there to be a result, there must be a change in mindset and approach. My advice to parents is to seek adequate information and adequate professionals and to check well where they are going," he added.

Commenting on his rehab programme, Yotinski said that his aim is to urge people to help themselves. In his words, one’s desire to break the addiction cycle is usually triggered by external factors. "What triggered me was the fact that I was going to lose my mother. I had absolutely no prospects. The only thing I was interested in was how to get more money and continue this cycle," Yotinksi said. At present, ten people aged between 18 and 50 are being treated at the I A.M. Way centre and an essential part of their rehabilitation is a strict regimen and a great deal of conversation.

As to the now-popular laughing gas, Yotinski said that some time ago he stated that people will be able to see the side effects from it in five years’ time, but his assumption was disproved as there are already cases of paralysis and memory loss due to the gas use. "This turns out to be much more dangerous than many people assume," he noted, adding that the balloons filled with laughing gas have even displaced cocaine. "Nobody knows what exactly is in them, but it literally drives people insane and should definitely be placed in the category of all other psychoactive substances. The signs, the behavior, and the irresponsibility in its use - it is all the same," Yotinski said.

He noted that the average age at which people start using psychoactive substances drops with every passing year and urged all young people to reflect on his story and decide for themselves if they want to pay the same price.

Yotinski was adamant that addiction is not a pastime activity but a vice and a problem. "Addiction is a disease that makes you selfish. It makes you forget about everyone and everything around you and causes you to kill yourself every day with a smile," he said.