A hard road to recovery from substance use

December 03, 2021

‘Kizito’ is 28 years old and was diagnosed with substance-induced psychosis. He learnt the habit of substance use from his friends. He has had one admission in the mental hospital, prior to which he was presenting with signs of abnormal behavior, i.e., undressing in public, uncoordinated speech. This prompted his family to bring him to the national mental hospital, even though they had no understanding of Kizito’s illness. Kizito was recruited by the YouBelong program and supported with counselling to help him understand the nature of his illness and motivate him to stop using substances. His family was prepared to receive him back home after a pre-discharge family home visit. He was returned home, and in the photo the YBH team had carried out a post-discharge family home visit.  A YouBelong team member engaged in one-on-one sessions of motivational interviewing and psychoeducation with Kizito to enhance his motivation to stop substance use. By the time of termination our involvement, Kizito seemed to be stabilizing and his family able to cope with any relapses in the home environment.