KUALA LUMPUR: Faris (not his real name) was introduced to drugs at 19 as a way of gaining acceptance within his social circle.
Faris, a Narcotics Addiction Rehabilitation Centre (Puspen) client, said he started as a recreational user.
"The first time I tried it, I was working. They (my friends) asked if I was sleepy. Then they taught me how to 'do' ice (crystal methamphetamine)," he said.
That was the beginning of the problem that caused his life to go down on a slippery slope. For the next 20 years, he would try everything, from methamphetamines to Ecstasy, Erimin 5, ketamine and cannabis.
"The only ones I haven't tried were opiate-based drugs and LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide)," he said.
He said the situation worsened when he got married and started a family.
He thought that by taking drugs, it would give him more energy to work and earn more money.
"It backfired. I ended up getting involved in negative things, such as gambling. I was neither a good father nor husband.
"I gambled, borrowed from loan sharks and even stole things to pawn and sell for money for drugs," he said, adding that his family was now in good hands thanks to his mother.
His wife and children currently receive financial aid and grocery assistance from the Zakat Board.
Another client, who only wished to be known as Bujang, was 15 when he began taking drugs due to peer pressure.
Bujang, from Johor, said smoking, drinking and sniffing glue at a jetty was the norm of teenagers in his hometown.
"I liked to join them. I started getting involved in glue-sniffing and cannabis, then I upgraded to heroin," he said.
Bujang, who is now in his fifth stint at the rehabilitation centre since 2013, said he would "work" for drug pushers and help them with errands for drugs.
"They (drug pushers) like to instruct us to do things. I was young back then, so I didn't mind because I only wanted to enjoy and take drugs. It was the norm back then in my hometown because a lot of the villagers were drug addicts," he said.
He said the "reward" he received was not enough. As time went by, he needed higher dosages to feed his addiction.
Bujang then started stealing from his sister to buy more drugs. By 17, he was a hardcore addict.
"My family began to realise that I was in a bad place. My sister lost her things and my mother lost her money. My mother tried to help me by keeping me at home to prevent me from stealing, but I was stubborn," he said.
Now 35, Bujang's biggest regret was that he wasn't able to make his mother happy.
His mother died in 2015 when he was in jail for breaking a surveillance order.
"My mother was everything to me. I really regret not being able to make her happy.
"Now I strive to be a better servant to God and a better person so I can leave my nieces and nephews with a good legacy," he said.