At 33 years of age, a Werribee mother of three has done so much damage to her body by using the drug “ice” that she needs a heart transplant.
Crystal (not her real name) said she started smoking speed after her third child was born because it was cheaper than alcohol.
It was not long before she started searching for a bigger high and turned to ice.
For $100, both she and her former partner could buy enough ice to last a whole weekend.
“It gave me a different feeling than speed,” Crystal said. “It was like a tingle that comes over your back and then over the back of your head before reaching your forehead.
“I had endless energy. My mind was going 100 miles an hour and I thought I could do anything.”
Crystal said she started using ice for recreational purposes but became addicted, eventually dealing to other users.
“I didn’t know I had an actual addiction until my partner and I separated,” she said.
“I was in the supermarket one day and my body started cramping. I couldn’t move. I looked like a heroin addict.”
Three years ago her body started to fail and she spent a month in hospital as her kidney, liver and heart were giving up.
“The doctors told me if I touched ice again I would die,” she said.
“I got out of hospital and after five months off it I had a little puff and then I was back to using it every day.”
Crystal’s house and children were eventually taken away from her as she continued to spiral into a world of drug use and dealing.
She claims she was raped, bashed and held hostage by other drug users, but nothing hurt as much as losing her kids.
“When my kids were taken off me I was at the point when I would have killed myself or become someone else to get through,” she said.
“The reality is it doesn’t matter what someone says to you when you’re on ice. Nothing will change until you reach that point yourself.”
Crystal has been clean for about six months and is waiting for a heart transplant.
She needs to take 17 tablets a day just to stay alive.
