4. Hitting Bottom Flashcards
What major changes did the author face at the age of eleven?
She had to move to a new town and make friends there.
Why did she start to smoke?
She thought she could meet potential ‘friends’ by joining them for a cigarette.
How did the author get stoned?
She was stupefied because she drank too much and took drugs.
Why do you think the author had relapse after relapse?
This is because drugs are addictive and the author had to go back to the drugs after being clean for a while.
Why do you think she became suicidal?
She became a drug addict and did not know how to turn her life around.
Find a phrase in paragraph 8 that means the same thing as the title - ‘hitting bottom’
‘…at the lowest of lows…’
Why did the author and her mother fight in the court?
Her mother wanted the author to get treatment while the author refused.
What was the judge’s decision?
He placed the author in a treatment center.
The passage states that the author ‘went through withdrawals’. What happens when someone is going through withdrawals (general knowledge)?
Emotional Withdrawal Symptoms:
Anxiety, restlessness, irritability, insomnia, headache (poor concentration, depression)
Physical Withdrawal Symptoms:
Sweating, racing heart, palpitations, difficulty breathing, nausea (vomiting, diarrhea, muscle tension, tightness in chest, tremor)
What does the author mean when she said the woman in a Narcotics Anonymous meeting just ‘glowed’?
It means her complexion showed a strong bright colour, esp. a shade of red. She looked healthy.
Why did the author appear on the front page of all the local newspapers?
She made two presentations at an elementary school to share her past drug addiction so to help other kids.
