Grandmother warns about legal highs

A grandmother has spoken out about the problems her family is facing due to the legal highs taken by her grandson.

The grandmother, who lives in Hull, has chosen not to reveal her name. She claims that her grandson is killing himself through his use of novel psychoactive substances (NPS), commonly known as legal highs. She alleges that her grandson began taking the drugs seven months ago, buying them from a local shop in Spring Bank. Despite the relatively short time that has passed since he began using the drugs, the grandmother says they have had a significantly negative effect on his life and the lives of members of his family.

She explained: “He is a completely changed person since he started taking legal highs. He is violent, paranoid and completely out of control. He has lost his job and his friends, and we can’t seem to get through to him anymore. It’s not only destroying his life, but it is destroying our lives too.”

The grandmother says the family has been forced to call the police on several occasions because legal highs have caused her grandson to act in a violent and paranoid manner, causing concern that he may hurt himself or others.

Concern over legal highs has been steadily growing. Lincoln City Council made a proposal in November 2014 to ban people from taking the drugs in the centre of the city; if this ban goes ahead, it is thought that other local authorities will follow suit.