Overwhelmed by paranoia, moods

Stephen and Kathryn Wihone grieve for their son Richie. Photo / Paul Estcourt

Richard Wihone had it all. A loving family, his own home, even a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. But he lost it all to his methamphetamine addiction.

His partner left him, unable to cope with his mood swings and paranoid behaviour. He spent hundreds of dollars each week on P, eventually losing his motorcycle and car because of his growing debt. Finally, the 34-year-old took his own life.

Three years after his death, his mother Kathryn weeps at the memory of her "happy-go-lucky" son who, because of his methamphetamine addiction, became "aggressive, anxious, agitated at the smallest things".

Richard turned up on her East Tamaki doorstep in December 2005, kicked out of the home he shared with his partner, teenage daughter and young son.

Kathryn told the Weekend Herald that Richard was a "total wreck, a mess", sinking further into a deep depression despite the family's best efforts to get help.

"It's so hard to explain how this drug could change him so much."

He admitted his P addiction after being confronted by his mother and father Stephen.

"It was just one of those things, Richie was out with a group of mates and he had one puff. One puff led to another, more and more. It was so addictive," said Kathryn.

"He used to talk to us about how he wished he never had that puff, that it had wrecked his life. But it was just too hard to fix."

Working as a linesman for a power company, Richard spent hundreds of dollars a week on his habit, racking up between $20,000 and $30,000 debt to pay, Kathryn said. He eventually overcame his addiction, but never recovered from the depression over what methamphetamine had truly cost him.

"The morning he passed away, I went into his room to give him a cuddle. I asked him 'Are you all right?' and he said 'Yes mum, it's all right, I'll be going soon,"' said Kathryn.

"I thought he meant he was going to see his cousin. I never thought I'd come home to find him dead."

Stephen Wihone said his son's addiction and death had a devastating effect on the wider whanau.

"Three years on, it's still so hard. It's so hard for the people he left behind. His parents, his brothers and sister, his partner, his beautiful children. What a waste."

After Richard's death, Kathryn found his diary which chronicled his spiralling depression.

"It's so sad when I read the paper and think 'How many more are out there?' This drug depresses people to the point that they think there is no way out," she said.