Woman talks to “Bits of Borno” about Abusing Drugs after Boko Haram killed her Husband

Bits of Borno is a platform that dedicated to “chronicling everyday life in Borno State, Nigeria”.

In a new feature, the page tells the story of an unnamed woman who turned to drugs after Boko Haram killed her husband. The mom of one recounts how she was thrown out from a relative’s house and how she uses drugs to relieve the pain.

Read her story:

There were so many losses in my life. My father died. My husband was killed by Bokoharam. I was happily married and my husband was a driver. He drove big trucks from Lagos to Maiduguri and provided everything for me. We were so happy. I have a daughter Khadijah who now lives with my mother. When my husband was killed, I didn’t want to move in with her and her husband. I didn’t want to be the reason her marriage failed. Because I didn’t like the man she married after my father died. So I went to live with my uncle. And you know when a house isn’t your home, you face so many things. I was mistreated badly in the house and my clothes were thrown out. His family kicked me out of their house. I didn’t know where to go or what to do. And that was when I decided to move in with one of my friends and they introduced me to this lifestyle. I take about four bottles of codeine, I smoke weed and also swallow tablets. I don’t think too much when I take all of these. I feel happy’