GenQ - For the not so straight individual

He sits naked in a dimly lit room, as his eyes are unable to judge depth and perception due to the countless string of hours spent in front of his lap-top computer cruising for easy prey, night clubs and sex venues. His mouth full of half rotting teeth, jagged and jutting upwards like the Swiss Alps, slicing his tongue when he tries to speak, leaving him as a mute for several months now. His only mode of communication through sms message, scoring more Tina or directing faceless sexual predators and beginners to his lair of sodomy.

A splintering pain which runs from his cheek bone to his jaw line tells the signs of infection and malnourishment. Skin clammy and irritated, climate sensitive and welting and pouting in several places similar to an early Van Gough piece all over his body.

He is oblivious to the iodine pulsing through his system, depleting his blood of vital nutrients to lubricate joints, create saliva, keep the eyes moist and create fresh skin cells.

Taking shallow breathes daring to think of the inevitable, lost in his own psychosis knowing his retreat from society has not gone un-noticed to friends and family alike.

He shows no regret or remorse to the withering days which have flown by, nameless faceless sexual partners and the abandonment of quarterly health checks and gym memberships, illusive of his own self destruction, as he is contempt in the knowledge he has seen it all through crystallized eyes.

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METH, TINA, ICE are the shortest words in the English language one can lisp while drunk and underage at a gay bar. It can therefore be no surprise that homosexual males have congregated around the substance since its inception.

This is a sad but true story of many Gay men who have sunken away from the scene and perhaps your own group of friends through the use of Methamphetamine. It's a point of discussion throughout gay communities world wide, in particular Australia & the USA, where it is linked directly to the increase insurgence of HIV and other STDs as reported by major health bodies and hospitals in large cities through out the western world.

It's no secret that crystal methamphetamine is affecting gay men all over the world, one has to wonder... is the meth epidemic something novel, or is it just the same old story with a new drug playing the lead role? Sceptics and critics of the "War on Drugs" point out that as long as demand exists for a drug, law enforcement is practically powerless to prevent its use. Some even suggest that the crystal methamphetamine problem, which is for the moment gaining widespread attention in the mainstream media, will plateau or decline (as with crack in the USA after the 1980s), despite the ominous tone of news stories.

But there is a big difference between crystal methamphetamine and other illicit drugs, one that makes it especially worthy of aggressive intervention and attention by public health authorities and the media alike: the intersection between the meth epidemic and the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

Meth use is prevalent among gay and bisexual men already infected with HIV. Meth poses additional dangers for this group because addiction can lead to a lapse in taking medications (which can lead to treatment resistance), weight loss, and vitamin depletion. According to the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, meth use can also "suppress immune system responses to HIV or other infections, cause dangerous interactions with HIV medications, increase HIV viral activity, and accelerate HIV-related dementia and other health problems.

The rightly labelled epidemic is perhaps more relevant than the reports of bird-flu in isolated European pockets, as this is an epidemic that centres itself at the core of all of us and can easily be ostracised by media and religious groups alike to attack gay men and women as seen in the past.

According to the Gay Men's Health Crisis, those in the gay community often fall prey to meth use because of unique social or psychological pressures; meth bestows a feeling of belonging, sexiness, and confidence upon the user. Training for addiction-treatment professional aimed at addressing the feelings of low self-esteem and alienation that abet addiction would be a logical first step in loosening meth's grip on the gay community. The integration of addiction treatment, HIV intervention, and mental health services is also critical.

At this point in time the best we can do within a community is look out for those who are closest to us, in a world where we feel mostly alienated whether its by family, religion or our specific society, all we really have to guide us through is our friends and those who we hold close.

I agree that there is a difference between using drugs and them using you, though with this epidemic due to its addictive nature and the mental state brought on by its use you must be careful not to ?Preach to the Perverted? as there truly is nothing worse than a hypocrite throwing stones at a neighbours glass-house.

Food for thought for those of you concerned about your well-being and those around you. After all, it's not a lifestyle choice, but a way of life for many. Lets not become a statistic.

I write this article in memory of once close friends I have lost to this chemical pre-occupation, David Hartekeanan, Bernd Striebel, Kyle Knoll, Kristen Parker & Adam Holmes.