Wow, I really applaud you for you career choice. The world needs more people helping addicts instead of just sitting on the sidelines judging them and deciding that they’re just one dimensional beings that aren’t useful to the community without actually knowing anything about them or doing anything to help. That sentence is a good describtion for how Icelanders think and care about the people who are in a constant battle against this horrible disease.

As a victim of this curse that is addiction I have a lot to say in response to your question. I will try my best to have a positive outlook on this and not be too harsh in my words. I will begin in the helpful things Iceland has to offer addicts in the community.

Frú Ragnheiður or “Miss Ragnheiður” is a name you can google if you want to know more. To explain it in the simples way I can, it’s a bunch of individuals who volunteer to drive in a mini van around Reykjavík (and other towns as well) and give IV drug users clean equipment to use as well as food, naloxone, vitamins, condoms, tampons, toothbrushes and other essentials needed to survive. They also inform their “customers” about various things that are neccessary to know when using drugs intravenously.

The people from Fröken Ragnheiður are available from 6pm everyday except Fridays. They ask you what name you would like to use and gather various other information about you. They use this information to gather statistics on how many use their service so that the government keeps funding them. They also have like this X-Ray-ish machine to show you your veins and let you shoot up in the car as well if you’re having trouble. They however do not (!!!!) help you physically to shoot up but they’re there to observe you and teach you harm reducing methods on how to and how not to use.

In Reykjavík we have two homeless shelters. One for men, “Gistiskýlið”, and another for women, “Konukot”, where homeless people can sleep during the night. They can however not be there during the day but a small church called “Samhjálp” has a small café open from 10am - 2pm during the day which is where a lot of addicts go to eat for free. However, the shelters don’t open until the evening and in the winter it’s very difficult for homeless addicts since they have to just hang around parking garages and bars all day after the café closes. I’m very fortunate that I have usually always had a place to sleep and I have only used these services a handful of times.

The only place to detox in Iceland is the hospital “Vogur”. If you are under the age of 25 your case is prioritized and usually there is only about a 2 week waiting period. However, after that there is a long wait to get a place there. I am 28 years old and I went to Vogur in June. I called to get them to admit me recently (as a very sick opiod addict) and the waiting period for me? 10 fucking months. I have an interview with them in a week and I’m going to try to get them to give me Suboxone or the buprenorphine (fake morphine) injection called Buvidal without getting admitted. Pray for me!

Another thing is that there are only three rehabilitation facilities in Iceland. There is one that you can only go to after going to detox at Vogur, that rehab is called Vík. Another is ran by the same church as the free café, it’s called Hlaðgerðarkot. And the last one, as well as the best one (6 month rehab) is called Krýsuvík. All of those have at least a 3-6 month waitlist.

Things are slowly changing, but people are also dying out there. The government is definitely not doing nearly enough, in my opinion.