The use of alcohol and cannabis has a long history in the Caribbean, but the region has recently seen a rise in the use of other drugs, notably crack cocaine. The effects are being felt across the whole of Caribbean society, from addicts themselves to their families and those who try to help users with their addiction.

So what happens when you become addicted to a drug? How have users freed themselves from their addiction? And who is there to help?

These five 15-minute programmes capture real stories of people affected by or involved in the fight against addiction: from the former women drug “mules” just returning to Jamaica from UK prisons and trying to pick up the pieces of their lives, to the former policeman who ended up being hooked on cocaine after taking drugs in an attempt to deal with the memories of being on the front line.