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A Woman’s Journey Through Heroin Addiction - and RecoveryHeroin...
Reportage by Getty Images TumblrPhoto by Sara Naomi Lewkowicz/Getty Images Reportage
Photo by Sara Naomi Lewkowicz/Getty Images Reportage
Photo by Sara Naomi Lewkowicz/Getty Images Reportage
Photo by Sara Naomi Lewkowicz/Getty Images Reportage
A Woman’s Journey Through Heroin Addiction - and Recovery
Heroin use by American women has doubled in the last 10 years, from an average of 0.8 per 1,000 women in 2002 to 1.6 per 1,000 in 2013 - or about 250,000 women - according to a recent report by the Centers for Disease Control. Reportage photographer Sara Naomi Lewkowicz chronicled the life of one such woman, Alex, over several years, putting a human face to these statistics. The photos trace a turbulent 5-year episode in Alex’s life, from her addiction, to an arrest for burglary, to her eventual sobriety. With a story about drug use and sex work, it was important to Sara to paint a more nuanced portrait of Alex’s life, lest it be overwhelmed by stereotypes.
“Their humanity is not erased by the drugs or sex work that they do,” Sara says of women like Alex.
See more images from the story on Refinery 29.
