My friend is a coke-head.
 

About a week and a half ago I ran into my friend J.B. at the gay bar. We've known each other for a few years. He's one of the nicest guys I know and one of my favorite people to hang out with. After the bar closed, we went to the house of one of his friends, and that's when I found out he does cocaine.

What's just as disturbing than J.B.'s coke habit is his habit of trying to talk others into using the stuff. J.B. thinks coke is the greatest thing since sliced bread. In his words, "It's such a fun drug to do." I spoke to my friend Rob about this earlier today, and he told me one of his friends used to do coke and she would try to get him to use it. Rob thinks maybe it's common for cocaine users to try to "convert" others. (Does anyone out there know anything about that?)

J.B. is self-destructive in other ways. He gets drunk regularly, drives drunk, and uses coke while already drunk.

He's told me depression runs in his family. His brother committed suicide a couple of years ago. I think maybe J.B. is self-medicating.

I'm heart-broken about this situation and I have no idea how to handle it. I can't go to his family because they've never accepted his being gay and his Dad used to hit J.B. when he was a kid. I'm scared that he'll get arrested, or worse yet, hurt or kill himself or others.

Does anybody out there have any advice?

You have to pray for him. Just be there for him because one day J.B. Will crash. The people who do coke with him won't be there when he does. If you can, exrpess your concern for him about this habit. He's dealing with a lot of pain, hurt, and rejection.

This is a sad situation and I am really sorry for you. I once had some friends who were addicted to different drugs. Someday I couldn't stand that anymore. I've always tried to talk and to convince but all I got was lies. An addict would always find excuses and apologies for his actions. For his friends and families it's really hard to get along with. But as a friend you should really try to express your concerns, I agree.