He just made a stupid mistake and paid the ultimate price. It cost him his life. Things go on the way they always did for us, but just a lot sadder. It’s something that never leaves you. A part of you is lost forever when you lose someone so close. You have good days and then there are days when life is just too much.”

Nicole Ryan lost her only brother Alex at the age 18 after he took a drug known as N-bomb – the synthetic derivative of the 2C family of drugs.

Alex, who was four years younger than his sister, finished school in 2015 and moved to Cork city, hoping to begin college the following September. Unfortunately, Alex’s dreams never became a reality and his sister and mother Irena have been left without their adored brother and son.

“We were very different people but growing up we were very close and it stayed that way all the way through really. He was full of life, very energetic and loved to make friends. We had a great childhood. The two of us spent our summers down at the local park playing with the other kids,” says Nicole.

“He didn’t know what he wanted to do in college. He was conscious of not going until he knew what he really wanted. So, he decided he would move to the city until he figure out what it was that he wanted to study. He began working for the year, planning to go to college the following September. Those were his goals.”

“I never thought it was going to happen to me. You read about stories and think: ‘Jesus that’s awful, but it’s never going to happen to me or my family.’ Well it does and it did.

“He played rugby with the local club. He was 6ft 7”, a massive guy. He was very shy as well. A real gentle giant, like a teddy bear. Once people got to know his personality though, they were drawn towards him and wanted to get to know him better. Alex was a happy-go-lucky guy.

“I never thought it was going to happen to me. You read about stories and think: ‘Jesus that’s awful, but it’s never going to happen to me or my family.’ Well it does and it did,” she adds.

Since her brother’s tragic death, Nicole has worked tirelessly to educate young people on drug usage. Her sincere and grief-stricken words act as a plea to all college-goers and young people to think about the consequences of their actions:

“The best thing to do is not take drugs at all. But, we don’t live in a perfect world and people are going to do to it. So, if you do decide to take something, you have to think of the consequences. Do you know what is inside of what you are taking? In my brother’s case, they thought they were taking one thing and it ended up being a total other thing, which cost him his life.”

“It can be very hard to say no when you are in college and see everybody doing it, having a laugh. Especially when you mix in a bit of drink, people feel braver and do things they might never do when they are sober. Every single person who has been through college comes across drugs. You don’t have to go looking, it will come to you. But, think twice about it. When you are out with your friends, you are living in the moment and you do things for the first time but it could be the last time you ever do it.”

When you are out with your friends, you are living in the moment and you do things for the first time but it could be the last time you ever do it.

Now studying addiction at UCC, she understands the complexities behind drug taking. Addressing what can be done to relieve the problem, Nicole believes that educating students from a young age on the dangerous implications of drug usage is key in preventing more tragedies:

“Growing up, we had barely any drug education in school. The only two drugs you heard about were heroin and cocaine. We were just told to never touch them or we would die. Then you go to college and see people taking drugs and say to yourself: ‘Drugs don’t kill you, that was all a lie.’ So, it has a real negative affect – simply telling people ‘never take drugs’ isn’t good enough. We need to educate ourselves from a younger age on drugs,” she explains.

Loads of people end up running away from a friend in need because of a fear of getting in trouble with the law. That couldn’t be further from the truth. The emergency services are there to help the person in need. That’s it.

Many college-goers don’t experiment with drugs. But the chances are that some of your friends will. Talking to your friends who take drugs can be very difficult. Nicole’s advice is simple: “Try to talk to them about the specific drugs they are taking. Ask them if they actually know what it is. Tell them about Alex’s story because it is not the first or last time a young person took something that would destroy both their own and their family’s lives.”

Finally, Nicole emphasises the importance of calling the ambulance if someone has overdosed: “Loads of people end up running away from a friend in need because of a fear of getting in trouble with the law. That couldn’t be further from the truth. The emergency services are there to help the person in need. That’s it.”

For more help and guidance look at the HSE ‘what’s in your coke’ campaign.

Drugs.ie and spunout.ie also offer some invaluable advice for young people regarding drugs and alcohol.