Two portraits of two people who became addicted to heroin in the 1980s. Journalist Jörg Böckern was a junkie for over twenty years and nearly lost his life to the drug. He is clean now and wonders how he could hide his addiction at work. Christiane K. cannot live without drugs until today. Despite that she successfully masters her life as a single working mother. This compassionate documentary shows what it means to keep up appearances while standing close to the abyss.