Recent media coverage suggests that Australia is in the grip of a methamphetamine crisis that is bringing our mental health system to the brink of collapse. Andrew Macintosh looks at three questions. How big is the methamphetamine problem? What are the effects of rising methamphetamine use on society, with particular emphasis on mental illness? What do recent events tell us about drug policy and the effectiveness of drug law enforcement as a means of dealing with substance misuse problems?