Amen to that. My main issue with opioid w-d is not the physical part (kratom +loperamide and benzos do the trick) but the neverending post acute w-d depression. Hence I usually take the cocaine route, not the ideal way of dealing with these feelings but way better than be drugged up by some psychiatrist doing trial and error with my already battered brain.
Same here, I hide my drug use only when it is strictly necessary (mostly from my mom when I go back home once in a year, from my colleagues and my boss) but is a non issue as the majority of my mates either do drugs or are smart enough to understand that drug users are not demonic creatures. Actually the more judgemental ones are the coke heads back in Italy, convinced that smack is for losers while the pseudo coke they take is not even a drug...at most in many cases is not even coke 5-10% coke the rest is speed or some other cut), but is still making big holes in their tiny brains anyway
I seriously think that heroin in some twisted way saved my life in my 20´s, especially before I moved to the UK. I was going thru a lot of sentimental-existential-mental-shite that without the comfort of that drug I would have probably killed myself or fallen into insanity. Oxys helped me a lot during the pandemic as well. But now I have a job I like, a woman I love, some money in the bank, I have proved my point of "junkies can be achievers", I m also forty and not getting any younger, yes I like drugs, yes I like hanging around with like minded drug users, but..is it worth the risk? Thing is, sobriety is boring and drugs are great fun. So yeah, I m in this sort of junkie version of a midlife crisis I guess