As with most topics in which there seems to be quite a bit of sensitivity surrounding it, especially those dealing w/ drugs, political & socioeconomic issues, & really anything of importance that holds the power to cause nasty arguments and all of that, I see and have 2 opinions on this.
I’m sure it’s probably pretty common, but I was shot up by someone with heroin for my first time. I had previously done heroin by way of “monkey watering” it, and I was starting to become a fairly regular methamphetamine user around this time, I was 15. I had a buddy that was some years older than me, around 5-6 I want to say, and he did heroin. Dude was super well known in my city, and amongst my click of friends (I was the 14 year old hanging out with seniors and people who graduated years before), as being someone who loved drugs... heroin specifically.
Long story short, I start to chill with this dude & we clicked immediately. We’d do meth and shit at first, and then the day before my 16th birthday, it was 11/27/2010, I got him to take me to score some boy & rigs, and we went to the spot we’d smoke and snort meth and, and he banged me up. It was fucking amazing, but nothing like or as good as what it eventually becomes a few short weeks, maybe months, after that first hit. I manage to make it home safe and sound, and wake up the next day w/ my first taste of sickness. Very mild, but it was present. Met back up with him and hit the remainder of my sack, went home to a buddy who worked at CiCi’s, who brought me a large of my favorite pizza, home as a gift from his work.
The ages of 12-18 or so are still very fuzzy whenever I look back on them, ~I’m sure that my early introduction to drugs, basically daily use, & trauma brought about by certain experiences in life, has nothing to do with that~ so I’m not sure the exact details directly after, but I’m almost positive it went something along the lines of, continued to do meth, called Lance a few times to score, he took me, a few times turned into as many and often as possible, which turned into me no longer spending my money on meth, but still doing it when it was given to me, and that’s when I started making heroin my #1 priority and it was the “end all be all” at this point. I eventually learned how to shoot up on my own, at a buddies house, with a sack of meth and a brand new bag of rigs. I was shit at first lmao
Looking back, I can only remember one of my buddies & my ex-gf (didn’t do her first time) who I shot up for the first time. So, 1 of my buddies, my ex, and I think I shit this girl (and maybe her friend) up for the first times as well. I can’t quite remember. Back then, I was a kid in high school, less than 18 years old, and I didn’t give a fuck. I wasn’t super smart when it came to being responsible, and I was all about whatever got me free drugs or put me in a position to rob someone for drugs, or money to get drugs.
The dude I hit for the first time, it was with speed and he put a halt to that shit shortly after. A couple of years later though, he’s banging up dope and ended up getting bad off on it. He’s sober now off of heroin, which is cool and makes me happy. My ex, a buddy of mine hit her for the first time, and then I did afterwards for the duration of our relationship. No regrets on that either, though I did use to blame myself for her addiction, which was irrational and not fair to and of me to put all of that on myself. She’s currently in rehab or a sober living for like the, no bullshit, 20th+ time.
Where I become split is, these people are grown adults (most of the time. I was far from it both in age and mentality), so if you are experienced, why not show them the way to do it properly. If you don’t, chances of them finding someone else or just doing it themselves is pretty high. I do understand the moral dilemma that most seem to have though. On the other end of the spectrum, just because I’d do it to and show Joe Blow how to shoot up, doesn’t mean I’d show my ex-gf how to. It’s a weird and touchy subject.
Would I do it for someone else right now, as I type this? Can’t for sure answer that, because it would be something that all depended on all the variables at play and how I felt about the situation. I’m also a Harm reductionist at heart, and bleed, sweat and cry that shit, so I’d feel obligated to at least give them tips and show them the proper way to inject themselves. I’ve somehow managed to, over the past 10 years, never blow a vein out, only get 1 abscess, and manage being able to hit the same 1-2 veins for 5-6 weeks on end, with them just now getting to where I feel I need to swap spots for a bit. Not tooting my horn or anything like that, but if one has good techniques and is quite skilled at something, wouldn’t the logical and smartest thing to do be to pass on that knowledge to another that’s in need?! I also believe that the only thing that you’d be enabling as an experienced user, is enabling that person to inject drugs properly, with clean supplies, & as safely as possible. Just something to think about imo.
