What makes someone a drug addict?

[S.J.B.]

I mean, from a semantic perspective. In reality it is, like most things, a continuum. I ask because I'm at home getting high by myself and I was thinking about how, until recently, I hadn't done this for over six years. I only use on weekends, and that's been the case for a decade -- I don't even drink coffee during the week. Any time I've felt I needed to stop doing drugs I've been able to, and it was never a struggle against temptation. I've never had even as long as a week of consistent daily use. But I love drugs, to an abnormal extent. They are part of my personality. They led me to the career I have now. I've done far more drugs than most people can name. I've even posted thousands of messages to a forum dedicated to the subject! In my last relationship (the six years), I stopped using for the sake of my partner and it was devastating. I missed it desperately and it took years to get over that. I thought drugs were behind me, that my interest had waned, but then my relationship ended and, uh oh... what else did I have? It became clear that the yearning was just on hiatus.

I was abstinent (I won't use a slur like "sober") for so long, but it didn't make me happier. To the extend that it can be quantified, I would have to say the opposite. That's the problem, what mainstream media and normal people are missing when they think about drug addiction. People who use like us (by "us" I am generalizing to the median Bluelighter and, like, within a standard deviation of him) are not super happy people who got taken down by drugs. They are fucked-up people who found something that also led to bad feelings but that, in a sinusoidal fashion, seemed to give good feelings of equivalent strength. The grand thing about memories is, outside of the truly traumatic, they tend to hold on to the good a little tighter, and man do drugs know how to inscribe themselves on the neuronal slate. If life is great, this is not going to stand out enough to derail your life path. If not, well, as they say, "like a sore thumb".

The issue isn't so much that drugs are addictive in a general sense as that psychoactive drugs change how one perceives the world and that the more one is on the left tail of the bell curve of any number of psychological parameters, the more that change in perception is likely to be experienced as a positive rather than a negative change, and the greater the magnitude of the proportion of positivity to negativity. An example of "reversion to the mean" (a concept natural enough to have originated in genetics). That's not to say that only troubled souls can enjoy drugs; on the contrary, I think most folks have a good time if they're not at the point where it's become their Big Problem. But, given the downsides, it's just not enough of a jump up for most.

What do you feel defines a drug addict? Do you think the person I've described is a drug addict?

Regardless of the answer, I can unequivocally say: I'm a dope fiend.

 

[Mr. Krinkle]

an addict is an addict - not necessarily a drug addict - so i dont think it's fair to call somebody a drug addict specifically

a person may have an addictive personality

if you can't stop, and you need outside help, or you need something else to help you quit, like something as simple as a nicotine patch to quit cigs, it's safe to say that you're an addict

i'll leave it at that - its not really too complex - but i simplify everything so there's that too

 

[TheUltimateFixx]

I mean, from a semantic perspective. In reality it is, like most things, a continuum. I ask because I'm at home getting high by myself and I was thinking about how, until recently, I hadn't done this for over six years. I only use on weekends, and that's been the case for a decade -- I don't even drink coffee during the week. Any time I've felt I needed to stop doing drugs I've been able to, and it was never a struggle against temptation. I've never had even as long as a week of consistent daily use. But I love drugs, to an abnormal extent. They are part of my personality. They led me to the career I have now. I've done far more drugs than most people can name. I've even posted thousands of messages to a forum dedicated to the subject! In my last relationship (the six years), I stopped using for the sake of my partner and it was devastating. I missed it desperately and it took years to get over that. I thought drugs were behind me, that my interest had waned, but then my relationship ended and, uh oh... what else did I have? It became clear that the yearning was just on hiatus.

I was abstinent (I won't use a slur like "sober") for so long, but it didn't make me happier. To the extend that it can be quantified, I would have to say the opposite. That's the problem, what mainstream media and normal people are missing when they think about drug addiction. People who use like us (by "us" I am generalizing to the median Bluelighter and, like, within a standard deviation of him) are not super happy people who got taken down by drugs. They are fucked-up people who found something that also led to bad feelings but that, in a sinusoidal fashion, seemed to give good feelings of equivalent strength. The grand thing about memories is, outside of the truly traumatic, they tend to hold on to the good a little tighter, and man do drugs know how to inscribe themselves on the neuronal slate. If life is great, this is not going to stand out enough to derail your life path. If not, well, as they say, "like a sore thumb".

The issue isn't so much that drugs are addictive in a general sense as that psychoactive drugs change how one perceives the world and that the more one is on the left tail of the bell curve of any number of psychological parameters, the more that change in perception is likely to be experienced as a positive rather than a negative change, and the greater the magnitude of the proportion of positivity to negativity. An example of "reversion to the mean" (a concept natural enough to have originated in genetics). That's not to say that only troubled souls can enjoy drugs; on the contrary, I think most folks have a good time if they're not at the point where it's become their Big Problem. But, given the downsides, it's just not enough of a jump up for most.

What do you feel defines a drug addict? Do you think the person I've described is a drug addict?

Regardless of the answer, I can unequivocally say: I'm a dope fiend.

Said it yourself. I can sum up your post in one short sentence, to my own understanding : an addict is someone who feels that they need that thing to be happy. That without it they're missing out on something essential to them.

 

[Mr. Krinkle]

usually addicts replace their drug addiction or alcoholism with some other addiction, whether it's drinking coffee 4 times a day, chain smoking cigs, going to meetings everyday - they usually keep the behavior but replace it with something else that they go may go overboard on too

its a personality

 

[Bad Obsession]

an addict is an addict - not necessarily a drug addict - so i dont think it's fair to call somebody a drug addict specifically

a person may have an addictive personality

if you can't stop, and you need outside help, or you need something else to help you quit, like something as simple as a nicotine patch to quit cigs, it's safe to say that you're an addict

i'll leave it at that - its not really too complex - but i simplify everything so there's that too

Absolutely. I find if I get into something new whether it be drugs, playing guitar, gym etc I always throw myself into it 110%, sometimes to a point of it being an unhealthy obsession

 

[jasperkent]

Everybody knows that a drug addict is anyone who takes a drug you don't like or takes more than you do of a drug you like.
Or someone who "looks like" a drug addict-- whatever that means to you personally.

 

[jasperkent]

It's like what George Carlin said about driving:

Anyone who drives slower than you is an idiot.
Anyone who drives faster than you is a maniac.

 

[Mr. Krinkle]

i view calling somebody a "drug addict" as derogatory - probably because i've never heard it used any other way - so i would never call somebody a drug addict

but an "addict" - i think that just describes a behavior

 

[jasperkent]

i view calling somebody a "drug addict" as derogatory - probably because i've never heard it used any other way - so i would never call somebody a drug addict

but an "addict" - i think that just describes a behavior

I'd never call someone a drug addict unless that's how they self-identify. I have no problem being called a drug addict because I most certainly am one.

 

[Neuroborean]

I thought drugs were behind me, that my interest had waned, but then my relationship ended and, uh oh... what else did I have? It became clear that the yearning was just on hiatus.

Yeah, you thought so because your dopamine was firing towards your relationship like a well tuned antenna. Maybe?

It's like what George Carlin said about driving:

Anyone who drives slower than you is an idiot.
Anyone who drives faster than you is a maniac.

hahaha wow man, that was a lot of laughs!!
It's exactly that...

 

[JackARoe]

I am going to give the most simplistic answer that I use for myself. Keep in mind my hey day of "recovery" was the early 90's. I got that 1990's addiction psychology shoved down my throat. The drug counselor that ran the mandated drug group I was in also had me for individual sessions. The dude was a good dude but sold that 90's addiction psychology. He ended up OD'ing on heroin leaving behind a pregnant wife, 2 little kids and his thriving recovery business. That is when i simplified everything and took my own health into my hands..

I think addiction is addiction, whether drugs, food, or shopping. And we all have things we are addicted too. And I think humans we simply gravitate towards what feels good and sometimes even what feels good in just that moment. The monkeys that pull the cocaine lever taught me that. That simple yet that complicated.

I mean I was in a rehab in Chester PA back in 1990. One one the group counselors needed to hear some deep dark secret or else he said we would never recover and would not sign us off. I jokingly said ok ok I fucked a sheep. (yes jokingly lol) and thought I would catch crap but all he said was see, feels better doesn't it? And I mumbled yes and I still feel like using drugs. (the amount of laughs in a 28 day rehab is crazy, some good people in there) Humor so helped.

 

[cdin]

I'm not a drug addict. I'm an addiction and withdrawal survivor.

 

[emkee_reinvented]

Addiction is officially disregarded as term to stigmatize people within drug care.

So there are no addicts, just rats in cages.

 

[Ghostrae]

I mean, from a semantic perspective. In reality it is, like most things, a continuum. I ask because I'm at home getting high by myself and I was thinking about how, until recently, I hadn't done this for over six years. I only use on weekends, and that's been the case for a decade -- I don't even drink coffee during the week. Any time I've felt I needed to stop doing drugs I've been able to, and it was never a struggle against temptation. I've never had even as long as a week of consistent daily use. But I love drugs, to an abnormal extent. They are part of my personality. They led me to the career I have now. I've done far more drugs than most people can name. I've even posted thousands of messages to a forum dedicated to the subject! In my last relationship (the six years), I stopped using for the sake of my partner and it was devastating. I missed it desperately and it took years to get over that. I thought drugs were behind me, that my interest had waned, but then my relationship ended and, uh oh... what else did I have? It became clear that the yearning was just on hiatus.

I was abstinent (I won't use a slur like "sober") for so long, but it didn't make me happier. To the extend that it can be quantified, I would have to say the opposite. That's the problem, what mainstream media and normal people are missing when they think about drug addiction. People who use like us (by "us" I am generalizing to the median Bluelighter and, like, within a standard deviation of him) are not super happy people who got taken down by drugs. They are fucked-up people who found something that also led to bad feelings but that, in a sinusoidal fashion, seemed to give good feelings of equivalent strength. The grand thing about memories is, outside of the truly traumatic, they tend to hold on to the good a little tighter, and man do drugs know how to inscribe themselves on the neuronal slate. If life is great, this is not going to stand out enough to derail your life path. If not, well, as they say, "like a sore thumb"..v

The issue isn't so much that drugs are addictive in a general sense as that psychoactive drugs change how one perceives the world and that the more one is on the left tail of the bell curve of any number of psychological parameters, the more that change in perception is likely to be experienced as a positive rather than a negative change, and the greater the magnitude of the proportion of positivity to negativity. An example of "reversion to the mean" (a concept natural enough to have originated in genetics). That's not to say that only troubled souls can enjoy drugs; on the contrary, I think most folks have a good time if they're not at the point where it's become their Big Problem. But, given the downsides, it's just not enough of a jump up for most.

What do you feel defines a drug addict? Do you think the person I've described is a drug addict?

Regardless of the answer, I can unequivocally say: I'm a dope fiend.

I

 

[jasperkent]

I'm not a drug addict. I'm an addiction and withdrawal survivor.

Me too.
I would add that I'm a survivor of Recovery.

 

[Ghostrae]

I am familiar with all the definitions. Basically if you use any chemical it makes you an addict.
Addict or drug dependent means:
If you take a drug try to quit and you cannot your an addict.
If you have a wreck and drugs are in your system your an addict.
I could go on but I am betting most of you know the drill.
Me. I was highly addicted to nicotine after a 20 year habit I quit. I was definitely addicted. Since I have not smoked since 1986 I am no longer an addict.
I drank off and on till physically addicted even to the point of a trip to a hospital. I was addicted I do not drink now so I can cross that one off my list.
I toyed with vicodin. It seemed to be a good one. Kills pain which is my problem but except for pain relief and some sedation I thought I was safe. The brand is now norco. Using for 7 years. Hydrocodone10/APA 325. Now I want off because I feel its a violation of my rights to be coerced into .medical test to get it And the doctor who first prescribed them retired. And I got a lot of hateful feed back from his replacement. She said my appointment was not that day. I said it is damn it. I do not make that kind of mistake. She ultimately saw me My first trip to her she read me the riot act about how she handles first time patients who want stronger doses. She must have had me mixed up with some one else. No actually she was listening to one of the helpers. A woman who used to help my wonderful retired doctor. I found myself unable to urinate for the test. It, as simple as peeing in a bottle sounds, turned into a nightmare. I think a urine test given under duress and the whole contract thing is a method of ridding themselves of opoid patients. Pain money is too important for them to just stop taking opoid patients so they like to play musical chairs with them. The treatment I received by was so unprofessional the pee collector broke every patient right on the list. I had all the various addresses and numbers lined up so as to put in official complaints. Ive waited instead I I switched to another doctor in that same family practice group. He was so generous with those prescriptions never mentioned pee test. Months past. Then one day he said pee test time. He started quoting the law I told him I know the law. He did not even treat me that day for my other health issues. Heart and a rash. His one goa,l the pee test and covering his ass with a contract. Perhaps even embarrassing me to the point of no return was intentional. He even looked at his watch. He left abruptly saying he had to go pee. I know what was going on but I really did not know what was going on. I kept going to him and getting refills. He kept writing them but kept trying to say do not come back. I got around him. My primary doctor quit. That left him my primary doctor. That made him libel. He could not blame the other doctor. His attitude changed. I think its terrible these doctors give enough opoid to get anybody hooked then when they have pushed the legality to the breaking and legally danger point they try to very rudely send you on your way. So this is why I want to quit taking them. I do not want to HAVE to go back to get them. Anywhere. There are still some pain clinics open. Because I am having trouble quitting that makes me addicted even though I average no more than 40mg in 24 hour ever and can cut back to one pill. I can not seem to reach the "not addicted" stage. Has anyone else had this kind of treatment. Advice needed on how to get to the non addicted state. I started taking an anti depressant I think it will help it helps people not smoke bupropion. I have started another tapper for a few days ditched that now I am starting another tapper. Extending the time between each pill. Not taking a smaller dose. The bupropion is causing more pain even headache. So I am
for it to get into my sytem good before I rely on it as an aid to stop opoids.

 

[Opi_Kid_Rock]

Someone who engages in an activity that brings them relief or pleasure of which they have difficulty stopping and while having negative consequences. Is one definition that I have heard that is not as two-dimensional as say NA would define. This definition is not specific to substance addictions as I believe that many non-substance addictions are worse in some ways for example, Gambling -taken too far.

 

[Neuroborean]

I think there's 2 things to consider:
the relationship you have with the thing/substance/event/person... it could be use (that can be a form of dependence or not) or abuse.
If it's "use" then the positives outweight the negatives. If it's abuse then the negatives outweight the positives. It can be muddy and not clear, tho.

the relationship you have with the relation. I mean, if it's pure inertia or if it's evaluated consciently. If it's pure inertia it's quite easy that things can go overboard because you may not even realize if a form of dependence is or not positive enough to keep "feeding" it.

If you evaluate that and you clearly feel that the negatives outweight the positives and you cannot change that easily... you probably are addicted. Otherwise you're dependent, or just a drug/whatever user.

That's the way I see it.
But there's nothing too wrong being an addict, is just another "weight" of this existence, some weight that you put on yourself trying to be freer, or lighter...

 

[LucidSDreamr]

A very concise answer:

Every human likes dopamine and the effect of certain drugs.

An addict is the one that repeatedly chooses the dopamine despite the negative consequences that come after using the drug.

The non addict makes the decision to forgo the dopamine rush in favor of not experiencing the negative side effects (comedown, hangover, withdrawal etc.)

 

[emkee_reinvented]

I am familiar with all the definitions. Basically if you use any chemical it makes you an addict.
Addict or drug dependent means:
If you take a drug try to quit and you cannot your an addict.
If you have a wreck and drugs are in your system your an addict.
I could go on but I am betting most of you know the drill.
Me. I was highly addicted to nicotine after a 20 year habit I quit. I was definitely addicted. Since I have not smoked since 1986 I am no longer an addict.
I drank off and on till physically addicted even to the point of a trip to a hospital. I was addicted I do not drink now so I can cross that one off my list.
I toyed with vicodin. It seemed to be a good one. Kills pain which is my problem but except for pain relief and some sedation I thought I was safe. The brand is now norco. Using for 7 years. Hydrocodone10/APA 325. Now I want off because I feel its a violation of my rights to be coerced into .medical test to get it And the doctor who first prescribed them retired. And I got a lot of hateful feed back from his replacement. She said my appointment was not that day. I said it is damn it. I do not make that kind of mistake. She ultimately saw me My first trip to her she read me the riot act about how she handles first time patients who want stronger doses. She must have had me mixed up with some one else. No actually she was listening to one of the helpers. A woman who used to help my wonderful retired doctor. I found myself unable to urinate for the test. It, as simple as peeing in a bottle sounds, turned into a nightmare. I think a urine test given under duress and the whole contract thing is a method of ridding themselves of opoid patients. Pain money is too important for them to just stop taking opoid patients so they like to play musical chairs with them. The treatment I received by was so unprofessional the pee collector broke every patient right on the list. I had all the various addresses and numbers lined up so as to put in official complaints. Ive waited instead I I switched to another doctor in that same family practice group. He was so generous with those prescriptions never mentioned pee test. Months past. Then one day he said pee test time. He started quoting the law I told him I know the law. He did not even treat me that day for my other health issues. Heart and a rash. His one goa,l the pee test and covering his ass with a contract. Perhaps even embarrassing me to the point of no return was intentional. He even looked at his watch. He left abruptly saying he had to go pee. I know what was going on but I really did not know what was going on. I kept going to him and getting refills. He kept writing them but kept trying to say do not come back. I got around him. My primary doctor quit. That left him my primary doctor. That made him libel. He could not blame the other doctor. His attitude changed. I think its terrible these doctors give enough opoid to get anybody hooked then when they have pushed the legality to the breaking and legally danger point they try to very rudely send you on your way. So this is why I want to quit taking them. I do not want to HAVE to go back to get them. Anywhere. There are still some pain clinics open. Because I am having trouble quitting that makes me addicted even though I average no more than 40mg in 24 hour ever and can cut back to one pill. I can not seem to reach the "not addicted" stage. Has anyone else had this kind of treatment. Advice needed on how to get to the non addicted state. I started taking an anti depressant I think it will help it helps people not smoke bupropion. I have started another tapper for a few days ditched that now I am starting another tapper. Extending the time between each pill. Not taking a smaller dose. The bupropion is causing more pain even headache. So I am
for it to get into my sytem good before I rely on it as an aid to stop opoids.

Addiction is a lie give your grandma DiaMorphine after her hip replacement and there is a big chance she will not be addicted after three weeks. Contrary to the science.

The rat in a cage effect.