• 🇳🇿 🇲🇲 🇯🇵 🇨🇳 🇦🇺 🇦🇶 🇮🇳
    Australian & Asian
    Drug Discussion


    Welcome Guest!
    Posting Rules Bluelight Rules
  • AADD Moderators: swilow | Vagabond696

The Needle Stigma

Carbine

Ex-Bluelighter
Joined
Sep 30, 2004
Messages
398
Why is it that once you use needles people assume that you've gone to hell with no way back? I'm sick and tired of hearing people associate needle usage with death, decay, lack of morals etc etc.

I'm not saying that IVing doesn't have it's risks, but I mean, in Australia we have access to needle exchanges, loads of information on safe shooting...so why the stigma?
 
Cause they're sharp ;)

But maybe... JUST maybe, government initiatives and advertising do have an impact.........
 
yeh, i throw anything down my gob, or snort anything up my nostrils, but i dont agree with needles, probably been influenced by government etc. i can understand how u feel Carbine cause i have many friends who are totally against any drugs, even though i assure them they are perfectly safe. dont get me wrong, i dont mind if people choose to IV, its their choice, jsut not for me.

besides even getting a needle at the hospital freaks me out, i hate the thought of needle penetrating the skin. i broke out in a cold sweat just before they hooked up my drip a few months back when i had surgery done.
 
Last edited:
Psychadelic_Paisly said:
Cause they're sharp ;)

But maybe... JUST maybe, government initiatives and advertising do have an impact.........
^^^^
That's right.
PLUS anythin' that hurts when you take it just ain't on.
:\
PEACE
 
I think it's called Moral Outrage, Carbine... check it out:
Why is it that once you use drugs people assume that you've gone to hell with no way back? I'm sick and tired of hearing people associate drug usage with death, decay, lack of morals etc etc.
I'm not saying that drug use doesn't have it's risks, but I mean, in Australia we have access to use/abuse counselling groups, Bluelight, loads of information on drugs...so why the stigma?
Why is it that once you have a gambling addiction people assume that you've gone to hell with no way back? I'm sick and tired of hearing people associate gambling addiction with ... etc etc.
Why is it that once you admit to enjoying anything that people can be helplessly addicted to people assume that you have no self-control and have therefore gone to hell with no way back the same as every other soul fallen by the wayside?

Or is it because nobody starts out wanting to be a junkie? Can everyone else see the dangers that they think you're overlooking? Your point about the access to information is important, and clearly you have taken the initiative - but also remember: Everyone knows that you stick Heroin into a needle and shoot it into your arm and get smacked out and it feels amazing. It's in the movies, it's in our culture... but the information about harm reduction isn't necessarily so entrenched, leading you to a situation where people know how to get and use drugs, but not safely. Perhaps once Everyone knows needle-based harm reduction it will be demystified and no longer taboo.

BigTrancer :)
 
Last edited:
^but i never mentioned heroin, BT. Actually, I was referring to IVing speed, which seems to get the same reaction as heroin.

It just annoys me, because when one of my so-called friends accidently stumbled across my needles the other day, he immediately freaked out and practically started praying for my soul. It amused me no end because the same person has been known to steal, cheat on his g/f, deal drugs (including selling them to young kids), claim social security payments while working CIH... need I continue?
 
Yeah, my point was it doesn't matter what drug or addiction we're talking about, they just are worried you dunno what you're doing...

BT :)
 
OOO OOO

I know! Its because smoking Speed infront of all your friends is COOL! Rackin' up infront of your friends is COOL! Being in a room pluggin' up nuggets of goey WITH your friends is COOL!

Why is it that the method which is much cleaner, much better of a physical effect, much FASTER and people not knowing until they walk in on you with a tornique around ya arm that injecting of illicit drugs is some what very much socially unaccepted?

Is there something that I am missing?

Sitting down at a table with a crackpipe in ya hand and chattin along taking 20 minutes for the next toke, how is that considered to be much more accepted? Is it simply that the person with the cracky talking his ass off being sociable? Where as the guy with the fit in his arm is psychotic and too far gone? I fail to see how holdin a cracky taking ya time, allowing each minute for the cops to rock up n take a view of ya stash, how is it that injecting is unaccepted?

& a NOTE to the dumbasses of Bluelight, SMOKING is MORE ADDICTIVE than INJECTING!

I wish to meet this one person who I can talk to about this judging people thing, who is this person(s) able to draw the line between morallity and individuallity?

- SWIM
 
Smoking speed is definately more addictive than injecting. It is just way easier to do. Realistically it will take around 10-15 minutes to do the injection process safely, or maybe longer if you're doing it in a house with people home, on the sly.. ;-) Smoking you can drop a crystal in it every 30 seconds and suck that shit down... the taste is even addictive.

I've tried needles out of curiosity, was never talked into or forced to or anything. Just wanted to try it a few times.. What did I think? Dissapointing... Also I found out my veins were not built for needles.
 
I don't use needles and it's a concious decision. Why?

Well...I personally think needle use is going a bit too far to get high. I don't like getting needles in any circumstances, and the psychological barrier that I would need to go through to stick a needle into myself isn't worth getting high.

Needles have a stigma because of their association with "junkies". But I think some of people's suspicion with needles is from the fact that they're so...clinical. It's such a direct way of administering a drug. It doesn't look "cool" or anything like smoking or snorting can...you just straight up stick a needle in your vein. It's hard to glamourise that. Whatever, I don't care where my psychological barrier against needle use comes from, it's there and I don't think avoiding IVing is an unreasonable thing to do.

Plus, the only drug I would consider IVing is heroin. I've used heroin through other routes of administration, but I don't think I'm going to use it again and I'm sure as hell not going to inject it. The reason for this is that (NEWSFLASH) shooting heroin is addictive.

As I've gone through drugs and had my standards at what I would try change due to bluelight and exposure to other drug users, I've used pretty much everything including heroin, the "hardest drug". But after a while you have to take a step back and figure out what you consider acceptable risk in drug use.

I don't consider the risk of addiction that comes with injecting heroin worth the high. I don't care how good it is. It's just drugs. Drugs are not important. Drugs are just a kick to pass the time, have some crazy nights out and experience some new things. Drugs are not worth sticking a needle into yourself, and everything that comes with that.

I draw the line at shooting heroin.
 
The stigma and fear of needles is well documented - there is even a listing in DSM IV that refers to needle phobia. My sister used to faint every time she had an injection at the doctors - even as a teenager.

Also - media representation of needles and syringes is overwhelmingly negative. They are either shown in a medical context - with white coats and face masks - or associated with deviant behaviour - concealed faces, other indicators of social deviance. Also, any media photo of a needle/syringe is inevitably of a large, dirty syringe with a crusty monster horse needle attached - this adds to the stigma.

Interestingly, this stigma attached to injecting could actually encourage problematic use (see Zinberg "Drug, Set and Setting"). If you inject, you might have to hide it from your friends, might start hanging out more with people because they are injectors, rather than actual friends, might be exposed to more dependant users etc etc.

Personally, I don't inject - but I know plenty of people who do or have. I just don't let it affect my relationship with them. They can (and do) do it in front of me and I won't care. I may or may not choose to inject in the future - but if I do it will be safely.

"Drawing lines" is interesting (see satricion above) - funnily enough even people who inject draw lines: "I'm not a junky - I only inject speed", "I'm not a junky - I have a home/girlfriend/job". And of course it is very common for non-injecting illicit drug users to distance themselves from injecting. Basically, when you get picked on, it is common human behaviour to find someone else to pick on in return to make yourself feel better. ;)
 
My "drawing the line" process is nothing to do with finding someone to pick on to justify my own drug use as being okay and risk free. I don't do it so that there are some people who are "worse" than me.

I don't inject because I've looked at my life and after considering the pros and cons of shooting drugs, I don't think it's worth it. I have friends who shoot up in front of me and that's fine, they're still my best friends. I don't distance myself from injecting...it happens around me. I don't approve of it because I don't want the people I value in my life to become smack addicts, and I think shooting up increases the risk of that happens. I won't do it because I just don't care enough about drugs to elevate the risk of addiction and stick a needle into my vein.
 
...I have however, picked powder out of my nose and then rubbed it on my gums. I guess that's going sort of far for a high. ;)
 
^ meh - everyone likes the taste of their own snot ;)

Sorry satricion - I wasn't having a go at you in particular :) I'm glad you stay friends with your injecting friends. I pretty much agree with what you say - I just might phrase it differently..

.... and I have scrounged butts out of ashtrays to roll a cigarette when I couldn't afford to buy any - that's going too far without even getting a high!!
 
I always get the odd person here in NZ saying if you ever go to some of the beaches in Australia to be careful for stray needles, like I go to australia all the time and have not witnessed (sp?) any of this? wonder if its an urban myth. Cos theres always needles littering the streets around needle exchanges. Heh just a thought really?.
Maybe they were forced to watch "go ask alice" to many times whilst at school as kids - teehee...

EDIT: I mean needles littered here in NZ.
 
I value my blood donating privileges.
As soon as I IM/IV a drug, they go flying out the window.

Hence, I won't IV until I get told to fuck off and never return from the blood bank
 
People often associate needles with Junkies.
If your friends have seen you iv or see's needles in your home, this will instantly generate the revelation of addict etc etc. Im in no way accusing you of being a junkie, all I am saying is you have to understand there is a reason for the way they feel..
 
Originally posted by Killing_time
PLUS anythin' that hurts when you take it just ain't on.
:\
PEACE

Meh...railing a line of speed or MDMA hurts a hell of a lot more than the short, sharp jab of a needle ;).
 
I'd say the stigma is beacause needle use is a double whammie.

Many non-needle users get addicted to drugs.

Many needle users get addicted to drugs AND addicted to the needle.
 
Top