Can some people resist becoming adicted more than others?

[gimpan]

hello,

Just wondering if anyone else here has watched people become addicted to the same drug theyre using but
have been able to walk away unscathed.
has anyone else experienced this?

Im not saying im superhuman but I seem to be superhuman.

 

[spacejunk]

i don't think 'superhuman' is an appropriate word.
sure, some people are more inclined to become habitual drug users than others, but drugs affect everybody differently.
i assume you are referring to psychological addiction?
some people could be said to have 'addictive personalities' or a higher likelihood of developing a psychological addiction to a substance, whereas other people manage/moderate their use better.

to be honest, i think the idea that you are immune to addiction seems to be an indication that you are all the more susceptible to it.

and it can happen to anyone, so it's not really something to be complacent about.
there are a number of drugs that gradually - with repeated administration - take the addiction from psychological to physical. and once you're physically addicted, all bets are off.
even if you haven't experienced the pull of drug addiction yet, certainly does not mean you never can, or never will.

 

[gimpan]

Nah i was refering to physiological addiction. I rarely get withdrawal symtoms even when coming off some drugs that are notoriously addictive.It really does seem as though im fairly safe from addiction and was wondering if anyone else had similar a experience.

I understand this is a harm reduction site and realise what im saying may be a bad message so delete it if you want.

 

[Crankinit]

It's nothing to do with being superhuman or somehow special. The level of withdrawals you get depends on a lot of factors, eg. if somebody who's never used before gets high a week straight on opiates, they'll come off it with maybe slight symptoms. Someone who's been using for years on and off will probably feel like shit. It's just the way the body gets acclimatized to addictive drugs.

 

[headdah]

It's nothing to do with being superhuman or somehow special. The level of withdrawals you get depends on a lot of factors, eg. if somebody who's never used before gets high a week straight on opiates, they'll come off it with maybe slight symptoms. Someone who's been using for years on and off will probably feel like shit. It's just the way the body gets acclimatized to addictive drugs.

i secondd that ^

the more you use a certain drug, the more times u've gotten high off it. then comes the withdrawels!
yes first few dozen times on it u come off unscathed at all.
then it happens.

the ugly side of the drug. the WDS!!!!

 

[claire22]

of course. If you become reliant upon it for any sort of reason (which has more to do with your mental state & lifestyle imo) then it will be far harder for you to get off it than say, somebody who uses only with friends every second weekend

 

[Busty St Clare]

Nah i was refering to physiological addiction. I rarely get withdrawal symtoms even when coming off some drugs that are notoriously addictive.It really does seem as though im fairly safe from addiction and was wondering if anyone else had similar a experience.

I understand this is a harm reduction site and realise what im saying may be a bad message so delete it if you want.

These sound like famous last words. The best course of action is to limit your use, the moment you start slipping into a daily routine you are heading towards addiction. I have seen otherwise sensible drug uses become complacent and before you know it they are justifying using mid week "just this once" until they are caught. Most common cause is some sort of serious injury that requires pain relief. It is easy for a recreational drug user to start experimenting with their meds until it becomes more of a crutch than they want.

The best way to avoid this is to make sure you have regular breaks. Even getting into a once a week routine can be dangerous. If you are only using every saturday night it is easy to start thinking about it a few days out, almost obsessing about your next experience. From there you will use Friday night and Saturday "just this once". No one is immune, from the smartest to the dumbest become addicts, the trick is to recognise the fingers before they wrap around you.

 

[psytaco]

These sound like famous last words. The best course of action is to limit your use, the moment you start slipping into a daily routine you are heading towards addiction. I have seen otherwise sensible drug uses become complacent and before you know it they are justifying using mid week "just this once" until they are caught. Most common cause is some sort of serious injury that requires pain relief. It is easy for a recreational drug user to start experimenting with their meds until it becomes more of a crutch than they want.

The best way to avoid this is to make sure you have regular breaks. Even getting into a once a week routine can be dangerous. If you are only using every saturday night it is easy to start thinking about it a few days out, almost obsessing about your next experience. From there you will use Friday night and Saturday "just this once". No one is immune, from the smartest to the dumbest become addicts, the trick is to recognise the fingers before they wrap around you.

Agreed.

I defy the OP to use xanax or heroin heavily for two months and see how superhuman he feels after that.

having the mindset that you won't get addicted is probably more likely to get you in trouble than someone who recognises the dangers of using too carefully.

BTW gimpan: what addictive drugs are you saying you have used regularly and had no problem with?

 

[satricion]

I think it's about the rest of your life. Like I gave up heroin because I had too much else to live for. I was studying, working, I had a life and a career and a future planned out. I knew what I wanted to do and I didn't want to risk it all for heroin. Whereas my friend who I was using with at the time had no idea what he wanted to do in his life and felt alienated from everyone around him. He just kept using because he didn't give a shit. He didn't feel like he was giving anything up by getting addicted. Whereas I did. I'm not saying it's as simple as this, but it's not just about control over your usage. It's about the way your usage fits with the rest of your life.

 

[PlurPsyed]

I would expect that to be the case since some people are genetically predisposed to addiction.

 

[PlurPsyed]

I seem to have steered clear of addiction for the stupidest reason imaginable: I'm prone to binging and usually get violently sick from a substance and never want to touch it again before any addiction has time to set in.

 

[Nozphexezora]

I would expect that to be the case since some people are genetically predisposed to addiction.

Agreed. People seem more genetically susceptible to not only drug addiction, but addiction in general. However, like others said, it's also a matter of lifestyle. I suppose addiction is dependent on the classic case of nurture vs nature.

 

[gimpan]

Agreed.

I defy the OP to use xanax or heroin heavily for two months and see how superhuman he feels after that.

having the mindset that you won't get addicted is probably more likely to get you in trouble than someone who recognises the dangers of using too carefully.

BTW gimpan: what addictive drugs are you saying you have used regularly and had no problem with?

The superhuman thing was joke only it wasnt funny.

Yeah the thing is when I started I did have that mindset and was carefull but when coming off it nearly all of my withdrawals seemed to be psychological and not as bad as others around me.

I was mainly talking about heroin but also benzos, oxycodone, ms contins, nicotine, codiene and others

 

[lcrlover]

I would expect that to be the case since some people are genetically predisposed to addiction.

I think that if the above is true, then there should also be, as the OP suggested,
Folks who are more resistant to becoming addicted to some drugs

 

[Beat Narrative]

hello,

Just wondering if anyone else here has watched people become addicted to the same drug theyre using but
have been able to walk away unscathed.
has anyone else experienced this?

Im not saying im superhuman but I seem to be superhuman.

you may think this but you won't know your addicted until your addicted, if your are immune to addiction then i envy your genes but go on a two year opiate binge and let us know how your feeling

 

[Mr Blonde]

gimpan: How long were you using for? How regularly?

Lots of things affect how bad the physical withdrawal will be, including your own mindset and your body's individual response. Besides, I wouldn't call the psychological part of the addiction walking away 'unscathed'. The physical symptoms subside in a week, cravings, trying to get back some sort of normalcy and dealing with temptation can last a long time. My benzodiazepine use has left me with scars, and not the physical kind either.

 

[gimpan]

gimpan: How long were you using for? How regularly?

Lots of things affect how bad the physical withdrawal will be, including your own mindset and your body's individual response. Besides, I wouldn't call the psychological part of the addiction walking away 'unscathed'. The physical symptoms subside in a week, cravings, trying to get back some sort of normalcy and dealing with temptation can last a long time. My benzodiazepine use has left me with scars, and not the physical kind either.

At height of my heroin use i would usually work away one month straight then then have 6 to 8 weeks off where i would have around a point on week days and a fair bit more on weekends. I realise having the breaks I had would help avoid full on addiction.
I also used to take 6mg clonzeapam a day for about 6 months then when couldnt get them anymore i made a doctors appointment to try get more legitimatly but was refused, I worried for a bit but ended up fine.
Ive smoked cigarettes on and off for years but never felt addicted.
Surely someone else can relate?

 

[tyrael]

Agree with most comments. Addiction as a field of study is absolutely HUGE! Especially research in the past decade or so has proven that there is a ridiculous amount of variables and influences which lead to "addiction"! It is in no way as simple as, "somethings addictive" > "person becomes addicted", or "a person is 'weak'" and hence can become (easily) addiction!

There are so, so many variables. Studies have shown a few things - generalisations I'd say. Thing such as one has a higher risk of becoming addicted if from say a lower SES for instance. Or if there is wide-exposure/easy acquires to a substance from early childhood. But like I said, these are generalisations and there is always (and often many tbh) exceptions to these! Having said this, there is a strong evidence that basically the cause of addiction is most definitely multi-factorial - physical, psychological, genetic, environmental, etc. No one has (or ever will imo) been able to attribute it to one specific cause.

Even down to the definition of the word "addiction" cannot be well, clearly defined. One most certainly cannot limit it to drugs! Or realising within someone's "addiction" the differences aspects such as physical addiction, as a posed to mental addiction. Or even, and I'm sure many people on BL who has gone through it, would attests that treating the physical aspects - maintenance programs, treating WDs, titration to ween them off - are a quite small part of dealing with an addiction.

.....
Folks who are more resistant to becoming addicted to some drugs

....People seem more genetically susceptible to not only drug addiction, but addiction in general......classic case of nurture vs nature.

I agree with you, Nozphexezora, to an extent. But personally I think it goes much deeper then that. And imo it's this which make it such an interesting/exciting field to study (and what my Master thesis will roughly be on :D )

you may think this but you won't know your addicted until your addicted, if your are immune to addiction then i envy your genes but go on a two year opiate binge and let us know how your feeling

I totally agree with the "not realising it until you are". Tbh, I've went through it myself, and see many, many friends go through it also. However, I understand what you're trying to say, but I think there's a better word we could use then "immune". Maybe it's just me but when I hear that I think that for people who aren't "immune" are somehow weak(er) or inferior somehow. The factors involved which may/not cause someone to become addicted has no reflection on how strong (physically nor mentally) that person is.

.....
Ive smoked cigarettes on and off for years but never felt addicted.
Surely someone else can relate?

Most definitely! In my case, I've tried cigarettes (a number of times in fact) and to this day I absolutely cannot in any way (personally) find any thing about them which would make me want to continue ..... it's just me - as "weak" an argument that maybe. lol.

 

[laugh]

havnt they isolated an addictive gene? meaning that if you carry this gene you are more at risk of developing an addictive personality, addiction problems.

 

[collier]

I think a lot of addiction is psychological and how people cope with the physical side effects of withdrawal also has a lot to do with their coping mechanisms. I don't get addicted to stuff that easily, used to be a social smoker at uni but could stop for weeks and only start socially if I wanted to never got hooked. Same with other drugs, recently tried meth, loved the high it gave and the fun I had on it but havent bought any since.

I think it comes down to how your built to cope with stuff, probably not all psychological but genetics too.