The Ultimate Legal Sociabilizers?

[psstbeebo22]

Stimulants sound like a bad idea, to me, as well. The comedowns can be crap (Adderall, Ritalin... blah). Sure, they'll make you sociable... until your tolerance skyrockets and you're left with none of the benefits you desire unless you up your dosage. Plus, it might be kind of obvious to your peers that you're sped up, as opposed to being calm/normal on a theraputic benzo dosage. Have you tried anything besides Klonopin? How about Valium?

I've had pretty bad social anxiety for most of my life and Lexapro is the only thing that's really helped me. I like finding myself talking, as opposed to feeling like I can talk because I'm on some other drug (like a benzo), if that makes sense. I'm also prescribed Xanax prn, but I rarely use it due to my success with Lexapro. I know you said you tried it, but I figured I'd just throw that out there anyways.

 

[Kriscasey88]

I too, suffer from the EXACT same problem you do. The only thing is, I didnt 1 year and a half ago. The reason? I started doing opiates recreationally, to become more social. and yes, it worked. It got me out and about, meeting new people, talking to more girls, got a steady girlfriend for whom i was with for 2 year. ect. ect. so yes, opiates (Hydrocodone which led to Oxycontin) can do wonders for you. but let me tell you the state I am in now.

Now. almost 4 years later (I started the opiates at around 16, I am now 20) I now stay in my room 24/7 only leaving to run errand for my parents, or maybe every once in awhile to go to a friends house. I am currently going through a massive detox/withdrawal from OC to get off the shit, and at the same time, i am seeing a psychiatrist, who has me on kolonopin, and wellbutrin. Because now in social situations, i will begin to panic and start to freak. The reason being, the OC went from being my socialite drug of choice, to my ball and chain. I have lost everything i care about due to it. The girlfriend whom i loved and cared for greatly. my families respect, many, many friends, and just a good life in general.

and i was just like you when starting out. i said in my head, im strong enough to not turn into an addict, and i was just fooling myself. now like i said Oxycontin is my current ball and chain, but before it, was the Hydrocodone, which i did for about 2 years, and then thats when i was introduced to OC at a party in high school. A friend of mine broke it down, and i snorted it. Yes im not going to lie, i thought i was in heaven right after it hit me, and i was talking to everyone, but now as i look back upon that time, i curse it and regret it more than anything.

my point in all of this, is that DO NOT TURN TO OPIATES TO BECOME MORE SOCIAL

yes it helped me for maybe 2 1/2 years. but now for the past 1 1/2 im just back to where i was before, only now with a drug addiction, and more regrets than i care to admit.

i hope this helps you. but please whatever you do, do not get opiates from a Doctor, or off the street, its just not worth it.

 

[IllusionalFate]

Oh, and stimulants don't make me all that social, OP. Extremely motivated but not motivated to socialize. If I say something to anyone it's short and to the point. I'd steer clear of that.

About 90% of reports I've read indicated that Adderall/Dexedrine was very pro-social and an effective treatment for social anxiety. I don't see the harm in trying it, even if it doesn't end up ameliorating my symptoms.

Stimulants sound like a bad idea, to me, as well. The comedowns can be crap (Adderall, Ritalin... blah). Sure, they'll make you sociable... until your tolerance skyrockets and you're left with none of the benefits you desire unless you up your dosage. Plus, it might be kind of obvious to your peers that you're sped up, as opposed to being calm/normal on a theraputic benzo dosage. Have you tried anything besides Klonopin? How about Valium?

Comedowns... blah, the potential benefits far outweigh that side effect in my case. I'd only be taking it PRN for 1-2 months so I doubt I'd build too much of a tolerance, if any.

I'm going to talk to my pdoc about swapping my Klonopin for Valium.

I too, suffer from the EXACT same problem you do. The only thing is, I didnt 1 year and a half ago. The reason? I started doing opiates recreationally, to become more social. and yes, it worked. It got me out and about, meeting new people, talking to more girls, got a steady girlfriend for whom i was with for 2 year. ect. ect. so yes, opiates (Hydrocodone which led to Oxycontin) can do wonders for you. but let me tell you the state I am in now.

Now. almost 4 years later (I started the opiates at around 16, I am now 20) I now stay in my room 24/7 only leaving to run errand for my parents, or maybe every once in awhile to go to a friends house. I am currently going through a massive detox/withdrawal from OC to get off the shit, and at the same time, i am seeing a psychiatrist, who has me on kolonopin, and wellbutrin. Because now in social situations, i will begin to panic and start to freak. The reason being, the OC went from being my socialite drug of choice, to my ball and chain. I have lost everything i care about due to it. The girlfriend whom i loved and cared for greatly. my families respect, many, many friends, and just a good life in general.

and i was just like you when starting out. i said in my head, im strong enough to not turn into an addict, and i was just fooling myself. now like i said Oxycontin is my current ball and chain, but before it, was the Hydrocodone, which i did for about 2 years, and then thats when i was introduced to OC at a party in high school. A friend of mine broke it down, and i snorted it. Yes im not going to lie, i thought i was in heaven right after it hit me, and i was talking to everyone, but now as i look back upon that time, i curse it and regret it more than anything.

my point in all of this, is that DO NOT TURN TO OPIATES TO BECOME MORE SOCIAL

yes it helped me for maybe 2 1/2 years. but now for the past 1 1/2 im just back to where i was before, only now with a drug addiction, and more regrets than i care to admit.

i hope this helps you. but please whatever you do, do not get opiates from a Doctor, or off the street, its just not worth it.

I can't help but idealize a drug that produces such positive effects. The fact that I've been so quiet my entire life causes me to long for a more outgoing personality, and skews my view on opioids even if I'm perfectly aware of the risk of addiction. Maybe I won't seek out opiates before trying several new classes of drugs first, but if a doctor offered me a script for them, I'd fill it in a heartbeat.

 

[Coolio]

I wasn't aware of any drugs that could 'make' you do or say anything.

Most people use drugs as an excuse to let their true feelings out and fully express themselves. Or as an excuse to grow some balls and attempt to have sex with the people they're attracted to. The drugs do nothing to increase your ability to do this. They just save you embarassment because it's socially acceptable to counter rejection or shame with "I was drunk," or, "I was high."

Some drugs may cure anxiety issues, but guess what? Anxiety isn't stopping you from doing anything. It's just an extremely unpleasant physical and emotional sensation. It's just an EXCUSE.

 

[j00sh]

I wasn't aware of any drugs that could 'make' you do or say anything.

Most people use drugs as an excuse to let their true feelings out and fully express themselves. Or as an excuse to grow some balls and attempt to have sex with the people they're attracted to. The drugs do nothing to increase your ability to do this. They just save you embarassment because it's socially acceptable to counter rejection or shame with "I was drunk," or, "I was high."

Some drugs may cure anxiety issues, but guess what? Anxiety isn't stopping you from doing anything. It's just an extremely unpleasant physical and emotional sensation. It's just an EXCUSE.

Shit just doesn't come to me when I'm sober.

I don't know how else to explain it. When I'm sober I might get anxious yeah, I might think too much about the consequences of every single action, but that's something I've made a lot of progress on. I push myself to just do/say the first thing that comes to mind regardless of the consequences. I've gotten better at it, but it's not something that I can just be like "o get over it" to make it go away. And even still, the right things just don't come to mind. I'll immediately think "wow I shoulda said this instead." But when I'm drunk, the right things just come to mind. The things I subconsciously want to say.

At the christmas party for my job I decided to just drink entirely too much and I don't remember much of went on, so everyone's giving me the scoop afterwards talking about stuff I said etc, and it's just like "wow... I really said that?" shit that wouldn't even come to mind normally. Just popping off witty crap like it's nothing, having a slick response for everything. Apparently some guy kept giving me shit, and being a non-smoker and everyone knowing this I went and bummed a cigarette off someone JUST to flick it in this guy's face after I finished smoking it. That's so unbelievably FAR from how I would ever act, consider acting, dream of acting.. and so awesome I can get drunk and send someone an email or a message on myspace or some shit on AIM, look at it the next day, and be genuinely impressed by what I said.

It's always been like that. I've had people straight up tell me "I really don't care to be around you unless you're drunk." Yeah, EVERYONE is capable of acting a fool while drunk, but the difference is so phenomenal with me. Anyone who has known me for a while without seeing me drunk, and then finally seeing me drunk, will have their mind blown. It's like I become human. That's probably the best way to summarize it. I go from being a freak-of-nature, the type of person that always gets to overhear "you gotta be careful around that quiet type of guy right there" (my nickname at work is actually norman bates) to being the life of any party, and that's not just my own observation.

And I always mix up words when I'm sober. So I push myself to come out and say something, but I end up having to repeat myself 2-3 times because I keep fucking words up to the point where what I'm saying doesn't even make sense. I don't know why. But it doesn't happen when I'm drunk.

At this point I don't care how much I embarrass myself. I don't give a fuck what people think about what I say or do. But apparently I must still care subconsciously, right?

So like I said it's not something I can just push myself to get over. I've had the problem for a long time and I've always found ways to just deal with it and get through everyday life without drugs, but I know what I'm missing out on and it really gets to me sometimes.

 

[j00sh]

About 90% of reports I've read indicated that Adderall/Dexedrine was very pro-social and an effective treatment for social anxiety. I don't see the harm in trying it, even if it doesn't end up ameliorating my symptoms.

Well, say I rail some adderall at work. I'll be completely focused on getting my job done, and in order to get my job done I might need to go to the machine shop department and talk to people until I find someone that can hook me up with what I need. I'll talk to everyone necessary until I get what I need, but only because I know have to. It doesn't make me actually interested in making conversation. Just makes me somewhat fearless in situations like that where I would have to approach and talk to people if I had to. So it may help with anxiety, but not the way I think you and I are looking for.

 

[xxkcxx]

I too, suffer from the EXACT same problem you do. The only thing is, I didnt 1 year and a half ago. The reason? I started doing opiates recreationally, to become more social. and yes, it worked. It got me out and about, meeting new people, talking to more girls, got a steady girlfriend for whom i was with for 2 year. ect. ect. so yes, opiates (Hydrocodone which led to Oxycontin) can do wonders for you. but let me tell you the state I am in now.

Now. almost 4 years later (I started the opiates at around 16, I am now 20) I now stay in my room 24/7 only leaving to run errand for my parents, or maybe every once in awhile to go to a friends house. I am currently going through a massive detox/withdrawal from OC to get off the shit, and at the same time, i am seeing a psychiatrist, who has me on kolonopin, and wellbutrin. Because now in social situations, i will begin to panic and start to freak. The reason being, the OC went from being my socialite drug of choice, to my ball and chain. I have lost everything i care about due to it. The girlfriend whom i loved and cared for greatly. my families respect, many, many friends, and just a good life in general.

and i was just like you when starting out. i said in my head, im strong enough to not turn into an addict, and i was just fooling myself. now like i said Oxycontin is my current ball and chain, but before it, was the Hydrocodone, which i did for about 2 years, and then thats when i was introduced to OC at a party in high school. A friend of mine broke it down, and i snorted it. Yes im not going to lie, i thought i was in heaven right after it hit me, and i was talking to everyone, but now as i look back upon that time, i curse it and regret it more than anything.

my point in all of this, is that DO NOT TURN TO OPIATES TO BECOME MORE SOCIAL

yes it helped me for maybe 2 1/2 years. but now for the past 1 1/2 im just back to where i was before, only now with a drug addiction, and more regrets than i care to admit.

i hope this helps you. but please whatever you do, do not get opiates from a Doctor, or off the street, its just not worth it.

I don't think the OP will really listen to this, but I think it is a great example of just how badly opiates could hurt him taking them for this situation.

Maybe someone else will read it and be affected. I know I appreciated reading it.

 

[Elinisti]

I'm also socially retarded when I'm not mixed up on drugs. My mind just goes blank and I feel awkward. But not with everyone. Theres some nice freaks out there.

 

[b0dybuzz]

A social group, join a club so you can meet people you don't needs drugs to make you social, you'll meet a friend or two, or join the church choir.....

If you wanna do a drug to make you social take oxycodone 10mg its not to strong and not too light, have a coffee and your yapping your head off. The problem is if you're a person to get addicted to drugs DONT TRY ANY, and with oxycodone your body will become dependant but if you have a script for live your good, so just go to a social group with your kinda phobia and meet people that have the same phobia or even worse ones.

I am a social retard, I think everyones soo damn gay these days but I have my close friends, and I meet people with the same attitude like me at social gatherings. I use to spend too much time alone in my room doing homework and partying hard....just go to the mall/bars w/e if you don't feel comfortable going to bars/malls near your area go outside your town/city and if you make a fool of yourself oh well you'll soon find yourself, worrying just causes anxiety, anxiety will makes you scared and then its just a vicious cycle like being addicted to a substance...............be yourself relaxe take yoga, joina soccer/hocket team...

 

[IllusionalFate]

Shit just doesn't come to me when I'm sober.

And I always mix up words when I'm sober. So I push myself to come out and say something, but I end up having to repeat myself 2-3 times because I keep fucking words up to the point where what I'm saying doesn't even make sense. I don't know why. But it doesn't happen when I'm drunk.

Wow, this is exactly my situation, it was as if I was reading one of my own posts.

A social group, join a club so you can meet people you don't needs drugs to make you social, you'll meet a friend or two, or join the church choir.....

If you wanna do a drug to make you social take oxycodone 10mg its not to strong and not too light, have a coffee and your yapping your head off. The problem is if you're a person to get addicted to drugs DONT TRY ANY, and with oxycodone your body will become dependant but if you have a script for live your good, so just go to a social group with your kinda phobia and meet people that have the same phobia or even worse ones.

I am a social retard, I think everyones soo damn gay these days but I have my close friends, and I meet people with the same attitude like me at social gatherings. I use to spend too much time alone in my room doing homework and partying hard....just go to the mall/bars w/e if you don't feel comfortable going to bars/malls near your area go outside your town/city and if you make a fool of yourself oh well you'll soon find yourself, worrying just causes anxiety, anxiety will makes you scared and then its just a vicious cycle like being addicted to a substance...............be yourself relaxe take yoga, joina soccer/hocket team...

I can't relate to many other people with social anxiety, most have the ability to contribute something to a discussion. I would be very anxious and unable to talk even at a support group.

Btw, I joined a hockey team last year. All I did was embarass myself because I could barely ice skate so I just started avoiding that as well LOL.

 

[OverDriven]

Wow, this is exactly my situation, it was as if I was reading one of my own posts.


I can't relate to many other people with social anxiety, most have the ability to contribute something to a discussion. I would be very anxious and unable to talk even at a support group.

Btw, I joined a hockey team last year. All I did was embarass myself because I could barely ice skate so I just started avoiding that as well LOL.

Sounds like you care too much about what people think of you because you have a low self esteem and you need their approval. That honestly can be harder to beat than any drug you could imagine. Usually people with that problem have it deeply ingrained in them from childhood. It becomes like an instinct to freeze up when attention is on them. My advice is this: seek success. What I mean by that is that confidence is all about how you feel about yourself, and nothing will bring you more confidence than being a successful person that feels that they have done good with their day every day. If you have problems being around people, then focus that energy into being successful. I don't mean money necessarily. Success is different to each person. You need to push you self to do the things that will make you feel good about yourself. Things that make you a better person. Start there.

 

[IllusionalFate]

Sounds like you care too much about what people think of you because you have a low self esteem and you need their approval. That honestly can be harder to beat than any drug you could imagine. Usually people with that problem have it deeply ingrained in them from childhood. It becomes like an instinct to freeze up when attention is on them. My advice is this: seek success. What I mean by that is that confidence is all about how you feel about yourself, and nothing will bring you more confidence than being a successful person that feels that they have done good with their day every day. If you have problems being around people, then focus that energy into being successful. I don't mean money necessarily. Success is different to each person. You need to push you self to do the things that will make you feel good about yourself. Things that make you a better person. Start there.

Eek. That last post of mine got me into a bit of trouble I guess. I can see how the problem I'm facing could be misconstrued after re-reading it, but I do actually have a high self-esteem. I don't care what other people think of me at all, I'd just like to have something to say, since it's pretty much impossible to build a social network without conversing at all. If I did have something to say, I would have no problem blurting it out, but no words or phrases come to mind in a social situation, which is rather frustrating. Hope that cleared things up a bit.

 

[Jimshoe]

adderall. you'll have a hard time shutting up.

 

[johanneschimpo]

Nyquil on the rocks.


For when you're feeling sick but sociable.

NSFW:

 

[emjay]

Opiates are very social.

I don't find that at all. Opiates make me really irritated if people won't leave me alone.

 

[BaybeX]

Nyquil on the rocks.


For when you're feeling sick but sociable.

NSFW:

That's a door at Target. heh.

/derailment

 

[d4rk3]

Nyquil on the rocks.


For when you're feeling sick but sociable.

NSFW:

Mitch Hedburg lolz.

Get off the kpins. Especially if they don't help you.

Cognitive Behavior Therapy.

You're gonna have to do this without drugs...hell look at all the drugs you tried to no avail. Man up, son.

 

[emjay]

I should add that I've had severe social phobia, pretty much for as long as I can remember. It's only within the last year and a half I've been getting any sort of professional help for it... which I strongly recommend.

I remember my freshman year in college, alcohol was the only thing that let me socialize. I'd need to drink about a fifth (26 oz) of liquor to do it, and even then I'd still feel inhibited and anxious. It was really just a band-aid solution though and just made things worse, because I ended up so drunk all the time that I'd inevitably embarrass myself... causing me to withdraw more and more.

Stimulants are hit-and-miss too, and take a toll on your body so I wouldn't say they're appropriate for dealing with things long-term. On the one hand, it does give a bit of confidence and talkativeness, but they can also drive your anxiety levels way up.

My psychiatrist has put on clonazepam recently because for some reason I suddenly started to get worse and started having full-blown panic attacks. I've found they definitely help... just this weekend I negotiated at a dealership for a new car and did a pretty good job, whereas normally I'm the biggest pushover and people know it because I start shaking and my voice gets kind of croaky. Benzos are a road you want to avoid if possible, and should really only be done with medical supervision. Dose escalation is a huge problem when self-medicating and can make withdrawals life-threatening.

MDMA has been the miracle drug for me. Problems are that obviously, it's not something that can be taken daily, and it can also be difficult to find a clean and consistent supply. But MDMA seems to be self-esteem in chemical form for me - I feel good in my own skin and just love myself when I'm on it. And I feel appreciation for everyone and everything. If the stuff is clean, I don't feel anxious at all.

I wish I could live like that, or even do therapy sessions while rolling. My social phobia is to the point where I'm constantly worried about judgment from even my doctors and therapists... it's very difficult for me to open up and be honest about my problems, and even when I really want to, my anxiety is so high and my thoughts are racing to the point where I cannot come up with any substantial thoughts. If my psychiatrist asks me even a straightforward question, I often can't answer it properly until my next appointment, because I have to wait until I'm alone before I can think clearly about it. I really can see why there is interest in the psychiatry field in using MDMA as a therapeutic tool... it's unfortunate that outside of a few carefully controlled experiments, no psychiatrist or therapist can legally condone it...

You'll notice though, if you've researched social phobia, that treatment isn't principally pharmaceutical. No drug is going to cure that fear of rejection and it certainly isn't going to cure avoidant behavior patterns. They can be a great short-term tool to give you some breathing room and build some confidence in yourself and your social abilities, but in the end the change has to be in you. It's still a huge struggle for me, so I won't pretend to know all the answers, but if it's interfering with what you want out of life, I think the real first positive step you can make is getting professional help. Psychiatrists can help but what's most important is a good psychotherapist.

 

[hilnap]

Ifl

 

[Coolio]

After last night, MDAI is looking like one of the ultimate legal sociabilizers.