psycosynthesis
Bluelighter
Normal is a setting on a washing machine.
Drug Use and Being Normal?
- Thread starter CoffeeDrinker
- Start date
hellocatastrophe
Bluelighter
my thoughts on this are that as long as one can be functional enough to maintain their life (keeping up with work/school/family/whatever), then it shouldn't be an issue. although this is my inner addict speaking, i'm sure. i truly believe it though! my life has not suffered in any way from my drug use/addiction other than my bank account harboring less money than it used to. i manage to go to school full time, hold a job, and pay my bills every day while addicted- so what exactly makes it so wrong then?!
CoffeeDrinker
Bluelighter
Well addiction can make someone depressed. If you are unhappy you gotta do something about it. That's the only healthy thing to do.
KibelsNBits
Bluelighter
we are selfish based animals crawling across the earth. Because we have brains we think that we can aspire to something that is less then pure evil.
CoffeeDrinker
Bluelighter
^There's that damn opiate attitude again....
drewskie
Bluelighter
I to wonder that if this is my normal and what really defines normal, for any individual that is, how could the non-druggies get through it and have fun. i see people walking down the street laughing and cutting up and the first though in my head is that those people must be on something. otherwise why would the be so happy about everything. not to say that i'm not happy, i have "things" for that. what i mean is that are they truly energetic and fun just as if i am when i rail an OC 80. no way, i win. case talked out and closed. those "normal" fuckers!!!!!
Hedonism is Natural
Sigmund Freud, who is largely ignored today, described the issue in The Pleasure Principle; people have a predisposition to manage their choices in ways which minimize unpleasant feelings and maximize pleasure. It's Hedonism. And it is natural.
It takes more effort to suppress desires for drugs like it demands considerable effort to abstain from sex. Because we have a natural drive to have sex; it's both fueled by a basal need to procreate and because it's extremely pleasurable.
Succinctly, people who use drugs to the point that their lives are maintained are normal. They are hedonistic, as Humans are naturally. People who go too far with drugs after they've felt warning signs are predisposed to deleterious behavior which does not minimize feelings of unpleasantness, but rather increases it. This is when a problem arises. It's the same if reckless behavior is used to dose drugs, unless ignorance is the culprit. Then they are simply ignorant.
Spiritual behavior is natural, while religious control of natural Human behaviors is unnatural (and fascist). Obviously, societal controls must protect the liberty of individuals by ensuring they won't be murdered, raped, etc., but the encroachment of religion into law has created a punishment environment antithetical to Humans.
My opinion.
Sigmund Freud, who is largely ignored today, described the issue in The Pleasure Principle; people have a predisposition to manage their choices in ways which minimize unpleasant feelings and maximize pleasure. It's Hedonism. And it is natural.
It takes more effort to suppress desires for drugs like it demands considerable effort to abstain from sex. Because we have a natural drive to have sex; it's both fueled by a basal need to procreate and because it's extremely pleasurable.
Succinctly, people who use drugs to the point that their lives are maintained are normal. They are hedonistic, as Humans are naturally. People who go too far with drugs after they've felt warning signs are predisposed to deleterious behavior which does not minimize feelings of unpleasantness, but rather increases it. This is when a problem arises. It's the same if reckless behavior is used to dose drugs, unless ignorance is the culprit. Then they are simply ignorant.
Spiritual behavior is natural, while religious control of natural Human behaviors is unnatural (and fascist). Obviously, societal controls must protect the liberty of individuals by ensuring they won't be murdered, raped, etc., but the encroachment of religion into law has created a punishment environment antithetical to Humans.
My opinion.
Dark Horse
Bluelighter
- Joined
- Oct 24, 2008
- Messages
- 134
About a dozen years ago when I was in my mid-30s, I realized I never could quite drop the 'bad' things and keep the 'good' things in my life.
I had never thought consciously about it until that point. I'd been angling toward a more or less clean life though for years, but was always falling short. The clean life would be no booze, drugs, or tobacco, a healthy diet, and regular exercise.
Always, there would be at least one thing out of place.
I'm closer now to the ideal than I've ever been. I still smoke a little herb or hash, but have stopped drinking and smoking tobacco. Diet is better, but I haven't been exercising regularly.
Is it important that I hit that ideal lifestyle ? Maybe. What I want to know is whether I can be more effective at what I do and just as happy without being high or indulging in something I know isn't healthy.
I'm a journalist, and spoke recently with an addictions Dr. for a story I was doing on drugs. He said one way to assess addiction was whether the person using was doing so regardless of the consequences. And I thought that made sense. If I smoke tobacco there will be consequences. Same for eating bad food, or not exercising. So, it's only natural for me to want to abstain, so I can remove the consequences. Sure, there is no such thing as consequence-free living. But as I've taken up the challenge of being healthier, I've had to confront why I would do things to myself that aren't so good. The result of that is stopping drinking. Booze is not my drug of choice. With a little work I was able to stop it altogether. Even before that, I stopped smoking...because I could. I don't suggest anyone is weaker or whatever if they don't stop these things. It's bound to be individual. For me, I could see I was short-changing myself once I got away from some bad habits. I found out I was no worse off without a drink, for instance. The social side of that took some adjusting to mind you.
Through all of this - and it's not done - I've wanted to know what kind of person I'd be if I were straight for an extended period. Turns out being straight reminds me of life before any kind of drugs at all, maybe when I was about 14. I'm sometimes edgy, outspoken in a way that makes me unpopular, energetic, pretty quick-thinking, and sensitive. All of that was harder to take when I was a kid. So, I'm not confused about why I started in with drugs....or why I might have overeaten, etc.
I don't put psychedelic drugs on my own list of drugs of abuse. I view them as aids in trying to stay straight and being able to live with that. Websites like this have helped me appreciate the role of pscyhs. I didn't respect them when I was younger, though I did understand their power.
So, this question of being normal I don't think is simple. I've only ever wanted to be myself and to feel good about it. It could be that I never do put away the vices altogether - frankly, I write better music after smoking a bit - but I want to be aware of the relationship between what I'm doing to myself and how that affects the work I do and the way I relate to the world.
For anyone who is younger and wondering where it's all going...consider how long you can sustain some of the things you're doing. Be honest about it. I tell people I know there is no future in stimulants because I just don't see how people can keep doing them without perhaps causing considerable damage. Now, if you LIKE stimulants and that's what makes you feel normal, it could be a big challenge to balance the benefits with the risks.
Here is the best thing I've seen on addictions.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpHiFqXCYKc
This can help explain 'normal.'
I had never thought consciously about it until that point. I'd been angling toward a more or less clean life though for years, but was always falling short. The clean life would be no booze, drugs, or tobacco, a healthy diet, and regular exercise.
Always, there would be at least one thing out of place.
I'm closer now to the ideal than I've ever been. I still smoke a little herb or hash, but have stopped drinking and smoking tobacco. Diet is better, but I haven't been exercising regularly.
Is it important that I hit that ideal lifestyle ? Maybe. What I want to know is whether I can be more effective at what I do and just as happy without being high or indulging in something I know isn't healthy.
I'm a journalist, and spoke recently with an addictions Dr. for a story I was doing on drugs. He said one way to assess addiction was whether the person using was doing so regardless of the consequences. And I thought that made sense. If I smoke tobacco there will be consequences. Same for eating bad food, or not exercising. So, it's only natural for me to want to abstain, so I can remove the consequences. Sure, there is no such thing as consequence-free living. But as I've taken up the challenge of being healthier, I've had to confront why I would do things to myself that aren't so good. The result of that is stopping drinking. Booze is not my drug of choice. With a little work I was able to stop it altogether. Even before that, I stopped smoking...because I could. I don't suggest anyone is weaker or whatever if they don't stop these things. It's bound to be individual. For me, I could see I was short-changing myself once I got away from some bad habits. I found out I was no worse off without a drink, for instance. The social side of that took some adjusting to mind you.
Through all of this - and it's not done - I've wanted to know what kind of person I'd be if I were straight for an extended period. Turns out being straight reminds me of life before any kind of drugs at all, maybe when I was about 14. I'm sometimes edgy, outspoken in a way that makes me unpopular, energetic, pretty quick-thinking, and sensitive. All of that was harder to take when I was a kid. So, I'm not confused about why I started in with drugs....or why I might have overeaten, etc.
I don't put psychedelic drugs on my own list of drugs of abuse. I view them as aids in trying to stay straight and being able to live with that. Websites like this have helped me appreciate the role of pscyhs. I didn't respect them when I was younger, though I did understand their power.
So, this question of being normal I don't think is simple. I've only ever wanted to be myself and to feel good about it. It could be that I never do put away the vices altogether - frankly, I write better music after smoking a bit - but I want to be aware of the relationship between what I'm doing to myself and how that affects the work I do and the way I relate to the world.
For anyone who is younger and wondering where it's all going...consider how long you can sustain some of the things you're doing. Be honest about it. I tell people I know there is no future in stimulants because I just don't see how people can keep doing them without perhaps causing considerable damage. Now, if you LIKE stimulants and that's what makes you feel normal, it could be a big challenge to balance the benefits with the risks.
Here is the best thing I've seen on addictions.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpHiFqXCYKc
This can help explain 'normal.'