who mE?
Bluelighter
In my opinion there is only 1 way to avoid psychological addiction of addictive compounds (this has worked for me and those close to me with regard to opioids, benzos and amphetamines):
Use addictive drugs only if you NEED them...
Or to state it another way:
Use them only when it is medically appropriate...
Or more generally:
Only use a drug if the benefits outweigh its risks and harms!
This is not to say you necessarily need to consult an overpaid egomaniac with a diploma (physician) to determine the appropriate treatment for every single ailment which befalls you... IF YOU ARE AN INTELLIGENT HUMAN BEING WHO CAN THINK FOR THEMSELVES... Unfortunately, over half the people on earth (and this is DEFINATELY an under-estimate with regards to minors, and those on this board [who are mostly minors]) are NOT intelligent human beings who are capable of thinking for themselves...
In short:
If you have to ask, you'll never know.
But before you make any decisions that you can't take back, you better do a HELL OF A LOT of medical research... I'm talking www.pubmed.org www.medline.com and www.google.com for MONTHS... In short, I don't recommend making the decisions that most people ask physicians to make for them unless you know more about your issues than the average physician does. (Which is NOT an impossible task because most physicians are lazy-ass money grubbing computer-illiterate who would rather play golf than read a website or a medical textbook)
Lastly, I've discovered an amazing way of dealing with physical dependance (NOT to be confused with psychological addiction):
IF you no longer NEED to use them, TAPER OFF ALL PHYSICALLY DEPENDANT SUBSTANCES AS SLOWLY AS IS NECCESSARY.
If you combine these 2 rules, you'll realise this amazing corrolary:
If you don't have enough of a drug in your possession to COMFORTABLY taper off of whatever tolerance you might get, you don't use the drug! (no, "I can always get more from my dealer" doesn't count as in your possession - dealers are flaky, they get arrested, or god forbid, die - you might not be able to afford more, your car might break down, somebody might steal your shit... etc...)
I suppose this is just another specific example of "don't bite off more than you can chew"... "Don't dig a hole you can't climb out of"... "If you can't take the heat, stay the hell out of the kitchen" or "If you can't afford to do the time, don't do the crime..." etc... (yay american idioms!)
What I'm trying to say is: there's nothing WRONG with doing addictive drugs, and if you're smart, there are strategies you can use, but its certainly easy to get in WAY too deep...
Go read a methadone board where everybody has a story about how their X years "using" led to their X+Y years on methadone trying to "psychologically stabilize" so that they could BEGIN to taper their doses... Then consider that most people on methadone maintenance taper 1mg per week... Consider that 160mg of methadone takes OVER 3 years to taper off of at that rate... Did I mention that methadone clinics charge from $100 to $1000 per week?
Hey if you can afford it, opiates are LOTS of fun, depending on your dose you'll feel LESS pain or NO pain, but one day you'll run out...
Of course, if you're already hooked you DO have some options, like Buprenorphine or Methadone, but beware of those who claim to have an EASY WAY OUT, because there is no such thing, as you can read here: www.dopers.org/content/how_to_quit_opiates.php
Buprenorphine has been wonderful for me: Its been treating the issues which led me to seek out opioids in the first place (physical pain & sleep problems), its been much cheaper than a "real" habit, especially since my HEALTH INSURANCE covers it. It does NOT cause cravings or escalations of dose like most of the "real" opiates did, and it lasts a good 24 hours each dose, so no more 8am "wake-up calls" from one's body...
Good luck, and remember: if you don't want to play anymore, quit while you're ahead!
Use addictive drugs only if you NEED them...
Or to state it another way:
Use them only when it is medically appropriate...
Or more generally:
Only use a drug if the benefits outweigh its risks and harms!
This is not to say you necessarily need to consult an overpaid egomaniac with a diploma (physician) to determine the appropriate treatment for every single ailment which befalls you... IF YOU ARE AN INTELLIGENT HUMAN BEING WHO CAN THINK FOR THEMSELVES... Unfortunately, over half the people on earth (and this is DEFINATELY an under-estimate with regards to minors, and those on this board [who are mostly minors]) are NOT intelligent human beings who are capable of thinking for themselves...
In short:
If you have to ask, you'll never know.
But before you make any decisions that you can't take back, you better do a HELL OF A LOT of medical research... I'm talking www.pubmed.org www.medline.com and www.google.com for MONTHS... In short, I don't recommend making the decisions that most people ask physicians to make for them unless you know more about your issues than the average physician does. (Which is NOT an impossible task because most physicians are lazy-ass money grubbing computer-illiterate who would rather play golf than read a website or a medical textbook)
Lastly, I've discovered an amazing way of dealing with physical dependance (NOT to be confused with psychological addiction):
IF you no longer NEED to use them, TAPER OFF ALL PHYSICALLY DEPENDANT SUBSTANCES AS SLOWLY AS IS NECCESSARY.
If you combine these 2 rules, you'll realise this amazing corrolary:
If you don't have enough of a drug in your possession to COMFORTABLY taper off of whatever tolerance you might get, you don't use the drug! (no, "I can always get more from my dealer" doesn't count as in your possession - dealers are flaky, they get arrested, or god forbid, die - you might not be able to afford more, your car might break down, somebody might steal your shit... etc...)
I suppose this is just another specific example of "don't bite off more than you can chew"... "Don't dig a hole you can't climb out of"... "If you can't take the heat, stay the hell out of the kitchen" or "If you can't afford to do the time, don't do the crime..." etc... (yay american idioms!)
What I'm trying to say is: there's nothing WRONG with doing addictive drugs, and if you're smart, there are strategies you can use, but its certainly easy to get in WAY too deep...
Go read a methadone board where everybody has a story about how their X years "using" led to their X+Y years on methadone trying to "psychologically stabilize" so that they could BEGIN to taper their doses... Then consider that most people on methadone maintenance taper 1mg per week... Consider that 160mg of methadone takes OVER 3 years to taper off of at that rate... Did I mention that methadone clinics charge from $100 to $1000 per week?
Hey if you can afford it, opiates are LOTS of fun, depending on your dose you'll feel LESS pain or NO pain, but one day you'll run out...
Of course, if you're already hooked you DO have some options, like Buprenorphine or Methadone, but beware of those who claim to have an EASY WAY OUT, because there is no such thing, as you can read here: www.dopers.org/content/how_to_quit_opiates.php
Buprenorphine has been wonderful for me: Its been treating the issues which led me to seek out opioids in the first place (physical pain & sleep problems), its been much cheaper than a "real" habit, especially since my HEALTH INSURANCE covers it. It does NOT cause cravings or escalations of dose like most of the "real" opiates did, and it lasts a good 24 hours each dose, so no more 8am "wake-up calls" from one's body...
Good luck, and remember: if you don't want to play anymore, quit while you're ahead!
)
