Medical and Harm reduction knowledge ruining drug culture

[Renz Envy]

Like the title says. Has anyone else experienced this?

You're with a group of friends and someone always manages to spout incorrect information about a certain drug. You feel obligated to correct them, however this is not the first time you've had to do this. You are constantly having to be the "know it all" when it comes to drugs.

Then it hits you. Why are these people even touching these substances they know nothing about?
Example:
Cocaine - Cut with levamisole, sodium channel blocker, big risk of heart failure and future cardiac issues.

I feel like I shouldn't have to be constantly teaching people about drugs in real life. They're putting the compound in their body; why do they know nothing about it? So much of the drug industry is fueled by people's ignorance that it's not even funny.

I've made drug knowledge my hobby and there's no way I can feel proud to admit that to the condescending, general public. Not to mention it really takes away the magic of a lot of substances.

 

[Rabidrabbit]

There is a huge disconnect between Harm Reduction and Prohibition, at least in the United States. We're just told "drugs are bad, stay away from them or you'll end up in prison or dead". Period. End of story.

With Prohibition comes a suppression of information from reliable sources. Or, "ignorance".

I believe there should be a distinction between willful ignorance and circumstantial ignorance, however.

If it's been drilled into your mind that drugs are bad from the time you were a small child, you're just going to assume "drugs are bad and that's all I need to know". Then, as you get older and get more experience in life, you may come to find that these drugs that were demonized by everyone from your parents to the President aren't so bad after all. Maybe some of your friends do them and you'd like to try them as well. In fact, maybe they're pretty fun. You've been lied to once already. That inspires some people, such as yourself and lots of other BLers, to do their own research about drugs so they know that they can use drugs recreationally without dying. There are others who don't have a curious bone in their body and rely on hearsay or whatever the shady guy in the corner told them about the bunk Ecstasy pill they were just sold.

Honestly, I think it's just has to do with whether a specific drug user has the propensity towards curiosity and research or not. Darwinism at play. Maybe the drug user doesn't have the self-respect that you and other Harm Reduction advocates have. Maybe you see your body as a temple and someone else sees their body as a chemical dumping ground.

So you mean people who don't have medical and harm reduction knowledge are ruining the drug culture and chances at legalization of certain drugs? Or people who don't take the same time and effort to research drugs and their effects bother you personally? All you can do is keep doing what you're doing and stay informed as a drug user and preach Harm Reduction until you're blue in the face... and not from heart failure from using cocaine cut with levamisole.

If I've misunderstood your point, please forgive me. But yeah it is a bummer when you have to play babysitter to adults who should really know better. Or do you mean that you don't enjoy drugs anymore because you know so much about them? Kind of like when you learn the secret to a card trick or something?

 

[Renz Envy]

So you mean people who don't have medical and harm reduction knowledge are ruining the drug culture and chances at legalization of certain drugs? Or people who don't take the same time and effort to research drugs and their effects bother you personally? All you can do is keep doing what you're doing and stay informed as a drug user and preach Harm Reduction until you're blue in the face... and not from heart failure from using cocaine cut with levamisole.

Yes, ignorance of drugs does play some part in drugs staying illegal. Also yes, it bothers me personally whenever someone is not at a certain level of knowledge and is in the illegal drug scene. In a way I'm caring about their safety. In another way, their ignorance is making educated users look not only bad, but like they have a mental illness.

If I've misunderstood your point, please forgive me. But yeah it is a bummer when you have to play babysitter to adults who should really know better. Or do you mean that you don't enjoy drugs anymore because you know so much about them? Kind of like when you learn the secret to a card trick or something?

Mostly the second part. Typically I'm a lone wolf when it comes to drug use. I will be the only person using GHB or the only guy in my group of friends neglecting to buy a certain pill, because I looked it up on PR and its piperazine. Therefore I'm usually DD.

But knowledge really does take away the partying aspect of the drugs. When I'm out partying and I see "molly" I think of the dozens of other things that it could possibly be. Yet the dealer and nearly everyone in the room is convinced its MDMA, because it has "sparkly crystals".

When I see people abusing xanax and drinking alcohol, I think back to the story a nurse told me of two 17 year old boys who died from respiratory depression from xanax. The nurse had to wait to call their parents to ask whether the hospital could use the boys' organs or not.

Things like that changed drug culture for me.

 

[verso]

Yes! Oh, man. It sucks, too, because then it seems like I'm going out of my way to be a know-it-all, but really I just want people to have the correct information.

And, worse yet, I've found that people really aren't interested in listening to me. So, now I'll just sort of go along with it, "Oh you get good molly, huh? Yeah? And you're sure that it's real molly even though it tastes like cherry coke and you didn't really feel much of anything? Oh, wow... huh... how about that..." 8)

 

[ErgicMergic]

The worst is when they're really stubborn and won't listen to you, like what they believe is the absolute truth, "cuz XYZ homie told them."

I've learned to just leave it alone and unless it is in really bad HR violation, I'll just blend in and go with the flow. I had to call out one of my connects on smoking roxycodone, for example, but I won't try to be too technical and know-it-all with minor things, because it makes you seem like a hardcore drug addict, or like a kook who has all their own ideas on drugs.

 

[Znegative]

This is an interesting thread. I personally have felt that my knowledge of drugs has helped at least a few people on the outside. Especially when it comes to different ROA's bioavailability's. For instance, I can't tell you how many people I've met that "shoot Xanax". Whenever I overhear such nonsense, I can't help but blurt out "Don't do that, your just shooting a bunch of inactive binders and about .01mg of Xanax! Your wasting your veins, money, and drugs!" (BTW these people are never talking about shooting benzo's using Propylyne Glycol, just tap water). Of course, an argument will then ensue "Well how come I get super fucked up then bla bla bla!" It drives me nuts, but a lot of times I'll convince people to try taking their Xanax/clonazepam sublingually and they will later thank me.

I don't really get mad though when people are so uneducated, just frustrated. A lot of users just don't care why, how or even what is getting them stoned, they just want that buzz. Half the time they just want to get knocked out (which is sad rather than annoying.)

 

[verso]

It's cool when people listen to you, but when they don't, and they're stubborn, guh... it's so damn frustrating! But, not everyone is that way, and we picked up a couple of xanax bars today with a friend of ours who, when we explained to him that alprazolam is not water-soluble and so snorting it would have very little effect, he took our advice and simply swallowed it.

Others, however, no matter how hard we may try reasoning with them, will not change their minds. Then, occasionally, we'll give someone some solid advice and it's only until after they go ahead and do whatever stupid thing they do that we're proven right and we have that told-ya-so moment.

EDIT: But I will say this: No one has ever died on our watch. And we'll never let anyone die on our watch.

 

[Tryptamino]

i get the same feeling.
like this girl i know took 6 vicodin, 3 xanax, and drank a shit ton of alcohol, and was surprised to wake up in the hospital. I had to explain to her the danger of mixing CNS depressants, a seemingly commonly known danger. I just wish people weren't being such idiots about taking drugs, making the rest of us look bad.