Most ridiculous prejudices against drug users

[FlyingDutchman342]

Many drug users are facing difficulties, due to not being accepted in society. Many people are prejudiced agaist users, because of moral issues they see in them or the illegal status of substances.

Most of these prejudices are illogical and offensive , so what are the most rediculous prejudices against drug users you've ever heard/that were ever said to you?

 

[treezy z]

I hate how people think drug users can't spell.

 

[Tubbs]

That there is no possibility that a drug user could be intelligent. In fact the most intelligent man I've ever known was a homeless heroin addict, the man had gone to school to be a neurosurgeon and was a year or so from finishing when his wife and daughter died in a car crash, after which I dropped out of life and fell into addiction.

 

[Pickledlemons]

I always hated being called a 'druggie', something about it. Sure I'm a drug user, but thats not the most important thing to know about me. Thats not what defines me. I have a lot of passion and interest in other things. So it hurts when people don't see that and just see the drugs. That was mostly in school, in my adult life I usually used alone. It went from being a social thing to 'my little secret'.

 

[SirTophamHat]

there's some mark twain quote about how you can't be prejudiced/racist if you spend enough time traveling and being around different peoples.

in my experience, anyone who has expressed overt prejudice toward me (due to drug use either perceived or real) has eventually gone back on their initial opinion(s), given enough time.

otherwise the origin of their prejudice wasn't drug use after all.

for stores of the most ridiculous prejudices, i don't have that many... i knew a girl (pothead) who thought that drugs with numbers in their name were dangerous. any other drug was fine though. she didn't understand what we meant when we brought up delta-9-thc. then there was another girl from way back that told me straight up that people who smoked weed were dumb. i asked her why her SAT score was hundreds of points lower than mine and she never said another word to me. smh.

 

[Captain.Heroin]

I hate how people think drug users can't spell.

Indeed. No E in ridiculous.

 

[Captain.Heroin]

That there is no possibility that a drug user could be intelligent. In fact the most intelligent man I've ever known was a homeless heroin addict, the man had gone to school to be a neurosurgeon and was a year or so from finishing when his wife and daughter died in a car crash, after which I dropped out of life and fell into addiction.

Addiction is aberrant learning. It in itself is not a sign of intelligence, if anything it's like a wanton misuse/abuse of intelligence, learning and memory.

I do indeed agree with you, though.

 

[BehindtheShadow]

∆∆
Lol
I was told that all drug users are skinny and ugly and I mentioned that I had a drug problem and the girl told me I was lying because I looked "too healthy"

 

[Tubbs]

Addiction is aberrant learning. It in itself is not a sign of intelligence, if anything it's like a wanton misuse/abuse of intelligence, learning and memory.

I do indeed agree with you, though.

There have been studies saying that more intelligent people are more likely to abuse hard drugs and alcohol, and more likely to experience existential depression.

OT: That all meth addict are toothless, insane, and have open wounds on thier face.

 

[BeachBum4u]

Throughout history there have been utterly brilliant men who used drugs, so no stereotypes please.

 

[Tubbs]

That was the point of what we were talking about, we were saying it's ridiculous to say otherwise.

 

[EphemeralOutlet141]

There have been studies saying that more intelligent people are more likely to abuse hard drugs and alcohol, and more likely to experience existential depression.

This is exactly what I thought about when I saw this thread. A lot of addicts I've known were relatively intelligent people. I know that's my case (not trying to brag, it's something I've been told by counselors and other professionals) I'm nihilistic as hell and often struggle to find meaning and logic in life/reality around me. It's soul-crushing at times. Super control freaky as well. I honestly don't know how everyone isn't freaking out about shit like that. I envy them.

The best mental health professionals I know were previously addicts. Some of the most successful people I know are addicts. My closest and most trusted friends are/were addicts, some having exponentially more destructive addictions than mine. Don't get me wrong though, I know a lot of addicts who I look at and think, "how the fuck did you make it this far in life?".

I feel like I'm not explaining this good enough, but that's what I always think when I try to talk about this. Comes with the territory of this topic.

 

[Tubbs]

I get what you mean man, I'm in a very similar boat.

 

[Tranced]

The worst are the ones from people who are personally over it (usually because they cained it way too hard), or have made a declaration that natural is good whilst synthetic is evil/ineffective. I'm hearing this loads right now and it's fucking annoying. I can not stand being patronised, especially by misleading information and obvious fallacy.

 

[SheWasLvL18]

The worst are the ones from people who are personally over it (usually because they cained it way too hard), or have made a declaration that natural is good whilst synthetic is evil/ineffective. I'm hearing this loads right now and it's fucking annoying. I can not stand being patronised, especially by misleading information and obvious fallacy.

I hate the chemophobia that is so widespread. People freak when I tell them what's in their orange after they whine about hydrocarbon extractions.

As far as prejudices go I laugh at the "no successful drug user" prejudice, because most of the successful people I know do more drugs than anyone

 

[oxyloveUK]

Been called a drug seeker by many NHS doctors back when I had a nasty injury with broken bones and needed pain relief and wasnt an addict. Heard of people in the armed forces who had nasty injuries fighting for the country being treated the same way. Relatives of mine recovering from cancer too!

When they knew about my later opiate dependence it was very hard for me to get the same medications. Just because someone had an addiction problem they deserve the same pain relief as anybody else!

Before moving to California (thank god for it) was cut off from all my oxycontin and morphine by my UK GP because he concluded my dependence was worse than my pain after I was honest with him and told him about it thinking he would do something to help. Almost turned me to heroin as a result

All we have in the UK is OTC cocodamol so we can get liver failure and swine GP's can sleep well at night ha

 

[LucidSDreamr]

I cannot be honest with doctors since I have chronic pain and have abused drugs.

I have medical conditions that are a direct result of drug abuse that I cannot be treated for or have had to lie about the cause.

Basically you can't be treated for both pain and drug use related injury.

 

[spacejunk]

^ i once had an anesthetist look down his nose at me and pointedly ask - "you don't use any illegal now, drugs do you?"
The way he said it, i didn't have the nerve to say anything but "no".
Which pissed me off, because it's my wellbeing - my life - but his prejudice overpowered my will to be straight with the guy.
I hate feeling bullied into lying to medical professionals, because it's my fucking health.

I think the worst stereotype about drug users is that our lives are worthless.

When i hear politicians and media people state that harm reduction measures (like substance testing services at festivals, or other analysis programs like wedinos) should be illegal because they "send the wrong message" (that drugs' safety is relative and can be reduced?).
Basically the implication there is that allowing drug uses to come to harm - or even die - furthers the propaganda war against drug use.

Along the same lines, if someone is murdered and it becomes apparent that they were a drug user, the effort to locate and prosecute their killer is massively deminished.
This is even more obvious if the victim is female, and if they're a sex worker - forget it.

There were a bunch of terrible murders of young women in my hometown during the 1990s and early 2000s, and the "nice girls" (white middle-class young women who were out on the town drinking alcohol - which isn't seen as a "drug" to a lot of people) were the focus of an enormous investigation and media campaign - while numerous other girls who weren't as high up on the socio economic ladder barely rated a mention - nevermind any notion that the "nice girls" and the other girls could possibly have been the victims of the same killer.

To lots of people, your life isn't worth shit if you alter your consciousness in socially acceptable ways.
To me that is the most ridiculous prejudice we face.

(I'm a pedant so i'm going to correct the title )

 

[Chris42393]

That there is no possibility that a drug user could be intelligent. In fact the most intelligent man I've ever known was a homeless heroin addict, the man had gone to school to be a neurosurgeon and was a year or so from finishing when his wife and daughter died in a car crash, after which I dropped out of life and fell into addiction.

Oh wow man, im soo sry to hear that.

 

[Ketamania]

That there is no possibility that a drug user could be intelligent. In fact the most intelligent man I've ever known was a homeless heroin addict, the man had gone to school to be a neurosurgeon and was a year or so from finishing when his wife and daughter died in a car crash, after which I dropped out of life and fell into addiction.

I agree with this very much. Guess I'm part of those statistics......

"children who are more intelligent before the age of 16 are more likely to consume psychoactive drugs at age 42 than less intelligent children"

"' individuals (with IQs above 125) are roughly three-tenths of a standard deviation more likely to consume psychoactive drugs than individuals (with IQs below 75)."

(https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-scientific-fundamentalist/201011/why-intelligent-people-use-more-drugs) <---- interesting article