Shooting up..

[Kid Cozy]

So I have a really good friend that i have known for a while now. I would almost consider him my best. Weve gone through alot together. traveling the country, going to shows. always taking drugs we could get to have the best possible experience. I would consider myself a medium user of drugs. pot everyday, psychedelics maybe once or twice a month. Coke iv never bought but when offered Ill usually do it. and prescripts when ever theyre around. well we have a decent experience with alot of opiates (I went through a major collar bone surgery and was prescribed OC IR 15s for about 3 months and we had our times.) well we return to our home town from a show out in Denver. Hes scored a bag of H without telling me it turns out and i was erie. just looking at the feel that over came me. I dont wanna be a hypocrate or anything cuz iv done bad things but to me thats your life going down the hole in a bag. so i sat out while he snorted it. since then he has done it 3 more times. snorting of course. well lastnight we were at a friends and he busted it out to show them. and of course they had a needle.. well i just sat there and watched i saw him bang it for the first time. I could tell he was loving it. I was in pain inside.. The next day i told him how i felt. he just said "its ok man, its really ok ill be fine i dont have the hook up to do it all the time." stuff like that but i cept telling him he will find one if he looks. and hes been looking askin round.

any advice anyone. for the sake of his life.

 

[effie]

Kid Cozy, I can empathise with your situation. Watching someone you love going down a path you know will end in a bad place is horrible. Your friend is lucky to have you.

Heroin can be a very demonised drug - it is just another strong opiate, after all.. what concerns me is that he has rapidly gone from snorting to IVing, and he is already displaying worrying behaviour (dismissing your concerns, justifying his use by saying he doesn't have a regular connect.. then looking for one..)

Unfortunately, you can't save people. All you can do is express your concerns, look out for them, make sure they are as safe as possible and be there for them as much as you can. You can't live his life for him.. however much you just want to grab him and drag him away from the edge.

It's great that you have told him how you feel about it all. Without knowing him, I don't know whether you can keep expressing these concerns vocally, or if that will drive him away and into secretive behaviour - you know your friend best. You can make it clear that you are very worried for him however, without hassling him, if you think he won't respond well to hassles. Be prepared for him not to listen to you, but it is important that he knows, somewhere deep in the back of his mind, that his friend is very concerned about the path he is going down.. unfortunately there is a fine line between offering advice and opinions and driving someone away..

He will go his own way and make his own mistakes - I know how painful it is watching someone do that, but believe me, you likely won't have any choice. Just be there for him, as much as you can, and pick him up when he falls down.. having said that, watch out for yourself too - don't burn yourself out watching over him and fixing his mistakes. He's making his own choice, and he is an adult (I presume) and you are not personally responsible, however much you care.

Practically speaking, make sure he is as clued up as possible. Show him this website, make sure he is shooting safely, make sure he knows about OD risk and what to do, try and ensure he is never shooting alone...

Take care of yourself too. I know how hard this is, sorry if my post came across as harsh

Talk to us as much as you need to, about you and how you feel as well as about your friend. I wish you both all the luck in the world and I hope things work out

 

[dilated_pupils]

Kid Cozy, I can empathise with your situation. Watching someone you love going down a path you know will end in a bad place is horrible. Your friend is lucky to have you.

I completely agree. Maybe instead of allowing yourself to be upset while sitting 'aside' (which may in turn end up having you rid your pain through drug use as well) you should tell your friend to check out bluelight and some of the horror stories; or even pick some out that give a varying degree on what has happened to those who abuse opiates/opioids. You should definitely let your friend know that 'chipping' with opiates (using a few days, then giving your body a break in the belief you can stay away from being addicted) is not really possible - I can't say I don't believe in moderation, but after going through needle fixation & drug abuse myself I can say it is not something that is a permanent solution to any problem(s) you may have.

-dp

 

[Kid Cozy]

Thank you both for the support. Ill take both your guys advice. very much apriciated and helpful.
Thanks

 

[Legerity]

I agree that heroin is probably overly demonized it's really just another drug. If it provides the effects that somebody enjoys then it can take a hold but so can weed or alcohol if those are the effects that somebody seeks. There's not really any hard/soft drug categorization that exists except in people's minds and then they interpret their experiences based on these preconceived ideas.

Of course there are risks with heroin or IV in particular. I don't personally try to tell people to do or not do something but it's up to you how you want to express your concern.

 

[xxsicknessxx]

im sorry...
I saw this happen to my brother...

Try everything you can to stop him.. everything in your power... but if all fails, except it and be there when he comes off of it... except he may love the needle more then you some day more then anything enough to die for it.. except it now however try what you can now because this is your only change once it gets bad... there will be no way to reach him..

you still got a change now, and you will hate your self if you don't try everything with in your power. trust me

 

[ixy]

I agree that heroin is probably overly demonized it's really just another drug.

I'm gonna have to disagree with that, sure there are a few people who can chip, but that really is only a few people. People think that it's just another drug cuz our lovely govt spews propaganda sayin that all illegal drugs are on the same level so that they can keep weed illegal, but it's just not true. While the horror stories u hear about acid probably aren't true, the shit u hear about dope probably is.
My friends from high school and me all started doin dope, and out of 6 of us, one kid isn't a junkie cuz after doing dope a few times he realized what was going on and completly stopped and he stopped talkin to us, which was probably a good idea too.
Since your friend is just starting and probably isn't addicted yet , maybe u could sit him down and talk to him about it, try not to sound condescending just tell him that you know someone who this happened to ( make someone up if you need to, or u could pm me and i'll tell u my story and then u can tell him) But if he won't listen, then u can't do anything about it, so don't feel like u failed or anything.
If he keeps doing it, there isn't very much u can do to help him, especially after a few months, cuz that's all it takes to get hooked. Just be there emotionally, and don't give him money no matter how miserable he is or if he threatens to hold up a bank or somethin. You can try to help him realize what he's doing to himself, but ppl usually need to figure that out for them self. And even after they do realize it, there's still some insane part of u that wants to get high and some ppl can fight it, but most can't.
But as a friend, you shouldn't feel like your obligated to save him (because you can't), i mean try as hard as you can before it's too late, but once he's addicted, it's too late. This is his problem, not yours. I'm tellin u this as someone who is addicted, there is absolutely nothin anyone could say to me to make me change, because addiction comes from this irrational, uncaring, desperate part of who you are that doesn't care if your stealing from your parents and selling your body so it sure as fuck doesn't care what your friends say.

 

[cj]

I'm gonna have to disagree with that, sure there are a few people who can chip, but that really is only a few people. People think that it's just another drug cuz our lovely govt spews propaganda sayin that all illegal drugs are on the same level so that they can keep weed illegal, but it's just not true. While the horror stories u hear about acid probably aren't true, the shit u hear about dope probably is.
My friends from high school and me all started doin dope, and out of 6 of us, one kid isn't a junkie cuz after doing dope a few times he realized what was going on and completly stopped and he stopped talkin to us, which was probably a good idea too.
Since your friend is just starting and probably isn't addicted yet , maybe u could sit him down and talk to him about it, try not to sound condescending just tell him that you know someone who this happened to ( make someone up if you need to, or u could pm me and i'll tell u my story and then u can tell him) But if he won't listen, then u can't do anything about it, so don't feel like u failed or anything.
If he keeps doing it, there isn't very much u can do to help him, especially after a few months, cuz that's all it takes to get hooked. Just be there emotionally, and don't give him money no matter how miserable he is or if he threatens to hold up a bank or somethin. You can try to help him realize what he's doing to himself, but ppl usually need to figure that out for them self. And even after they do realize it, there's still some insane part of u that wants to get high and some ppl can fight it, but most can't.
But as a friend, you shouldn't feel like your obligated to save him (because you can't), i mean try as hard as you can before it's too late, but once he's addicted, it's too late. This is his problem, not yours. I'm tellin u this as someone who is addicted, there is absolutely nothin anyone could say to me to make me change, because addiction comes from this irrational, uncaring, desperate part of who you are that doesn't care if your stealing from your parents and selling your body so it sure as fuck doesn't care what your friends say.

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