What's one drug-related myth you wish would finally disappear?

[ChemicallyEnhanced]

I hate the stigma of people thinking being an addict makes you like scummy or a low-life. And/or assuming you're a criminal (other than possession of if it's not alcohol and you don't have a precription). I've had that. I was like "alcohol is legal and I have prescriptions for every pill I take", but they still insisted I was doing some sorta crime.

 

[ChemicallyEnhanced]

Oh, I've seen others post this, too, but the whole "ONE dose of [insert opioid here] will make you an addict]"
When I had surgery last month, I was on a surgical day ward, so everyone else there was specifically on that ward because they were having surgery that day and I witnessed TWO people (seperately, on the ward at different times) have an issue with being given Fentanyl (what they tell you they use as standard for post-operative pain as soon as you come out of surgery). One was worried they'd "turn into a junky" and one flat-out tried to refuse it, even when the nurse explained ALL opioids were used as street drugs by people and that Fentanyl given to you for legit severe pain by a medical professional, for one day, was not gonna turn them int an addict and was just as safe as giving them Morphine or similar.
Like, people are reacting to Fentanyl the same as if the doctor was gonna give them Heroin*

*which they actually HAVE given me before lol, but as Diamorphine, obviously

 

[lost weekend]

I hate the stigma of people thinking being an addict makes you like scummy or a low-life. And/or assuming you're a criminal (other than possession of if it's not alcohol and you don't have a precription). I've had that. I was like "alcohol is legal and I have prescriptions for every pill I take", but they still insisted I was doing some sorta crime.

Yes we refurbished a chemist years ago just to move the methadone dispensery area round the corner of the building with a separate entrance cos the customers were complaining of having to mix with rif raf

 

[lost weekend]

Oh, I've seen others post this, too, but the whole "ONE dose of [insert opioid here] will make you an addict]"
When I had surgery last month, I was on a surgical day ward, so everyone else there was specifically on that ward because they were having surgery that day and I witnessed TWO people (seperately, on the ward at different times) have an issue with being given Fentanyl (what they tell you they use as standard for post-operative pain as soon as you come out of surgery). One was worried they'd "turn into a junky" and one flat-out tried to refuse it, even when the nurse explained ALL opioids were used as street drugs by people and that Fentanyl given to you for legit severe pain by a medical professional, for one day, was not gonna turn them int an addict and was just as safe as giving them Morphine or similar.
Like, people are reacting to Fentanyl the same as if the doctor was gonna give them Heroin*

*which they actually HAVE given me before lol, but as Diamorphine, obviously

My grandfather couldn't get enough morphine when he had a bad fall ,he kept asking the ambulance medic for more lol
He'd never taken drugs in his life

 

[notsmokeymcpot420]

Im saying that the tobacco company ITG did this for tobacco. My analogy that marijuana is also genetically manipulated. To what extent is basically a trade secret for Canadians and Colombians. holding ones own govt accountable for targeting white communities to come in and buy said substance. Outside of Atlanta the epidemic has not ended and I believe no one body in the US is proving cocaine overdoses are related homicides inside of Harm Reduction reversal overdose communities no one is saying anything about the deaths

of people like Lois Vincent, a founder of the cocaine reversal movement. She Championed this movement of amazing empirical science process and died in August of 2025. Cocaine hcl was not in the toxic screen nor was their a ruling made officially. She was my mentor and I believe someone is accountable for her death via overdose of cocaine and tranq and the harm reduction north carolina community is covering for them or is only now seeing that the system did not fail her.
Im holding out she wanted an end to the WOD. She championed this movement and now no one in her circles is holding her non.profit advocacy group after she passed. Have messaged participants but nothing

I did indeed misunderstand your point

 

[Ptahtek.2.0.1 beta]

drugs are bad


imo/e its dosage
anything....

 

[Northwesternparacelsus]

@notsmokeymcpot420

Clear something up for me, I own a few copies of the CSA for writing purposes, have searched for a few things at the federal level with regard to amendments for this act. Schedule 3 is mostly prescription drugs, veterinarian drugs, and steroids.

Now with the addition of marijuana to schedule 3 at the federal level, the US govt is appointing leadership to reign in the marijuana dispensaries and holders of licenses? Could you possibly clear up what or if this cannabis Czar are forwarding awareness of medical programs

Ive only read about the DEA forwarding protections for medical dispensaries here innthe US..

 

[notsmokeymcpot420]

I am sorry but no I am not that informed.... I am just praying they leave us and our dispensaries alone.

when they make it federal that could implode everything though..... I am currently in the dark but I WOULD LOVE IF SOMEONE ANSWERED THAT

Should I be stockin up on hash now before uncle sam gets the wheel?

 

[4DQSAR]

Any and all examples of appeal to anecdote.

Anyone who states that their own reaction to a mystery powder is absolute proof that everyone else will experience the same outcomes, or indeed that other are consuming the same mystery powder.

Heck, medicinal chemistry shows us that when a known does of a known compound is prescribed, there will ALWAYS be a range of outcomes so extending that to an unknown drug IS NOT HR.

It's wishful thinking.

It's not unreasonable to say indirectly that a certain source appears reliable but the problem is they tend to be reliable... until they aren't.

People still don't seem to understand NO vendor acts out of altruism.

 

[new2drugs]

☞ TL;DR below ☜
__________________

So-called "addictiveness" can't be quantified. There is no logical way to score, rate or rank drugs according to addictiveness, and if there were, it would be different for each person.

If you start a habit young enough and your brain develops around that habit, it's often difficult to quit that habit later in life, much more so than if you pick up a habit when you're older.

"Addiction" means "spoken for" as a word, and it shares roots with words like "diction", "dictionary", "dictation", "indictment", "interdiction", etc. It's a lame metaphor, but the word stuck after the World Health Organization introduced it in 1958. Almost all drugs cause tolerance, requiring more and more in repeated sessions to achieve the same results. Some drugs cause tolerance to build much more rapidly than others. Also, some drugs can cause physical dependency when used repeatedly and frequently. Tolerance and physical dependency typically grow together. Avoid one to avoid the other.

Also, some people are genetically more predisposed to compulsive behavioral habits. This can manifest as various OCDs but also take the form of other ailments such as Drug Misuse Disorder, alcoholism, problematic gambling, sex addiction, etc. History shows it's best to deal with these disorders as they happen on a case-to-case basis, not blanket ban things. It's why we reversed alcohol prohibition, legalized porn for adults, and legalized gambling. One bonus to this is that it allows us to have safety regulations. I'm not concerned when I buy liquor that it might be poisoned or cut with something… that's thanks to regulation.

Despite alcohol's dangers, the public doesn't view alcohol with the same fear and ignorance that they do most illegal drugs. And it's kept that way by persistent cultural myths, no matter how made up or obviously full of shit they are. Don't fall for this, please.


I'm calling bullshit. First of all, "but it was supposedly on XTC" tells me a lot. It says you heard about this bullshit second- or third-hand, meaning it amounts to hearsay, nothing credible at all.

And if you know this person, why can't you clarify if it was while they were on "XTC", and I assume you mean ecstasy, aka: MDMA? And how did we cross over from talking about supposed LSD window-jumpers who get dosed without their knowledge and leap to their death under questionable government-spun circumstances, to now all of a sudden people getting paralyzed because now I guess you're claiming MDMA causes you to think you can fly and jump out of windows?

You either made that up or you're repeating someone else's made-up story. Stop doing this, please. Some of us want the Drug War to end, and this kinda bullshit works against that effort.


Ruh roh! I guess no one should ever be allowed to take drugs then!


Yes, I know. Drunk people do that kinda shit sometimes. I'm not a fan of that drug, and I've seen it lead to some horrible decision-making, criminal shit, physical violence, alcoholism, destruction of property, ruining of grades and/or careers, cirrhosis, incarceration, automobile accidents and early death, etc. AFAIK, none of the drunks who fall out of windows did so thinking they could actually fly though. It's accidental and probably not the results of delusional thinking brought about by the drug (alcohol).

I'm sorry for calling this out bc it feels shitty, I don't like doing this, but this is a harm reduction forum, and it's important that we spread the actual truth, dispel myths, rumors, and folklore horseshit, and build a better future for ourselves and future generations. Drug prohibition is the actual scourge, not the drugs themselves. Those are immutable… they don't go away and neither does the demand for them. Criminalizing drugs years ago was a major tactical mistake, as we can clearly see now. And flipping the switch to legal isn't something that will work either. It will result in disaster unless it's done cautiously and correctly while cooler heads prevail.

Regardless, LSD doesn't make people jump from windows thinking they can fly. If it's ever even happened, it's exceedingly rare to the point of not being worthy of consideration.

__________________

TL;DR ☞ It's quite ironic that you and several others in this thread are the very reason these myths persist. Please stop spreading this bullshit, bad info. Thanks

Sorry but you are wrong. Drugs CAN be rated on their addictivness and it's done through studies and science. Nicotine very addictive and something like magic mushrooms are the opposite of addiction..as in they don't work if you have them again so soon after.

 

[unodelacosa]

Should I be stockin up on hash now before uncle sam gets the wheel?

It isn't like it's impossible to find or something. Cannabis and concentrates are fairly common and easy to locate.

Sorry but you are wrong.

No, I'm not; you're just not taking the time to understand my point. You're being overly reductive with something very complex, trying to apply a one-size-fits-all approach. I've been studying this stuff for decades, and I'm not being flippant about this. Sure, there are numerous and varied numerical rating systems out there, but they're arbitrary and not based on measurable, quantifiable scientific data. There are multiple systems, all just based on theory, and none of it grounded in mathematics. And they know this, too; this is a fact, yet they do it anyways.

Here's a paper on the subject, in fact: Development of a rational scale to assess the harm of drugs of potential misuse

Drugs CAN be rated on their addictivness and it's done through studies and science.

No, it's pseudoscience. See paper above. Addiction is different for different people. Also, we all have different physiologies and enzyme profiles. You're oversimplifying and lying to yourself if you think you can quantify addictiveness… You can't because its partially based on the subjective individual in question. It's a proven fact that some people are more genetically prone to drug misuse disorder and OCD.

Nicotine very addictive

I never found it to be that addictive. I quit smoking a pack-a-day cold turkey eight years ago. Wasn't any problem whatsoever. But that's just me. I recognize it's more difficult for others, and I'm not The point I'm making is that a one-size-fits-all approach doesn't apply here and is, in my humble opinion, foolish to pursue.

and something like magic mushrooms are the opposite of addiction..

Odd way to see it, and I don't think I agree. Psilocybin mushrooms, while generally considered to be non habit-forming, are not the "opposite of addiction". The opposite of addiction is: aversion. It's a drug you tried a few times, but 100% hated it it every time and find its effects dysphoric, uncomfortable, tedious, challenging, painful, bad mood inducing or in general have bad experiences through no fault of your own. And so now you avoid it not wanting to repeat the experience.

Or it's a drug you feel apathy toward because it doesn't do much for you. It's just like meh, whatever, which is the opposite of obsessing. Or maybe a drug so boring you kinda forgot about it…

Opposite of addicting… so it would need to be a drug you want to use less and less frequently, and it takes progressively smaller amounts of it to get you high.

as in they don't work if you have them again so soon after.

So that's called tachyphylaxis, which is a cool word. It's from Greek meaning "rapid protection"… tachy indicates "rapid" like tachycardia means "rapid heart"… and then phylaxis means "protection" like the way condoms are also called "prophylactics".

In medicine, "tachyphylaxis" means "rapidly diminishing response to successive doses of a drug, rendering it less effective." It's common with drugs active in the nervous system. Psychedelics show a high-degree of tachyphylaxis with n,n-DMT perhaps showing the most rapid onset followed by a rapid decline.

You're also not considering neuron desensitization, and upregulation/downregulation. And that's not accounting for pharmacogenomics and how people express different enzymes differently, like cytochrome P-450 enzymes to name just one.

Also, "they don't work" is not accurate. They do work, but there's that rapid tolerance thing. it's just that pharmacology/biochemistry is a very complex field, and trying to paint the picture with broad strokes does no good for anyone. It's like trying to paint the Mona Lisa with six children's crayons using your non-dominant hand…

However, psychedelics can still be misused/abused, and they still carry legal risks.

So in summary… how did you put it? Sorry but you are wrong.

 

[notsmokeymcpot420]

Yes super easy to get right now...

What I am asking is if all that will change when it becomes federally scheduled? Do the dispensaries no longer exist as federal supercedes state?

Sorry if I am exasperating you (hehe jp man)

 

[unodelacosa]

Yes super easy to get right now...

What I am asking is if all that will change when it becomes federally scheduled? Do the dispensaries no longer exist as federal supercedes state?

Cannabis is scheduled in the U.S. now, it's just changing from Schedule I to Schedule III to better reflect its accepted role as a medication that provides real relief and valuable relief to those suffering from various ailments. If the feds wanted to, they could sweep in, supersede state cannabis laws, arrest dispensary owners, managers, employees, growers, and suppliers, etc. The feds are just intentionally neglecting to enforce that law at the moment. So I don't imagine too much will change too soon, but it we'll see.

Sorry if I am exasperating you (hehe jp man)

No, you're fine.