Why drugs???

[Josh8130]

So I recently solved my home issue for those that read my first post. This post is about drugs in general. Why do us as humans ruin our lifes and the ones that love and care about us for a high???? I today held my one year old son against my chest and heard is little heart beat and I cant explain the joy and high i got from him. My face covered in tears. I read these stories about meth addiction and heroin and its a sad situation. I have used and still do if ativan counts. But today i made a choice that my son will never have an addict as a father. The invisible posion of drugs will not kill me. Just my two cents

 

[Lady Codone]

Everyone has their own reason for using drugs, but for me it's the only thing that works. When you suffer from chronic fatigue, depression, anxiety and other mental/physical problems, counseling and antidepressants don't always cut it. They help, but don't come close to the benefits of responsible use of opiates, stimulants and other "true" antidepressants. Life is too short to be miserable--on drugs or off--so you have to weigh the risks of drug use with the benefits.

P.S.--Congrats on your new son! Children are a blessing, and I'm glad you found true joy.

 

[Lolie]

People don't start out intending to become addicts.

Whether they're simply pursuing pleasure or looking for an escape from real life, most people's initial drug use is more like a "treat" - and for many people it remains an occasional indulgence. For others it becomes their primary coping mechanism and even if it looks like a downward spiral to outsiders, the subjective experience of the person who is using can be very different.

 

[Legerity]

People can use all sorts of behaviors to cope, drug use is just one of them that happens to be quite stigmatized. And even within the long list of available drugs, some are more stigmatized than others.

We are very capable of becoming just as emotionally unhealthy and miserable as the heaviest drug user without ever touching any substance. We tend to assume that drug use is the problem whereas it's just an attempt to cope with the actual problem without resolving it.

With all that said, I think it is a great thing that you are dedicated to being a father that is not addicted to any substance.

 

[Uber_Penguin]

There's a very, very strong correlation between mental disorders like depression/anxiety and drug addiction, but then therein lies a difference in purposes of usage that divides all those who do use. Those who use but only occasionally and do not to become addicted I'd say generally are just looking to experience something new, or do something exciting, or on rarer occasions just do it because it causes people, for lack of a better way of saying it, look "cool". On the other hand, those people with mental issues that make it hard to live through everyday life in my opinion are generally just missing something in their brain that should be there, and when they become addicted it's because whatever their DOC is it rights the imbalance and provides relief for a short period...well, that and if you're depressed and anxious having your reward pathways actually be activated so you can feel good for once is awfully nice.

Of course, the other issue with saying "Why do people do drugs for _____ logical reason" is a common one. Drugs are pretty close to the least logical thing you're ever going to run into. They're the definition of an inability to value delayed gratification, no matter how much more sense it would make to not do it. It's just like if you go to a child or a monkey and say "you can have a piece of candy now or 2 later", most of the time they're going to spring for the one right now.

Anyways, my point is that people who feel really shitty and have no relief usually are drawn to drugs so that they can temporarily "fix" whatever issue it is that's causing them the terrible distress, and the differences between the disorders and personalities is IMO what causes vast differences in DOCs. Plus you can't say "why do people ruin their lives and hurt their loved ones to get high?", because those kinds of thoughts aren't even a factor much of the time. When you want drugs, most thoughts run along the lines of getting money, scoring drugs, avoiding trouble, etc. If logically thinking about it could change anything at all there would be a whole, whole, whole lot less addicts in the world than there are now, since drugs make less sense to the logical mind than just about anything else.

 

[rollingstoned!]

Props to your new son Josh!

"They're the definition of an inability to value delayed gratification, no matter how much more sense it would make to not do it."

I like that. ^

To be blunt, MOST drugs are lies. They give pleasure when you haven't done anything but popped a pill. The brain doesn't care that you haven't fixed a problem with a person or yourself, because the drug has done it for you. However, once it wears off you still have the same problem as before, and it's been dug in deeper for not dealing with it.
Also, lying to yourself can have the same effect. Lying + drugs = hell. And for those who dig the hole deep, it can be close to impossible to get out of.

On a negative note, drugs can show you stuff you'd never know without taking them. The problem comes into play when the stuff you find isn't worth the time and life burnt finding it.

Kudos to those who use drugs correctly.

 

[xenocatblack]

Its a fine balancing act. I should know. Most times the drugs always win (including alcohol).

 

[Sentience]

Drugs have improved my life. They have given me the ability to live pain free and function. They have given me insight and perspective.

Drugs should be respected. They can easily be misused to our detriment.

 

[OrdinaryJunky]

So I recently solved my home issue for those that read my first post. This post is about drugs in general. Why do us as humans ruin our lifes and the ones that love and care about us for a high???? I today held my one year old son against my chest and heard is little heart beat and I cant explain the joy and high i got from him. My face covered in tears. I read these stories about meth addiction and heroin and its a sad situation. I have used and still do if ativan counts. But today i made a choice that my son will never have an addict as a father. The invisible posion of drugs will not kill me. Just my two cents

Drugs have improved my life. They have given me the ability to live pain free and function. They have given me insight and perspective.

Drugs should be respected. They can easily be misused to our detriment.

I used to think that drugs improved my life, until it expanded to fill my every horizon. I thought I 'respected' drugs - I had all these rules about when and how much and how often. Yeah they worked for a time, but it takes only one fuck-up to slip by the wayside. Even when you recover it only takes one more fuck-up to slip right back to where you were. And each time it gets harder. And you ask yourself "Where the hell did my oh-so-self-assured posture of being in control of my drug use go?" Right out the window, that's what. I used drugs to improve my life and instead it all went down the spout. It just took enough time that it literally snuck up on me - I didn't notice the monkey on my shoulder until it was there. Ah, the ignorance and arrogance of youth! I wish I could be sixteen and make all my choices again.

 

[Sentience]

Are you a chronic pain patient who is in such severe pain that you cannot function sober but can function on a low dose of opiates?

These drugs do have a legitimate purpose, but they are also abused.

Weed and occasional psychedelic use didnt hurt me, but I think my previous abuse of stimulants did harm me.

Addiction isnt just about the substance, its about the individual and an unhealthy relationship with that substance.

 

[TJ5]

12/8/2010



The answer to that is a combination of genetics, psychology, sociology, and learned behavioral coping mechanisms, or put simply life skills. Some people are predisposed to be addicts or alcoholics. I know in my case, alcoholism runs in Mom's side, but no drugs. I didn't know my biological father, but met him at age 32, and when he asked me, "So what do you like to do?," I told him sports cars, roller coasters, motorcycles, sky diving I wanna try, haven't yet. He looked amazed & said that's exactly what he had been into, lived for the adrenaline rushes, although our methods to obtain them differed. I shoot meth, something he never did, while he robbed armored trucks, something I've never done, nor had any desire to do. There are 4 or 6 kids all of us same dad, different moms, and ALL of us apparently got the gene that craves adrenaline, even though he didn't raise any of us.

Demographics play a big role too, obviously. Where one is born, often times are an indicator of the sort of life they are going to have. I don't see very many people that were born in the ghetto, where crack-cocaine and heroin are rampant, and most males in certain neighborhoods don't live to see 30. The neighborhood is a constant war zone, gangs are everywhere, school is dangerous, health care sucks, gang violence is high, more people lack an education than not, and in situations like that, where no matter how hard you try to get out of that place, you can't make enough money to do so lacking education, and job skills unless you become a dealer.

If you're born to middle class or rich family, then again there's the question of availability. Are drugs easier to get than booze if you're under 21 where you're at? If so, that puts one in a higher risk category. What kind of life skills one learns and how he/she see's family and peers deal with life's issues is another risk category. Like one poster pointed out, most people don't start out as addicts, and few (I've only met 1) have the deliberate intention to become a drug addict. I can only speak for myself, but booze was the first drug I ever tried, and it was always under the supervision of my parents, who taught me to sip, not gulp, and to do so with a meal. I was 12, I didn't really like alcohol, and the only attraction for me was the law said I couldn't until I was 21. I had anger issues regarding looking way older (18 or 21) when I was 12.

People expected me to act like an adult and I thought fuck it, if I have to act like it, I'm going to get the privileges too. I chose only a limited experience with booze though. At age 17, while in High School, I had a select 2 or 3 friends I'd hang with, and for the most part thought Cheerleaders, President, Jocks, ect or whatever "cliques" were around were all bullshit and merely a popularity contest, until one day I ran into this cool group so labeled as "the stoners." That's where I got my introduction to pot. I didn't actually like it at first, or even get a real "hit" until 6 months later, so the "high" for me had not been the drug itself, but the rebellious aspect of engaging in it among a group of peers that I finally felt at home and belonged.

I never did become hooked on pot, it was a social thing for me. I had been 24 when I found my drug of choice, back then it was speed aka crank, then crystal meth. The reason? It solved my damn weight problem, solved the low energy problem, I felt productive instead of lazy, pretty instead of ugly, happy instead of sad or angry, and confident instead of this dumb ass insecurity I was so famous for. Of course, because the meth solved so many problems, I did more frequently, eventually becoming an addict. Then one day all 4 of my connects had dried up, which had gotten me on a downward spiral of depression, a feeling of constant worthlessness, anger, and then head first running to my second drug of choice, the painkillers to the point of about a 6 month span of black outs during that dark period.

The pills lifted my mood, gave me a warm fuzzy feeling, and allowed me to
not feel constant self contempt and self hate. Fast forward 26 years later, after jails, loss of jobs, N/A, 2 years of clean time, 2 years of "planned relapse" where I'd stay clean 3-4 months and then take off work one week and use, and then weighing the pros and cons of being clean vs using, did I manage to come up with for now and the past 2 years a treatable solution for me; a manageable habit. Being clean for 2 years off all drugs and alcohol while granted me stability, the approval of my family, the approval of other ex junkies, cost me 100 lbs obesity by the time I was 5 months clean, high blood pressure, borderline diabetes, fatigue, my physical health went to hell. Then at 15 months clean, the chronic fatigue from hell hit me, so 9 months later still clean, but fatigue still didn't let up, still having to work and maintain a full time job--was what sent me running back to meth.

This time around however, although illegal as hell, I use the same controlled amount week to week, sometimes less, never more, I now have; a healthy weight am a size 10, instead of a 22 that I have maintained for a year. Ironically I do not have high blood pressure any more. I do not have borderline diabetes, and the water retention with puffy ankles, legs, feet that got huge sober, are now minimal. I am mobile now, where I barely was before, don't suffer the symptoms of ADD like I did clean, and I'm not fucking tired 24/7 no matter how much or how little I slept the night before. I work full time, have maintained the same job 5 and 1/2 years. For me at this time, the benefits exceed the costs, but I consider myself no different than someone going daily to the methadone clinic so they don't get sick. The main disadvantage is the fact that my "medicine" is illegal, but I may

one day have the nerve to present my case before my M.D. and ask for a script. I'm dubious about doing so, but I consider myself on "maintainance crystal meth." I've tried just about everything from weight watchers, reiki, sleeping 8 hrs each night, no junk food, no sodas, Atkins diet, going to support groups, going to the Dr., & exercising at the gym 3 times/week. I still watch what I eat, still exercise but by themselves were not effective in reducing chronic fatigue and obesity. In fact, nothing was effective for the 9 months (and $600 in medical bills later) I tried doing it the right way, except meth. Now, I still have a little fatigue, but nothing like it had been and my weight stays the same at 160-170 size 10 from size 22 at 240 lbs.

Nothing else worked, nor continues to work for these problems, other than the drug. However, the only thing that allows it to work so well for me, are due to the rules I must follow while taking the drug. I don't drive loaded, rarely use outside home, don't frequent places that are known hang outs for users to avoid trouble with the law, don't use more than my maintainance allottment (gram and 3/4 per week), only use enough on work nights to feel normal, do a small test dose with each new weekly batch 12 hrs before going to work so as not to be loaded for work & giving ample time to wear off if it's a strong batch, only use more than is needed to feel normal during nights off, (if at all), and no blowing off work in favor of tweaking like I did in the past. I learned these rules and what works best for me the hard way over 27 years & the consequences that result when I fail to follow these rules.

 

[rangrz]

so one can stay up for 3 days, and spend 12 hours exposed to the elements while carrying a heavy pack and not fall over with fatigue.

 

[PhrostByte]

cuz they makes you feel good dawg!

 

[OxyDillyKing]

Its not drugs that ruin peoples lives, its government policy. if they just pursued a policy of controlled harm reduction, and junkys could get there shit for 20 bucks a month from the pharmacy like pain management patients ( who are all at bottom addicts anyway, when they start on PM or after a while into it ) i doubt many lives would be ruined by addiction. if i could get clean injecting supplies and buy my oxy or dilly at my local pharmacy, and used it in the privacy of my own home, even it cost 200 a month instead of of the 30 that my personal oxy script costs, how many peoples lives would that fuck up: none.

1. overdoses would be drastically reduced because people would have measured medical grade doses

2. Acess to clean injection supplies ( most of which is already available in my state ) would do away with the spread of disease.

3. the drug trade wouldnt be in the hands of violent criminals.

4. Drugs would only cost 20-100 bucks for the whole month, just like for pain patients like me, so people wouldnt be stealing and doing fiendish things to get money everyday. this would drastically lower crime in many suburbs and cities.

5. they could put info in the drugs they sold at the pharmacy detailing treatment and sobriety options, info addicts may never get when just copping on the street from dealers who want to keep them addicted. think stop smoking flyers in cig packs but with much more valuable info.

6. they could pass a law about how much you could be every day. so for example maybe you could only buy five 8mg injectable hydromorphone tablets or three methamphetamine shots a day. this would prevent people from using anything more than large amounts of drugs. shooting 40mg of Dilaudid a day is quite a big addiction, but at least you wouldnt have the unlimited access to unlimited dose that you do on the street.

7. there would be no more turf wars or drug murders being fought out for territory because the drug trade would be out of the hands of gangs and traffickers. Narco terrorism would lose its ability to fund itself because opium, coca, and the amphetamine synthesis could be massed produces legally and sold cheaply. Police could stop locking up drug addicts who need treatment and go after real criminals who are violent and not addicts minding their own business commiting a basically victimless crime

 

[xiferz]

1. overdoses would be drastically reduced because people would have measured medical grade doses

2. Acess to clean injection supplies ( most of which is already available in my state ) would do away with the spread of disease.

3. the drug trade wouldnt be in the hands of violent criminals.

4. Drugs would only cost 20-100 bucks for the whole month, just like for pain patients like me, so people wouldnt be stealing and doing fiendish things to get money everyday. this would drastically lower crime in many suburbs and cities.

5. they could put info in the drugs they sold at the pharmacy detailing treatment and sobriety options, info addicts may never get when just copping on the street from dealers who want to keep them addicted. think stop smoking flyers in cig packs but with much more valuable info.

6. they could pass a law about how much you could be every day. so for example maybe you could only buy five 8mg injectable hydromorphone tablets or three methamphetamine shots a day. this would prevent people from using anything more than large amounts of drugs. shooting 40mg of Dilaudid a day is quite a big addiction, but at least you wouldnt have the unlimited access to unlimited dose that you do on the street.

7. there would be no more turf wars or drug murders being fought out for territory because the drug trade would be out of the hands of gangs and traffickers. Narco terrorism would lose its ability to fund itself because opium, coca, and the amphetamine synthesis could be massed produces legally and sold cheaply. Police could stop locking up drug addicts who need treatment and go after real criminals who are violent and not addicts minding their own business commiting a basically victimless crime

+1 - except for number 6 which would leave the door open for illicit trading.

But how the fuck do we make politicians act on scientific advice instead of their reactionary and usually ignorant perceptions?

 

[OrdinaryJunky]

Are you a chronic pain patient who is in such severe pain that you cannot function sober but can function on a low dose of opiates?

These drugs do have a legitimate purpose, but they are also abused.

Weed and occasional psychedelic use didnt hurt me, but I think my previous abuse of stimulants did harm me.

Addiction isnt just about the substance, its about the individual and an unhealthy relationship with that substance.

Absolutely! 100% true. Otherwise no-one would be able to go near alcohol without ruining their lives.

 

[OrdinaryJunky]

+1 - except for number 6 which would leave the door open for illicit trading.

But how the fuck do we make politicians act on scientific advice instead of their reactionary and usually ignorant perceptions?

In a democracy the only way to do it is to change public opinion by educating the majority middle class whose votes influence if not determine much of what passes for public policy.
But how to do that, especially in the current climate of hysteria and propaganda?
Most politicians are neither visionary or courageous enough to do anything that may be detrimental to their popularity. When it comes to choosing between maintaining integrity and attracting the maximum number of votes, mainstream politicians will almost always act with one eye towards keeping their job and staying in power. Democracy practically demands that politicians pander to the ideas of the majority. They are slavishly concerned with the short-term prerogative of self-interest focusing no further than the next election.
Unlike those in the minority like scientists (who base their ideas on "objective" reality, logic and rational thinking) and drug addicts (whose outlook is shaped by the impact of very real life experience), the blue- and white-collar middle class majority of Western nations are readily influenced by emotively charged propaganda. This is because they have been conditioned to believe and trust in morality and faith (as opposed to ethics) and to value the approval of their peers and community leaders above demonstrable fact.
This makes them ideally susceptible to emotional manipulation by those who really decide public policy - the money-men and lobbyists who really decide what a politician stands for by ensuring cooperation in return for the large political donations needed to fund a successful campaign.
The major parties that comprise the "two party system" of most Western nations are rooted in the "middle" of the political spectrum where they "make haste slowly" towards modest reform whilst maintaining the status quo. In other words the owners of capital can rely upon such governments to protect and perpetuate their accumulation of wealth and power without the inconvenience of being democratically accountable.
Of these capitalists, those who own the means to control - how and what information gets distributed where, when, how and to whom - are amongst the most powerful. A media magnate is like a private dictator, safe from the vagaries of fate that can beset even the most tightly planned and executed election campaign. In contrast, politicians are almost completely dependent on the media to help them reach the target demographics they need to win over in order to be elected.
In order to choose the most beneficial alternative (whether for whom to vote or what brand of toilet paper to buy) we need to be willing to test the authenticity of information that is promulgated by the media instead of accepting it at face value. It means facing a fact even if it makes one uncomfortable, not only to grow as an individual, but collectively as a coherent society, for the benefit of all. It means swapping emotional reactive rigidity for compassionate wisdom. It means realising that inflexible certainty leads to the false security of stagnation; that the willingness to admit that we don't know it all is essential if we are to open our minds to new learning and fresh experiences; that a sense of superiority over other people we feel we have the right to judge causes fragmentation of the spirit as well as of society; and that cultivating the virtue of humility will open our eyes to the interconnectedness of all life on earth from a vantage point of our common humanity.
If middle class people could be emancipated to realise that information is not necessarily fact, and the importance of why this is significant, it would finally be possible for scientific analysis to take it's proper place as a respected and necessary reference for policy makers and legislators.
Until then ignorance, propaganda, hate and fear rule the day. If we continue to treat eachother and the planet with no respect and disregard scientific analysis of the consequences of doing so we are doomed.
Verily, verily, unless we put our faith into science instead of God we will not be saved.
Hmmm....maybe that's why (I take) drugs.

 

[Sentience]

Its false to assume that addiction is 100% in the mind of the patient or 100% in the nature of the drug.....Its always both. Like any relationship, its a two way street.

A psychologist will tell you its about tendency for addiction, a psychological pattern, possibly linked to trauma.

A med student or pharmacologist or endocrinologist will tell you just how powerfully a substance can control the mind.....You cant control the tide, you can only navigate through it. Drugs create a tide within us.

So some drugs might be possessive assholes, and some are more aloof. Some individuals might enjoy codependent relationships, others know how to get rid of a pest even when its difficult to tell them off.

Its both the substance itself AND the mind of the user.

 

[unsettled]

I've only had problems with drugs when I started to use them for depression and anxiety and even pain issues. Issues that weren't adequately treated by my doctor at first. I would have never touched Heroin or Amphetamines if it weren't for depression, at least I don't think so. I think, as mentioned above, people use these substances because they are the only things that work at times and sometimes life is all about just getting by.

When I was using just to get high drugs weren't a problem, it took a lot of years and some serious emotional pain for problems to start to emerge. Fortunately for me I sought professional help before things got too bad, although things got pretty damn low at points anyway. I now know that I was self medicating, and for the record self medicating isn't fun, it's just relief. at least in my opinion.