What are we doing to ourselves?

i just found out today that a good friend of mine has recently suffered some form of drug related psychosis. it began when he started refusing to speak to anyone, was acting extremely agressively and showing signs of depression (or so i'm told cos he wouldn't speak to me). this progresseed to him receiving treatment at some hospital, and now he is missing. none of his friends have spoken to him for around 2 weeks and no-one knows where he is.
i guess what i'm trying to say, is that everyone of us knows this is a possibility, but no-one expects that it will happen to them or the people they love. as well as being upset and worried, i have found this to be a real kick up the arse. it really makes you wonder what the hell u are doing to your own mind and body.
we all know that we have the capacity for this in us and i'm sure we've all noticed small drug-related side effects in ourselves. i personally know i'm way more agressive than i was prior to taking drugs. whilst this could also be attributed to other personal issues, i know for sure that drugs have adversly affected my brain.
i'm not trying to imply that drugs are solely to blame for my friend's psychosis. there are of course a whole range of other complex issues that have undoubtedly contributed, such as a family history of depression, huge personal problems, and a highly strung personality. but as a heavy, poly-drug user it tipped him over the edge.
it's a sobering thought that our particular form of entertainment may be eating away at our own sanity. in hindsight i berate myself for not having noticed signs of this in him earlier, for not having been there for him, or encouraged him to talk about the problems that he obviously needed to deal with. it's easy to say i shouldn't feel guilty, but not so easy to practice.
so guys, look after yourselves and your friends, cos there all you've got, and u never realise just how precious they are to you until they go missing.
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"Today a young man on acid realised that all matter is merely energy condensed to a slow vibration, that we are all one consciousness experiencing itself subjectively. There is no such thing as death, life is only a dream. And we are the imagination of ourselves."

Sorry to hear about that Space Frog and I agree with you 100%...there are many personalities we know that need to be 'watched' and helped with their drug useage...
No other help I can provide, except to say my sympathies are with you and to wish your friend some piece of mind very soon...
But finally, drugs are (like so many other things in our lives) just tools that we use. How we use them, or let them use us, is very much a decision left up to ourselves and the influence of our will over their's. Seeing a headline like 'Satan Made Me Do It' in the paper today makes me laugh....Satan (whoever the hell he is!) offers you CHOICES, not forced directions....
You are responsible for your own destiny...take the challenge..
candyflip
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The latest Event info, Pill Tests and Club Listings, online: http://www.the-peak.com.au

i try to think of it this way. drugs allow us some escape from reality, and more people are sent mad by reality than all the drugs in world. there is a price to be paid for ths escape, there is no denying that, but the alternative is the unrelenting harshness of day to day life.

... unsurprisingly it seems as though heavy poly-drug users are the ones who are more susceptible to or already suffer biological disorders, chemical imbalances in the brain, or rather people who suffer from chemical imbalances in the brain are more likely to be heavy poly-drug users - these are the types that have that inherent urge to 'get away from it all'. unfortunately, the first diagnosis begins from within, and often the view from inside is far too clouded to make the distinction between what feels right and healthy and what doesn't ...
i guess there is a lesson here to be learnt, sadly at the expense of someone you love. know yourself, know when to push and when to hold back, and know when to ask for help.
my condolensces to your friend, and you.

Its bit of a worry that there isn't any sound knowledge on the long term effects of regually eating pills. When I wake up the next morning after a big night out I often worry about this.In a way this generation are guinea pigs to the effects of pills. Is it really worth it? I say yes.

Nice post Space Frog. Hope things work out for your friend. I know you feel guilty, but its not your fault...we all live and die by our own decisions. And you can only offer advice for so long until it becomes old newspaper anyway. That you are so concerned indicates you are a good friend
Im convinced that drug use does change people...some for the better some for the worse. These are both pysical and psychological implications. Taking E every week is very draining...not just lack of sleep, but the opening up of the heart, and the emotional outpoor that occurs. The end result can be some very confusing thoughts going on inside the head. I always thought I was a bit of a headcase before E...probably more so now.
And there does come a point where after having avoided reality for so long you just decide, hey no matter how horrible reality can be, Im going to tackle it head on. Its a pretty big challenge, but then Ive always thrived on intense situations. Thats abit of a challenge I have at the moment...whatever I do in life...it is hardcore. Balance seems such a foreign word.

fuck
we really are the guinea pigs arent we?
i just hope that pills are safe, I myself feel that they are the most safest drug with the least amount of damage to someone, but yeah, I'm probably wrong...
I just hope it doesnt make us susceptible to any diseases...
damn...

spacefrog, did you get your little quote thingy from the tool song 'third eye' or from the late Bill Hicks.
just wondering
drugs are bad m-kay

Did somebody say Bill Hicks?
From Relentless -"I'll tell you something about drugs, I used to do drugs, but I'll tell you something honestly about drugs, honestly, and I know it's not a very popular idea, you don't hear it very often anymore, but it is the truth- I had a great time doing drugs. Sorry. Never murdered anyone, never robbed anyone, never raped anyone, never beat anyone, never lost a job, a car, a house, a wife or kids, laughed my ass off, and went about my day. Sorry. Now, where's my commercial? Why don't I get a commercial? Why is it always that other guy that gets the commercial? "I lost my job, then my car, then my house, then my kids. Don't do drugs."
Well, I'm definitely not doing them with you, fuck! Man, you're bumming me out, get him out of here! Who invited Mr. Doom over, get that guy out of here!

aah Bill Hicks... i nominate him for patron saint of bluelight...