Well, for me, I have genuine problems: adhd, bipolar, schizoaffective disorder, anxiety, chronic back pain (currently untreated and it really hurts!), insomnia, high blood pressure and seizures/extra-pyramidal syndrome. I take Ritalin, Lamictal, Abilify, Klonopin, Oxycodone (when I get it back), Ambein, Catapres, and Cogentin. I don't take these medicines to feel "high" but rather normal. Sometimes I can take a little Ritalin via different ROA for a boost but not often. That's what I have most problems with, as I had a cocaine addiction years ago. I agree though, pharms are safer it's just hard to find an understanding doctor, especially for pain meds. Most are willing to give only gabapentin or Robaxin.
I consider myself lucky that my psychiatrist continues to prescribe everything but the opiates. I would like to add memantine for its NMDA antagonist properties. But it was drug seekers and abusers who originally got first psychiatrist/pain management doctor/addiction specialist into trouble. He was the most caring doctor I ever had and morons had to ruin that.
I think intoxication is natural. Monkeys will wait around certain ponds in Africa to ferment and drink the alcoholic solution. I recently read that ants will even self medicate... Compassionate doctors are hard to find and recent rescheduling and demonizing all CIIs will certainly only create more problems on the street and increase profits for the cartels. Drug prohibition is stupid and creates more problems. Just read about alcohol prohibition and the violence it lead to. The increase in the war on drugs only increases cartel production and spending as well. Demand is going up as legal medications are harder and harder to obtain.
But to answer the original question: I believe most people have genuine problems and have always medicated for centuries. Poppy and cannabis are great examples.
