Is opiate addiction really so bad?

[Podawan]

Contrary to the answers you've already received, I would say that "Yes, opiate addiction is really so bad"

Unfortunately you have to experience it and then come out the other side before you can truly appreciate how bad it is.

Do you want to live your life in a twilight state of no emotion, no feeling and no personality? If your answer is "Yes" then you've no idea what that actually means.

I respectfully disagree on "no emotion, no feeling, no personality."
Found no such issues with that personally. Emotion is there, it's just easier to hide, and in my own case, personality became better. I was nicer to people. I was less shy. I think it depends on each individuals makeup.
When you stop using though, I found myself an emotional basketcase, crying at every cute puppy moment or other normally mundane things, which wasn't normal pre-use. I will agree that it changes you, though. Just not into a robot.

 

[F.U.B.A.R.]

I respectfully disagree on "no emotion, no feeling, no personality."
Found no such issues with that personally. Emotion is there, it's just easier to hide, and in my own case, personality became better. I was nicer to people. I was less shy. I think it depends on each individuals makeup.
When you stop using though, I found myself an emotional basketcase, crying at every cute puppy moment or other normally mundane things, which wasn't normal pre-use. I will agree that it changes you, though. Just not into a robot.

Give it time mate, give it time...

 

[Iceman1216]

"When you stop using though, I found myself an emotional basketcase, crying at every cute puppy moment or other normally mundane things"

This should Answer your whole question and Give you Great Pause!! This situation Only get Worst with Time and use, Not Better!
" If it was Bad when I stopped
Starting again will not make it better!!

Psychological doctors have had the ability to prescribe opiates for 100s of years for mental health issues , they have tried with Horrible results!!
Denial is Not a River in Egypt!! as an alcoholic, sober over 30 years and an drug addict clean 10 . I feel with out Denial I would not have either of these diseases

 

[JessFR]

Give it time mate, give it time...

I gotta disagree with this too. I mean it's a bit hard given the assertion that you have to have gotten clean first to realize, given I haven't been entirely clean form opioids in a long long time.

But I really can't agree cause I most certainly don't feel like I have no emotions,personality whatever.

And honestly of all the many horrible things I've had happen in my life because of opiate addiction, lack of emotional feeling really doesn't rank up there.

 

[JessFR]

I'll add this though, even if I don't think this particular thing is a big problem, nevertheless I will say this.

Yes, opiate addiction really is so bad. It enslaves people and turns them into lying thieving criminals. And in the end you realize you had no idea what you were capable of and that you can actually be a much more horrible person than you ever thought possible. And even if you escape you'll have to live with all the horrible things you did and all the shit you sacrificed, all for nothing.

So yes, it's that bad. I just don't think it destroys your ability to feel emotions or have personality.

 

[GetMeOutOfThisCRAP]

Now that I return to this thread I think I have a more complicated opinion.

Most people really only have problems at the very end if they are educated and capable of quite a lot even before they started using. It's like--someone could have minor problems here and there from their use for an entire ten years--but then the 11th and 12th they crumble because they say "screw it" and acquire obscene GOD tolerance. Upholding an insatiable tolerance is just financially and emotionally too difficult to at that point live double lives --addict and non-addict (aka work/raising a kid/etc).

It's a great ride until the end. Truly. Nothing could be more beautiful than watching the world burn as you swallow two percocets and kick your feet up. Also some people are capable of handling it more than others. For example, with my mother being a heroin addict (quit and stayed clean before I was born) I had more physical resistance to the withdrawals (mental aspect of withdrawing was still god awful). I was less dysfunctional even on higher doses. I'm on team adderall now. I absolutely love opioids especially when you get into the more euphoric powerful ones. As long as you know the dangerous interactions and do not take whopping doses out of the blue (scattering doses throughout the day is way more HR) you'll be okay if you take some time off to withdraw and live like a normal person on a regular basis. It's those who absolutely refuse to withdraw at any point ever and dose day after day for years who get smashed to the ground in my opinion. The experience on how to withdraw and adapt without it can really save your mind in the long run.

 

[Xorkoth]

Most people really only have problems at the very end if they are educated and capable of quite a lot even before they started using. It's like--someone could have minor problems here and there from their use for an entire ten years--but then the 11th and 12th they crumble because they say "screw it" and acquire obscene GOD tolerance. Upholding an insatiable tolerance is just financially and emotionally too difficult to at that point live double lives --addict and non-addict (aka work/raising a kid/etc).

Nail on the head, here. I was on opiates for 10 years. I held and even excelled at my job, I was a good person, I was mostly happy. I started to have problems emotionally once I seriously tried to permanently quit and failed. That started the cycle of self-abuse. I was able to sustain my habit because of credit cards, but in the 10th year I basically had an emotional breakdown, divorce, and bankruptcy all in the same year. Fortunately I actually quit then, though I have relapsed a couple of times after 5 years of being totally off opiates. Currently dealing with a relapse, too. Opiates turn me into a slave and I wish all the time I had never tried them.

 

[Pinkbeam]

I use to take Percocet and Oxycontin occasionally and never developed any kind of addiction to them, nor sought them out. But later down the road, I ended up getting a direct hookup to them for very cheap because the lady didnt wanna charge me much. I quickly got to where I took them on a daily basis, I had them, so why not? I took them daily for a couple years and realized i was super hooked. I pondered quitting for awhile and finally decided it was time. I purchased one Subutex strip and used it to get through the first couple days and i was just fine. I had a bigger problem going on anyways, and that was meth. Whole different story there.

 

[GetMeOutOfThisCRAP]

I use to take Percocet and Oxycontin occasionally and never developed any kind of addiction to them, nor sought them out. But later down the road, I ended up getting a direct hookup to them for very cheap because the lady didnt wanna charge me much. I quickly got to where I took them on a daily basis, I had them, so why not? I took them daily for a couple years and realized i was super hooked. I pondered quitting for awhile and finally decided it was time. I purchased one Subutex strip and used it to get through the first couple days and i was just fine. I had a bigger problem going on anyways, and that was meth. Whole different story there.

It's okay babe (lol I guess I'm that gay now) it happens.

Shocking when society realizes that opiates are the one unique substance that in time could have any "normal" healthy (mentally/physically) person begging for a redose.

 

[Shady's Fox]

yeah

 

[Ganjcat]

I hate how I used to be sad and moved by things that I don't give a shit about now it's turned me into a zombie I actually enjoy withdrawing sometimes(in a way) because I get my emotions back fubar is right but maybe it's different for different people?

 

[Ganjcat]

I'll add this though, even if I don't think this particular thing is a big problem, nevertheless I will say this.

Yes, opiate addiction really is so bad. It enslaves people and turns them into lying thieving criminals. And in the end you realize you had no idea what you were capable of and that you can actually be a much more horrible person than you ever thought possible. And even if you escape you'll have to live with all the horrible things you did and all the shit you sacrificed, all for nothing.

So yes, it's that bad. I just don't think it destroys your ability to feel emotions or have personality.

it defo has destroyed most of my emotion I only feel proper emotion now when I'm sick anyway I'm off to smoke a fatt spliff :D

 

[shahab6]

It's only bad when you can't get any. Then it's hell, but if you have daily access to it, it's not that bad. You can do it every 6 hours, and get with your life. But when you can't do it, that's when you will feel like shit.

 

[GetMeOutOfThisCRAP]

It's only bad when you can't get any. Then it's hell, but if you have daily access to it, it's not that bad. You can do it every 6 hours, and get with your life. But when you can't do it, that's when you will feel like shit.

Lol. I was thinking that too! Some people are functional on heroin and it's not in their head. Opiates are dangerous (in behavior) for some and benign for others. The rules of the game are going to affect anyone though no matter how functional or not.

I only had problems when I couldn't redose. Some of us aren't different high or not.. but how can someone be the same dopesick? It makes you want to rage quit the real life RPG. Nothing like being dopesick amirite? Would could compare to the horror even if a real life problem is objectively worse. Nothing feels are terrible..

 

[Xorkoth]

I was able to maintain my life quite well even on 10 years of opiates, because I could always get them. I even excelled at my job. However as I started trying to quit (mostly because of the huge financial toll it was taking on me, plus not liking to be a slave), and failing, it started to fuck with my head. Over time I started to hate myself. It's difficult to describe ho dark it became. I realized that the best I ever felt, the highest point of the best hit, was still much worse than my baseline before I started using opiates. I began to feel like my soul was dirty and damaged. Every day was a chore. I started to fantasize about getting hit by a bus. The intense money stress was part of it (ended up $40,000 in debt), but it was mostly the feeling of being an utter failure, a weak person who broke promises to himself every day.

Maybe if I had been able to easily afford a daily supply and had no desire to quit, I wouldn't have suffered so much. Although there are some side effects that just plain suck. Namely, the constipation (fuck that was bad) and the drastic reduction in testosterone/libido.

 

[Ganjcat]

It's only bad when you can't get any. Then it's hell, but if you have daily access to it, it's not that bad. You can do it every 6 hours, and get with your life. But when you can't do it, that's when you will feel like shit.

I have daily access 99% it sucks still because of tolerance I buy cheap not bash but not top stregnth tt either and used to be able to get smashed off a twenty bag

 

[Ganjcat]

But since my 'friend' gave me some high stregnth and I'm talking literally nodding out after one line it doesn't work as well anymore that and using with my methadone I'm on 50ml is that a high dose?

 

[F.U.B.A.R.]

But since my 'friend' gave me some high stregnth and I'm talking literally nodding out after one line it doesn't work as well anymore that and using with my methadone I'm on 50ml is that a high dose?

50ml is not a particularly high dose really. When I was in treatment it was pretty standard to get you up to 70 or 80 ml as quickly as they could because as I understand it, this is the dose where 'the blocking effect' comes in making it very difficult to get a buzz off gear. Of course, it never stopped anyone trying.

Have you managed to stay off the needle @Ganjcat ? Although I IVd periodically throughout my 'career', it's only when I started doing it habitually that things fell apart rapidly.

(Well, the crack, booze and RC benzos didn't particularly help either...)

 

[GetMeOutOfThisCRAP]

I was able to maintain my life quite well even on 10 years of opiates, because I could always get them. I even excelled at my job. However as I started trying to quit (mostly because of the huge financial toll it was taking on me, plus not liking to be a slave), and failing, it started to fuck with my head. Over time I started to hate myself. It's difficult to describe ho dark it became. I realized that the best I ever felt, the highest point of the best hit, was still much worse than my baseline before I started using opiates. I began to feel like my soul was dirty and damaged. Every day was a chore. I started to fantasize about getting hit by a bus. The intense money stress was part of it (ended up $40,000 in debt), but it was mostly the feeling of being an utter failure, a weak person who broke promises to himself every day.

Maybe if I had been able to easily afford a daily supply and had no desire to quit, I wouldn't have suffered so much. Although there are some side effects that just plain suck. Namely, the constipation (fuck that was bad) and the drastic reduction in testosterone/libido.

Honestly there's no need to beat yourself up (not that you were in this post). I understand every word of what you said. Opioid withdrawal took me to a place so dark I could finally understand why people commit suicide (still don't condone it). But high dose opiates cut off cold turkey? To feel like you have nothing and no one and life will never be good again... even if it's only for 2-5 months I could tell pretty quickly how something like that if prolonged for longer could definitely be the most dangerous position for anyone to be in. But the more you know lol.

I wish it was a financially feasible addiction and honestly many lives would be saved. There would be no need to try heroin with fent analogues of variable and dangerous amounts... we could just moderate our use and keep our mental health in tact. Still--the government assumes way too much responsibility as all do and think it knows whats best for us and the moral line between right and wrong. It is what it is..

Also the needle is psychologically fucked up. An addiction in its own right.

 

[Ganjcat]

Nah don't do that man