Drug addicts/People who use drugs are probably the last marginalized social category that it’s totally OK to treat like shit. There’s a movement to promote drug users’ humanity and advocate for our civil rights (things like safe injection sites, safe supply, ending the War on Drugs), which is still in its very early infancy; if you’re interested, a good place to start is looking up the Vancouver Area Network of Drug Users (VANDU), and its associated org, the Drug Users’ Liberation Front (DULF). “Harm reduction” is a keyword that’s heavily associated with our movement.
It’s a rare sight, a drug addict (in “active addiction”) speaking for themselves and for their community (yes, community). I’m not ashamed of my drug use. I have never scammed anyone for drugs. I have never stolen from anyone. And in contrast to how jaded this world leaves most of us who do dope in the shadows, I have met the closest friends and the most awesome people I’ve met in my entire life since I started doing drugs. I’m going to rehab soon (I guess), but I don’t intend to leave this world behind all the way. These are my friends. These are my people. o7
Anyways…
Yeah ask me anything. Some questions I may respectfully pass on because of reasons.
I’m calling the rehab place tomorrow, technically today, btw.
Meth. Occasionally I do heroin/fentanyl but I’ve avoided becoming addicted.
How did you end up getting involved with these substances in the first place? Did you decide to take up that guy in the parking lot's offer, or was it friends, or something else?
I have to pass on this one.
How long can you go without any before you get cravings? Days/hours
So I can go an entire day without smoking and be just fine. They aren’t really cravings though, usually. I have days where I wake up and go hours before I smoke, and I can go all day without and be just fine. It’s actually really pleasant, that initial part of the comedown. But the thing is, I know that without it, I’m basically a vegetable. After that initial pleasant comedown, it becomes Hell; with my heavy use (about half a gram a day), I get psychological symptoms after like the first day, which can be worse or better depending on the most minute things. Sometimes withdrawal is 24/7 waking Hell. Other times it's OK.
Big part of why I think it’s possible for me to be a functioning user, is I don’t need nearly as much as I smoke. I can just hit my bong (you can smoke meth out of a bong lol) once or twice and go about my day, and when I do this, or go a less insane route like oral administration, I’m a lot more functional; I’ll actually feel like it’s benefitting me in some way. But because I’m depressed and want to die I’ll just smoke and smoke and smoke until I can barely talk like a normal human.
It sounds like you might have ADHD friend and you're self medicating?