What Do I Do??

[DocToxin8]

I think the "disease" theory is a way for the weak to cope.

I am a recovering (lack of a better word) opiate addict, i despised using. I used because a woman drug me into her addiction. Not blaming her, but it was my choice. But the second I saw an "out I took it.

I committed a small misdemeanor on purpose and plead guilty and did not post bond.

I served 25 days on a 6 month sentence. I also spent 2 Weeks prior to sentence awaiting court. So 39 days total. Detoxed in county jail.

That was in 2003, Dec 21st.

Haven't touched them since. Nor do I have the desire to.

Its strictly mind over matter, with a touch of physical.

After 3 to 4 days I was fine.

Fwiw, after the 39 days I was let out no probation

I stole a bottle of multivitamins and l carnitine from a big box store and went quietly

Hehehe, I can't totally see your point about it being used as an excuse.
And congratulations on quitting.
But, if you have a depression and anxiety that starts about the time you hit puberty, and you've started by using rec drugs to have fun, then self medicate the blues away, then "suddenly" you realized you've been self medicated (or addicted) to drugs for the last 10 years, from being 13 years old to 23, quitting all drugs isn't any longer a matter of becoming back to normal. You've never known what normal is, except feeling depressed and anxious when you were, in essence, just a kid.
Yeah, is it a disease then?
Would be kinda how you define a disease. Is depression as disease?
It's a psychological disorder at least. And major depressive disorder has a mortality of 10%, that's 9,9% higher chance of death than with testicular cancer. So it's definitions all the way. That's what I meant by case by case.

I've never defined myself as sick when using rec drugs though. Others have ill have to admit. Haha. I just define myself as an, hmmm, intresting individual.

But for sure, the disease theory is an easy cop out.

Still, should we treat addicts as diseased, like major depressives,
Or say fuck it, mind over matter, just quit that shit?
I have to say, just quit that shit rarely works in practice.

[Couchlock]

Hehehe, I can't totally see your point about it being used as an excuse.
And congratulations on quitting.
But, if you have a depression and anxiety that starts about the time you hit puberty, and you've started by using rec drugs to have fun, then self medicate the blues away, then "suddenly" you realized you've been self medicated (or addicted) to drugs for the last 10 years, from being 13 years old to 23, quitting all drugs isn't any longer a matter of becoming back to normal. You've never known what normal is, except feeling depressed and anxious when you were, in essence, just a kid.
Yeah, is it a disease then?
Would be kinda how you define a disease. Is depression as disease?
It's a psychological disorder at least. And major depressive disorder has a mortality of 10%, that's 9,9% higher chance of death than with testicular cancer. So it's definitions all the way. That's what I meant by case by case.

I've never defined myself as sick when using rec drugs though. Others have ill have to admit. Haha. I just define myself as an, hmmm, intresting individual.

But for sure, the disease theory is an easy cop out.

Still, should we treat addicts as diseased, like major depressives,
Or say fuck it, mind over matter, just quit that shit?
I have to say, just quit that shit rarely works in practice.

Yeah I feel ya.

Worst scenario in this country is methadone and suboxone.

When u was shooting a gram of H a day, a 30 mg methadone wafer would gave me goid for 36 hours or more.

I can not believe these clinics are giving people 100mg a day maintenance doses of methadone.

Same with suboxone, I would get them from time to time, a 8mg tab I can space over 2.5 days and be fine.

Now standard maintenance doses of that are 24mg a day (3 tabs)

Wtf, they just replace one with the other (but way more than needed) and call it treatment?

I would rather taper with morphine sulphate 200mg tabs over a 10 day period reducing 25mg every other day,much cleaner way to get clean than staying on treatment meds for years and years.

I could not imagine 100mg of methadone at once, id be puking and scared of dying.

And to top it off, a lot of people in methadone and suboxone treatment are also prescribed benzo's.

That ain't clean, its just stopping the search aspect of the addiction, with a nice fat dose of pharma grade junk at the ready every single day.

I started my recreational drug journey same age as you, 13.

I liked my uppers pot and stims more than opiates and downs.

I liked LSD, mdma, amphetamines (adderal) and always pot as crutch. I even used the less glamorous crack rock for a while.

Shit got old quick, I could not believe my resume of drugs now that I look back, and am damn glad I escaped still in good health

I do feel its disease but not in the classic sense of disease, its a society created disease.