Addictions -drugs alcoholism etc

[Tambourine Man]

I recall how good cocaine made me feel and it wasn't really over the top amped up. I felt very focused and clear headed, really calmed my hyper brain down. So I figured it had to be bad for me and I hardly ever did it. But as self medicating goes, that [expletive] worked like a goddam charm.

Or maybe it was because I was a cheapskate.

That's pretty comparable to the one and only time I ever did it. I remember thinking, "I'm never trying this [expletive] again because horrible things will happen."

Generally speaking, my drug exploration involved the non-addictive stuff (LSD, mushrooms, weed). I don't need any more vices.

I did coke twice in my younger years. One time it involved giving my debit card to someone to pay for more. I'm with JL, made me feel invincible until the dehydration/crash kicked in and I knew it was a bad thing.

Edit: you can drink a 12 pack on that [expletive] with virtually no effect.

Sign me up for the GRB Coke Gathering. Did it twice, absolutely loved it, and knew that I couldn't do it regularly.

[ghostrunner]

The wife had an attack of vertigo the other day--really weird, completely out of nowhere--and we were in the doctor's office, and naturally I was bored so I started reading the posters. They had a flier dedicated to how Kaiser Permanente was going to manage your pain medication, how they were going to keep tabs on what you'd taken, wouldn't replace lost pills, etc etc etc. And, as you say, that's the stuff you get from doctors, which isn't as potent as heroin.

I've never really understood how people get hooked on pain medication. For me, it doesn't seem all that helpful in actually suppressing pain but quite effective at making me feel nauseous. I was given morphine after surgery many years ago, and it was just miserable, although I suppose it's hard to separate the effect of the drug from everything else you're feeling post surgery. Similar with various pain pills (like codeine, I think?) after stuff like dental procedures, though less intense. I wonder whether there is some biological difference that makes the experience of being on pain medication better for certain people.

Seems like there has to be. I took Vicodin for a while after a dental procedure and it was terrific. No nausea and the only pain meds where I never thought to myself "is this actually doing anything?" I say that as compared to over the counter stuff, which I assume is all much less potent. But it made me wonder why we don't just make Vicodin more freely available. While it worked great I didn't feel compelled to continue once the pain had subsided, so I also wonder what it is that people get addicted to.

[ghostrunner]

Re: cocaine - I never did it. For one, I never so much as saw it. That seems miraculous now, given how much party-going I did in high school and college. Second, I had watched enough movies about it to scare me [expletive], not to mention it appeared to be a problem for a lot of comedians that I liked as a teenager/college student. Kinison, Robin Williams, Belushi , etc.

I guess the fear of legal trouble helped because I had no such issues with alcohol, and probably should have.

[Molly]

I recall how good cocaine made me feel and it wasn't really over the top amped up. I felt very focused and clear headed, really calmed my hyper brain down. So I figured it had to be bad for me and I hardly ever did it. But as self medicating goes, that [expletive] worked like a goddam charm.

Or maybe it was because I was a cheapskate.

That's pretty comparable to the one and only time I ever did it. I remember thinking, "I'm never trying this [expletive] again because horrible things will happen."

Generally speaking, my drug exploration involved the non-addictive stuff (LSD, mushrooms, weed). I don't need any more vices.

I did coke twice in my younger years. One time it involved giving my debit card to someone to pay for more. I'm with JL, made me feel invincible until the dehydration/crash kicked in and I knew it was a bad thing.

Edit: you can drink a 12 pack on that [expletive] with virtually no effect.

Sign me up for the GRB Coke Gathering. Did it twice, absolutely loved it, and knew that I couldn't do it regularly.

+1.

[heyzeus]

We need a new forum, "GRB Opium Den"

[The Third Man]

We need a new forum, "GRB Opium Den"

[wart57]

I recall how good cocaine made me feel and it wasn't really over the top amped up. I felt very focused and clear headed, really calmed my hyper brain down. So I figured it had to be bad for me and I hardly ever did it. But as self medicating goes, that [expletive] worked like a goddam charm.

Or maybe it was because I was a cheapskate.

It is funny that you say that about a hyper brain, I absolutely love my hyper brain. I would never want to take anything that dulls that hyperactivity in my head. I kid you not, I must have at least 6 to 10 different thoughts going in my head at the same time almost all the time; I would be very lonely if some of those thoughts were quieted. I guess that is why drugs never held any allure for me, I don't like my head dulled at all. It drives Mrs. Wart nuts, because sometimes I don't hear her through the noise in my head.

[Radbird]

I absolutely love my hyper brain. I would never want to take anything that dulls that hyperactivity in my head

To truly know what a hyper brain feels like, drop some acid

[wart57]

I absolutely love my hyper brain. I would never want to take anything that dulls that hyperactivity in my head

To truly know what a hyper brain feels like, drop some acid

I don't need to, my mind is already at warp speed most times.

Besides, some of the voices need to be held back and controlled. My brain comes up with some pretty crazy stuff that needs to be suppressed.

[Fat_Bulldog]

Cocaine is the best.