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Ok I'm 19 years old and I'm curious about trying speed or ecstacy. I have used marijuana before (frequently - now only a few times a year) and I would just like to experience something new. Is this too dangerous or to big of a risk to be taking? Or given I was to use it only occasionally is it OK to try this? What are your honest thoughts? I really want to understand that world of drugs and don't want to be a hypocrite and tell people its wrong when I've never tried it myself.
Also is it even possible to use safely? Or am I playing with fire? How are my chances at coming out of this without a dependence. Oh and I have known many people who have used drugs (still do) and have read up a lot about it. I am trying to make an informed decision, not just throwing caution to the wind like some young girls with no idea of what could happen. I look forward to your responses.
My honest thoughts, well your statement that you don't want to be a hypocrite and tell people its wrong when your have never tried drugs before seems to lack maturity. Making an informed decision is not trying something so you can have the experience but reading and watching.
Here is the 'dope' on amphetamines:
# Medically, forms of amphetamine (e.g. Dexedrine) are used to treat Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD). In the 60s and 70s it was the diet pill of choice, often dispensed by doctors like candy, without any understanding of the damaging psychological and physical side effects it induced.
# The illegal street version of amphetamine, i.e. speed, is often "cooked up" in a dangerously explosive, "homemade" laboratory, to produce a powdered substance that can be inhaled, snorted, injected, smoked, or swallowed.
# Speed is a stimulant. In general, it causes euphoria, although repeated, excessive use can result in Anxiety, panic attacks, hallucinations, and other forms of mental and extreme emotional distress. Medically, amphetamine affects the part of the nervous system that "revs up" the body similar to adrenaline.
# It is extremely psychologically addictive (intensely craved), but it is not physically addictive like narcotics, such as heroin (physical addiction means, an individual becomes ill when he attempts to discontinue a drug).
# Nevertheless, it tends to have a devastating, negative impact on one's lifestyle, health, and work.
Well I'm not sure if I'm allowed to say stuff like this but drugs and alcohol have torn my family a part, I'm 16 years old, and no I have never smoked drugs or tobacco and I never drank in my life. Do you have parents, brothers or sisters I can tell you right now that maybe doing the drugs might not hurt you but I wish that people would think about what its doing to their family. I know my older brother's didn't know what it was doing to us, and I know my dad doesn't know what his drinking does to us.
I know that I sound crazy and this is your choice but for me to sit back and watch my family disintegrate, it killed me. I can't trust people anymore, my new saying is everyone lies. And it was my own brothers who taught me that everyone leaves, and when they left and at the end of the day its me I'm the one who's left to pick up the pieces. And yet somehow I feel responsible for this, and my mom well let me give you a bit of her back round, she no longer goes to work, because of a disease that can not be diagnosed, although the doctors think its MS.
Please before you go to do drugs again just think about your family.
And I don'T normally do this but if I can save one family, one person from the pain that I feel everyday then its worth it.
For about a month after my brothers moved out I didn't talk to the older one at all, it killed me, we used to be so close, here si a poem of my thoughts about the first 2 weeks.
My Unsent Letter
I knew someday
You'd move away
And I knew nothing I could say
Would make you stay
I'ts been 2 weeks since we last spoke
2 weeks since my heart broke
Perhaps my greatist fear
Is that I will be left all alone
But my family is all I've ever known
It's been 2 weeks since you've been gone
2 weeks and it hurts to know that you have moved on
My eyes have been open
To how I've taken everything for granted
And because of that its been hard coping
But still I sit here hoping
It's been 2 weeks since I saw you go
2 weeks ago
I'm writing this in hopes that it will make everything all better
But I know it won't
See you'll never even get to read it
Because this is just My Unsent Letter
And here's another poem that I wrote about my hero, he's there for me everyday he's what keeps me going.
My Unsung Hero
I have an unsung hero
A near and dear best friend
And although everyone else around me leaves
I take comfort in knowing he'll be with me 'til the end
Its him who keeps me together
When life gets hard
And when I am in danger he is always there to guard
He knows when I'm scared
And even if no one else did
He always cared
He know's if I'm sad
And if my day was bad!
He'll make me laugh, and turn it around
He's my big fluffy clown
He taught me many valuable things
Patience, love, and kindness
And how angels don't always have wings
He's like my shadow
Always by my side
My sense of securtiy as well as pride
He does not know the joy
He brings each and every day
Or how his presence
Keeps my fears at bay
I sit and watch as people leave and say goodbye
As a lone tear escapes my eye
But he's aways there to cheer me up
He's my loving and loyal Husky Pup
Just think about your family it does affect them please...
I don't think either of you read my question properly, thanks for the "dope" on speed but I know those things. Facts and statistics can't quite match a personal experience. The experience is not in watching and reading, its in having the experience. Tell me you know and have experienced paris simply by seeing it and reading about it. I know I haven't. And rex I'm sorry your family left you feeling that way - drugs can have a devastating effect on people but let me assure you my family and I are very close. >
And they will know of my decision either way, and they know of my past use. I never hurt them like that through any of it. But I can relate to those feelings believe me and thank you for sharing. Tickle do you think it is wrong for me to tell you how to drive your car when I have never driven a car before? It isn't fair to do that to someone. What's immature about that?
If your family is very close then keep it that way, you don't think my family was really close? Well we were.
At the end of the day if you are so weak willed as to even contemplate abusing ILLEGAL drugs, then you should be fully aware of all the repercussions that entails.
Just looking for a "personal experience" has got to be one of the dumbest reasons I have ever heard. It ranks right up there with "my friends all do it" in utter stupidity!!
Drugs are ILLEGAL for a very good reason!!
What's wrong with wanting to try something new. Alcohol is a drug however it is socially accepted so its OK to try. I don't want to have a debate, I just want someone with personal experience in this matter to reply.
*Head Desk*
Would you consider shooting up just so you can have the experience!?
Come on get a grip on reality here!!
If you feel you must screw your life up in this manner then feel free, but you will receive NO help from this site at all.
What is the reason drugs are illegal? Enlighten me.
As you are clearly so well read you already know the answer to this question.
I assume your answer is because they are harmful, yes?
Explain to me why alcohol and cigarettes aren't illegal? Are they not harmful? They are a multi billion dollar industry and my guess is the government would love to cash in on harder drug money too, if they could. In fact in some places they do. Ever heard of San Pedro prison in La Paz? Read up on that. Also the book marching powder is an eye opener.
Nuff said reallyQuote:
Originally Posted by hannah_nicole
Oh and how about some of your own knowledge - not something flogged off wikipedia.
As you have clearly already made up your mind there is little point in this whole exchange.
I have said what I wanted to say.
I am now happy to have a debate, however you don't seem to have much to say.
You are obviously an intellectual,deep in thought,thinking about this pursuit.
How can you intellectualize being "ABOVE THE INFLUENCE"
I am a survivor of this passing fancy of yours,want my nervous system, I'd happily exchange it with you,manic/depression isn't all that fun.
For YEARSI did this drug,(not saying you are going to),but,just how can you justify causing your 19 year old mental health to go through this unnecessary distress,is beyond mature thinking.
Your argument,If someone was to drive into a wall,would you need to experience it also?
Nuff for now?
KBC
Wow, I can't even begin to comprehend this..
You seriously want to get into this? It's like asking everyone.. what is it like being bulemic.. I think I'm going to try it..
I have a suggestion, before you decide to throw your life down the drain, read "a Million Little Pieces" seriously it's a biography on a man suffering with drug addictions..
Your "open mind" to drugs is a DANGEROUS road to being going down.. so you're curious about speed , so you try it, then you're curious about herion, you try it.. next thing you know you're a homeless person with no teeth begging for money on the corner.. .
THINK REAL HARD ABOUT THIS ONE!!
Ok and I have some more to add..
I know addiction second hand, I have a cousin who has been addicted to heroin for 10 years and counting and lost all her hair, lost almost all her teeth, lost her daughter, her husband her home and so on.. all because she was curious..
This infuriates me to no end that you so casually think about inviting this hell into your life...
Some of us on here have real problems and need real advice, don't come on here wasting our time trying to seem intelligent that you're thinking it over.. YOU'RE A TWIT!!
And don't think you know everything about life just because you're an adult (barely) because you HAVE NO CLUE!!
I'm 24 and I'm humble enough to acknowledge that I know SQUAT, I'm just not stupid enough to go reek havic on my life based solely on curiosity!!
I'm sorry, but it seems that you didn't come here to find information. Rather, it appears that you came here to validate something that you simply want to do despite knowing that it's harmful to your brain. I don't know what kind of person you think would tell you that you should try it. I don't think you'll find that here.Quote:
Originally Posted by hannah_nicole
I find your posts particularly insulting because you decided to start this thread in a place where people are seeking help from the addictions that are ruining their lives. This obviously includes drug addiction. What you've done is the same thing as walking in on an AA meeting and asking if you should start abusing more serious drugs. At the very least, it's incredibly selfish of you. It's also mindbogglingly disrespectful.
You stated that your family is supportive of you, and that they will be made aware of your decision. Have you been intending to tell them about the ecstasy before or after you've done it? If you think they're so cool with it, why not tell your parents what you're intending to do right now? Then let's hear what they have to say.
You were asked why you've limited yourself to ecstasy and speed, and I'm wondering what your answer is. Make no mistake; ecstasy is a seriously hard-core drug. So is speed.
Unless you have been intending to become a drug-taking instructor, your analogy makes no sense.Quote:
Originally Posted by hannah_nicole
Why do you seem to think that using these drugs will make you a martyr to other drug users? Drug users already know what drugs are like. If people who want to start taking serious drugs want to ask someone what it's like, I don't see why you would have to start taking them so you could tell them.
You can't make the argument that it's okay for you to use exstacy because alcohol and tobacco are legal drugs. What are you comparing?
Do you want a reason not to try ecstacy? If you were not aware, ecstasy use is connected to permanent brain damage and disturbances within the natural brain chemistry that deal with mood disorders.
From http://www.drugfree.org/portal/drug_guide/Ecstasy:
What are its short-term effects?
"Users report that Ecstasy produces intensely pleasurable effects – including an enhanced sense of self-confidence and energy. Effects include feelings of peacefulness, acceptance and empathy. Users say they experience feelings of closeness with others and a desire to touch others. Other effects can include involuntary teeth clenching, a loss of inhibitions, transfixion on sights and sounds, nausea, blurred vision, chills and/or sweating. Increases in heart rate and blood pressure, as well as seizures, are also possible. The stimulant effects of the drug enable users to dance for extended periods, which when combined with the hot crowded conditions usually found at raves, can lead to severe dehydration and hyperthermia or dramatic increases in body temperature. This can lead to muscle breakdown and kidney, liver and cardiovascular failure. Cardiovascular failure has been reported in some of the Ecstasy-related fatalities.
After-effects can include sleep problems, anxiety and depression."
What are its long-term effects?
"Repeated use of Ecstasy ultimately may damage the cells that produce serotonin, which has an important role in the regulation of mood, appetite, pain, learning and memory. There already is research suggesting Ecstasy use can disrupt or interfere with memory."
There is a lot of information out there. Follow these links for more facts:
Methylenedioxymethamphetamine - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Drug Info
"Much of what is sold as "ecstasy" on the black market actually contains other drugs, some of which can be more dangerous than MDMA, like PMA, speed, DXM and PCP."
This is your brain on ecstasy
Neuroscience For Kids - MDMA (Ecstasy)
I want to be nice here, but I think you need someone to tell you like it is. You seem to have a problem with logic. Your arguments make no sense. I think you also have a huge immaturity problem, even for a 19 year old. I think you have much more growing up to do that you know. You need to start making responsible adult decisions, and taking these drugs would not be one of them. I wish you well.
Firstly there is no "drugs" board so where else was I to put this. I know you are all right in your thinking, that this is a bad and stupid decision to make. The people who I love in my life all have, or do use drugs and this causes constant arguments, me wanting them to stop. I wanted to understand why they won't stop. Why they can't give it up and is it really as bad as I make out? Even if they only do it a few times a year? I know its ridiculous, but I'm in the situation and I'm here for advice.
Alcohol is legal.Quote:
Originally Posted by hannah_nicole
Okay, I'm going to go with your argument for trying drugs.Quote:
Originally Posted by hannah_nicole
You say that you want to know why your family members won't stop, so that's why you want to try it?
I have an Uncle who committed suicide, I want to know why too, should I try it?
You reasoning makes no sense.
So, since you're so intent on getting info from people who've done drugs, well, you're talking to one right now. I was lucky, I had someone in my life who cared enough to get me help early on in my drug use, I didn't end up with any long term health problems, but I know people who do, many people, I even have a few friends who are no longer alive because of drugs. Most of them died before they were 25. Yup, all because of drugs.
If you care about yourself then stay away from drugs.
Great, more info about me. :(
Im sorry to everybody who thinks Im wasting time and space with this question, and to plonak I do think it is a real problem that I want to try drugs, don't you? I just want the arguments to stop. I want to not care, because that's a choice I can't make for someone if they want to use drugs. But I do care, and I love this person. Is it worth staying? Our views on drugs are from two different planets. I can't stop making noise about it. I don't know whether we can work, and that hurts.
Huh?Quote:
Originally Posted by hannah_nicole
I second that. Huh?Quote:
Originally Posted by KBC
Hannah,Have you read what you wrote?
Does what you stated make ANY sense to you,It sure confused me,and altenweg also.
Are you in the right frame of mind?
I am a little concerned for your mental state right now,what were you trying to say?
KBC
I'm beginning to think that she didn't wait for our advice, she took the drugs anyway.
Hannah, we would like to help you, but you aren't making any sense at all. We can't help you if you leave.
I know that you think we're all being harsh, but it's because we care and I for one know where this road can lead to, it's a dead end.
Please come back, talk to us.
Hannah, you want advice from the other side right? Why don't you come with me on a rotation to the ER in my hospital on a holiday night? Although I work in labor and Delivery, when it is slow there and busy in the ER, you can find me in the ER with a Code Blue because a teen tried Ex. That Ex was made in someone's home and contained poisonous materials. Would you like to be with me and the doctor when we have to tell the parents that we did all we could do to save their child's life, but the damage was too bad and we could not get their 16 year old back.
Or how about the teen that took speed, liked it and took some more when the effects seem to wear off, and then took some more... then their heart gave out?
Would you like to ride in the ambulance with me when we have to transport a teen to the mental hospital because the hallucinations were so bad that they were trying to scratch their skin off?
I have been on the other side of drugs too. I have taken them years ago. I choose to keep that part of my life private as I tend to be ashamed of some of the things I did back then. I now take care of people do drugs just cause they want to "try" it. I also take care of the babies of the women who take drugs while pregnant. Some of the babies live, others don't. Those that live experience extreme withdrawal symptoms, it's not a pretty site to watch a 5 pound baby go through withdrawals.
J9, I had to spread the rep.
If that doesn't get through, I don't know what will. Thank you for sharing all of that with us.
I think it should be mandatory at school for kids to spend one night at the ER to see what happens when they use drugs. The reality would be enough to scare anyone from trying them.
Sadly, for most of the kids out there, their experimentation will wind up killing them. The ones who get lucky may end up trying it once and then not ever doing it again, but chances aren't good. When you're homeless, on the street, selling your body to get money for a fix, well, then it's too late. Now is the time to think of the consequences, not after.
Really, don't do it. Drugs aren't cool, they're the biggest mistake you'll ever make, and it may be a mistake you only make once!
HOW is it being a hypocrite to tell somebody drugs are bad just because you never tried them? In that case it is hypocrite for suicide counselors to tell people not to kill themselves? Is it wrong for someone to comfort someone who has been abused in a relationship when they never had any abuse in their own life?
Why do you want to mess with your health in that way? Anti depressants, speed and other pills can, do and will often make you feel like you are in a fog. A psychiatrist prescribed Paxil for me one time and it made me feel fine and energetic in the morning but by noon I would feel sluggish and in a brain fog.
I hated it! It is bad enough that people who need the drugs have to take them but to purposely take them is not good at all.
Look at all the people who go to rehab and get out and start right back on their drugs. It is bondage!
If you need more energy there are better healthier ways to go about it.
I'm glad that you shared these thoughts with us. I wish you had included this in your original post. It doesn't change the fact that you shouldn't be setting yourself up to play with fire, and it doesn't change the fact that your motivations are being misdirected, but it does give us a better understanding of your situation.Quote:
Originally Posted by hannah_nicole
There are only two reasons people take drugs: for fun, or as an escape. Neither one is healthy, and, ultimately, both are equally dangerous. If there are people in your life who take drugs, you can either convince them to stop, or you can't. You can either accept it, or you can leave them behind.
You talked about not wanting to be a hypocrite. Well, if you're against taking drugs and you take them, that's exactly what would make you a hypocrite. You said that you want to try speed and ecstasy so that you will know how you feel about them. Well, if they're fun, will it change how dangerous or bad for you they are? If you're unhappy with the experience, wouldn't that just be solidifying your feelings against them in the first place?
I realize that you might feel like some of us have been a little hard on you, but it's only because it would be impossible for any of us to encourage you to take speed or ecstasy. What kinds of people would tell a 19 year old that this sounds like a great plan? We care about your well being, and we want you to be safe. That's all.
While I think I understand part of what you were trying to say, I really don't want anyone to consider equating anti-depressants with speed and "other pills". First of all, anti-depressants are not street drugs, and they're not used recreationally. Second, they are (often) life saving medications that *need* to be taken by people who would otherwise suffer from brain chemical imbalances that would leave them completely debilitated. Given the number of depressed people who already harbor distrust of anti-depressants in general, I just didn't want to let the comparison go without saying something.Quote:
Originally Posted by N0help4u
I have to TOTALLY disagree with this statement. Xanax is a highly addictive antidepressant and is currently being sold on the black market. There are may others, I just used this one as it is very common.Quote:
Originally Posted by linnealand
While some people like the high of amphetamines (sp), others like the low of anti-depressants. I just rode in the ambulance last week to the mental hosptial with a patient who was addicted to antidepressants and alcohol.
Children now go through their parents medicine cabinets and get all the pills they can... stimulants and anti-depressants alike. They all get together and mix the pills then take a handful... it's called a Skittles Party.
Anti-depressants ARE addictive and ARE used recreationally.
I have known meth addicts and it's not pretty. Why would you wan to risk addiction? It completely wrecks people's lives. I will admit once that I did try speed once myself by accident. It was in something else. It was just like drinking 10 cups of coffee. Not fun. I cannot recommend it. Obviously, some people like it or they wouldn't keep taking it an get addicted. So if you don't like it, you haven't gained anything and if you do like, you'll probably become an addict. It's a lose-lose situation.
Correction:
Xanax and valium are tranquilizers, not antidepressants.
Xanax and Valium are completely different drugs from antidepressants such as the older tricyclics or the newer SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors).
I'm sorry, but your critique is absolutely wrong.Quote:
Originally Posted by J_9
First of all, xanax is not an anti-depressant. It's an anti-anxiety medication. They are totally different. We're talking about a big, big difference.
Anti-anxiety medications fall into a completely different category of meds. Xanax and valium are benzodiazepines, which are a type of anxiolytic drug and contain varying levels of sedatives and/or tranquilizers.
Second of all, it usually takes several weeks for anti-depressants to begin working, and since anti-depressants are not based on the "highs" or "lows" of recreational drugs, there is no point in taking them unless you're depressed. That is, "fun" drugs have nothing to do with the modern day anti-depressants used in western medicine.
The following is a list of the most common antidepressants prescribed today:
Drug ↓ Brand ↓
Sertraline Zoloft
Escitalopram Lexapro
Fluoxetine Prozac
Bupropion Wellbutrin, Budeprion, Zyban
Paroxetine Paxil
Venlafaxine Effexor
Citalopram Celexa
Trazodone Desyrel
Amitriptyline Elavil
Duloxetine Cymbalta
Mirtazapine Remeron
Nortriptyline Pamelor
Imipramine Tofranil
Please refer to the following links for more information:
Antidepressant - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
"Most antidepressants have a delayed onset of action and are usually taken over the course of weeks, months, or sometimes years."
Antidepressants: Medications for Depression
"Antidepressant drugs are not happy pills, and they are not a panacea."
Depression - Antidepressants
"Anti-depressants are drugs meant to alleviate the mood in order to escape from depression, while stimulants are considered recreational drugs not used to treat any illness."
Also, stimulants have nothing to do with antidepressants. Nor are they their parallel opposite. You're talking about a totally different category of drugs.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stimulants
I am aware of the fact that you are a registered nurse; considering them to be the same thing, and treating them as such, would have the potential to be very dangerous. If you don't believe me, speak with your doctor.
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