6 ms·

A strong desire to quit and a big support network (family, friends, recovery centers, etc). We tend to look down on addicts, when in fact, we probably should be

A strong desire to quit and a big support network (family, friends, recovery centers, etc). We tend to look down on addicts, when in fact, we probably should be looking to help. And the more help there is, the better chance someone will have quitting/recovery. Support also means real support, not a parent there because they have to and so they have disgust on their face, nope nope nope, that can make things worse.

newbie789 5y ago
Yes! I had friends, housing, food, a stable day to day routine and _nobody_ looked down on me for my problems. I was able to talk openly about what I was going through and the circumstances that led to my addiction in the first place. Normally (at least as Americans) we think of addicts as getting all of those things in rehab facilities and getting “fixed” by that few weeks or months. I’ve been in rehabs and mental hospitals and genuinely gotten some necessary help from them, but in my case I only started getting really better after I found myself in a situation where I had all of that support without feeling like it had an expiration date.
rukuu001 5y ago
Not only that, I always have time to listen to recovered addicts - they know more about persistence and will-power than just about anyone else.
anticodon 5y ago
I have a friend who's an addict and he's becoming impossible to talk to. Not about drugs, just about anything. He doesn't want any help, and he starts to live in his own reality. When we meet in a group of friends he doesn't listen to anyone. He can talk non-stop for hours until everybody around is tired from his gibberish. But he doesn't listen to anyone in a sense that feels very selfish. For example, when someone is telling an interesting story, he won't listen and he would make dumb offending jokes. It feels like drugs made him dumb and also he is living in some kind of parallel reality. It's becoming harder and harder to connect. Also, in his reality it's perfectly ok to consume drugs, he's also constantly offering to share the experience with all people he meets. It's sad situation and looks desperate because he's aggressively against any help, he consider himself better than others because of the drugs (he is sure they allow him to "see" more than we see), and he doesn't listen to anyone.
- newbie789 5y ago
  That fucking sucks. I don’t really have much to say about that other than if you’ve got a contact email, let me know.
- eurasiantiger 5y ago
  Have you considered he may be right?
  - anticodon 5y ago
    I know he's not right. From experience and from looking at him. Also, he's unable to function in the society. He's becoming obnoxious, so all his friends and even relatives are starting to avoid him. He doesn't look healthy, he doesn't look happy, and I know he is unable to achieve any of his goals (the goals I've heard from him that he wants to achieve).
    - eurasiantiger 5y ago
      Tough call. Everything you described matches 1:1 with a friend who couldn’t deal with the stress of college and started to flare out with schizophrenia. Drugs came soon after, but the verbosity, obnoxiousness and grandiose ideas came first, coupled with execution incoherent enough to look nonexistent.

newbie789 5y ago

Yes! I had friends, housing, food, a stable day to day routine and _nobody_ looked down on me for my problems. I was able to talk openly about what I was going through and the circumstances that led to my addiction in the first place. Normally (at least as Americans) we think of addicts as getting all of those things in rehab facilities and getting “fixed” by that few weeks or months. I’ve been in rehabs and mental hospitals and genuinely gotten some necessary help from them, but in my case I only started getting really better after I found myself in a situation where I had all of that support without feeling like it had an expiration date.

rukuu001 5y ago

Not only that, I always have time to listen to recovered addicts - they know more about persistence and will-power than just about anyone else.

anticodon 5y ago

I have a friend who's an addict and he's becoming impossible to talk to. Not about drugs, just about anything. He doesn't want any help, and he starts to live in his own reality. When we meet in a group of friends he doesn't listen to anyone. He can talk non-stop for hours until everybody around is tired from his gibberish. But he doesn't listen to anyone in a sense that feels very selfish. For example, when someone is telling an interesting story, he won't listen and he would make dumb offending jokes. It feels like drugs made him dumb and also he is living in some kind of parallel reality. It's becoming harder and harder to connect. Also, in his reality it's perfectly ok to consume drugs, he's also constantly offering to share the experience with all people he meets. It's sad situation and looks desperate because he's aggressively against any help, he consider himself better than others because of the drugs (he is sure they allow him to "see" more than we see), and he doesn't listen to anyone.

newbie789 5y ago
That fucking sucks. I don’t really have much to say about that other than if you’ve got a contact email, let me know.
eurasiantiger 5y ago
Have you considered he may be right?
- anticodon 5y ago
  I know he's not right. From experience and from looking at him. Also, he's unable to function in the society. He's becoming obnoxious, so all his friends and even relatives are starting to avoid him. He doesn't look healthy, he doesn't look happy, and I know he is unable to achieve any of his goals (the goals I've heard from him that he wants to achieve).
  - eurasiantiger 5y ago
    Tough call. Everything you described matches 1:1 with a friend who couldn’t deal with the stress of college and started to flare out with schizophrenia. Drugs came soon after, but the verbosity, obnoxiousness and grandiose ideas came first, coupled with execution incoherent enough to look nonexistent.