6 ms·

My drug of choice for colds is NyQuil. It's always been great for opening up my nasal passages enough to let me breathe easily and then knocking me the fuck out

My drug of choice for colds is NyQuil. It's always been great for opening up my nasal passages enough to let me breathe easily and then knocking me the fuck out so I could sleep off most of the cold. I remember several years ago when all of a sudden NyQuil stopped doing anything useful. I had no idea why but I directly observed that it was like it had been replaced with a non-functioning placebo. Only a couple years later did I make the connection that this was right when they passed the law restricting pseudoephedrine. I got my hands on some NyQuil D and everything was back to normal and I had a functioning cold remedy again. Phenylephrine is completely useless.

hammock 5y ago
NyQuil is a combination medicine. The cough, cold and flu formula contains Tylenol (fever/pain reliever), DXM (stops cough) and an antihistamine (dries out your runny nose/postnasal drip). NyQuil can be a great all-in-one product when it's what you need. It's useful to know what it is composed of and why. All of the medicines in it treat symptoms, not the underlying cause, which will be fought off by your immune system. If you have only one or two symptoms, you can always buy each drug separately - doing so allows you to more precisely control dosage and timing as well. FYI, two other common symptoms not covered above are sinus congestion - which can be treated with Sudafed - and chest congestion (e.g. a phlegmy cough) - which can be treated with Mucinex.
- bcrescimanno 5y ago
  Prior to the regulation of pseudoephedrine, NyQuil also contained pseudoephedrine and since the nasal congestion from a a virus can often be the most disruptive factor for sleep (at least, in my personal experience, that's the case) it's considered by some to the be most important component. NyQuil with pseudoephedrine included is now marketed as "NyQuil D" and is available behind many pharmacy counters with the same restrictions as other pseudoephedrine products. However, it could also rightly be called "NyQuil Classic" (to borrow branding from Coca-Cola).
  - Robotbeat 5y ago
    I feel like the true “Cocaine Cola Classic” would still have some of that, um, regulated stimulant in it. Cocaine. Might be good for decongestion?
    - genewitch 5y ago
      afaik coca cola is the only entity in the US allowed to import actual coca leaves, so, technically?
      - Cannabat 5y ago
        I’m not sure if it is still legal, but importing “coca tea” - that is, tea bags filled with shredded coca leaves - was legal at some point and a few enterprising folks imported a few kilos of it and processed it into the drug.
        nkozyra 5y ago
        It's still legal to buy decocanized coca leaves but I think the odds of getting anything worthwhile out of it would be slim and probably more expensive than a plane ticket to Peru.
      - hammock 5y ago
        While true, the cocaine is processed out of the leaves themselves and sold to pharmaceutical companies. The remaining leaf product is used in the flavoring.
    - rscho 5y ago
      Cocaine is indeed an excellent decongestant. To the point that it'll pierce a hole through your nasal septum through vasoconstriction.
  - vidanay 5y ago
    We haven't been able to find NyQuil D for almost a year here in Illinois
- lostcolony 5y ago
  Multiple clarifications - Antihistamines do not directly dry up your runny nose/post nasal drip. Rather, they reduce the histamine response, which is helpful when something is caused by allergies. It's usually not that helpful with an actual cold (but allergic rhinitis is often mistaken for a cold). Sudafed is what the parent was referring to with Pseudophedrine; a decongestant. This works by shrinking blood vessels, causing swollen passageways to open back up. It doesn't actually do anything to reduce the runny nose or post nasal drip, but by opening the passages more can help them drain more efficiently, preventing that feeling of congestion (hence the name). Guaifenesin (Mucinex being the name brand) is an expectorant; it causes you to generate more mucus, and reduces the viscosity, allowing you to cough/sneeze/etc your mucus/phlegm based congestion out more easily. Otherwise I totally agree; it is worth understanding what each of these do so you can pick and choose what you need. Nyquil includes DXM (dextromethorphan) to reduce cough severity, but the acetaminophen is not helpful unless you have a fever or headache, and the Doxylamine Succinate and Phenylephrine (both antihistamines; the Doxyl is added to Nyquil because it's also a sleep aid) aren't particularly helpful unless your cold symptoms are actually allergy related. Better to buy DXM separately usually; fewer side effects, cheaper, and you can pair it with what else will help you (if you need something to help you sleep, you can add Doxyl or Diphenhydramine if you want; YMMV as to how effective they are) Don't take Guaifenesin before bed (the increased mucus/phlegm production will make it harder to sleep), but it's good during daytime. A common side effect of Sudafed is trouble sleeping; if you don't have this side effect it can be helpful in reducing congestion while you try and sleep, but if you do have this side effect, obviously, don't take it before bed.
  - nsxwolf 5y ago
    Do any of these compounds actually do what they say? I have always found all cold medicines to be entirely worthless. Supposedly a study found guaifenesin to be no better than a placebo: http://rc.rcjournal.com/content/59/5/788 http://rc.rcjournal.com/content/59/5/788
    - lostcolony 5y ago
      So the treatment of symptoms, in general, leads to some really inconsistent results, as it's really hard to measure them. Some studies have definitely found guaifenesin to not be helpful (others have), but the way all of them measure it is...questionable. Ultimately, what a user wants is a subjective experience of "I feel better", but what is being tested for is stuff like "what concentration of inhailed capsaicin leads to them coughing". So generally my take is "hey, this is what it's been found effective for, and it's generally regarded as safe to take. Is it going to help here, for you, in this situation? Who knows! Give it a whirl if you got the money and want to try".
- tshaddox 5y ago
  DXM doesn’t actually suppress cough either, right?
  - hammock 5y ago
    According to whom?
  - lostcolony 5y ago
    Sort of! There isn't consistent evidence that -any- antitussive is more effective than placebo. A majority of studies show a statistically significant result for DXM, but not all, and they aren't fully replicable which definitely calls it into question. But that's true of every purported cough suppressant, and there's understandable reasons for that; coughing is a voluntary response to irritation, so there's definitely a lot going to determine whether you cough or not on beyond a purely autonomous system response. Plus there's not really much clarity in how to measure improvement (reduction in frequency may not actually be a reduction in irritation; reduction in severity is hard to measure. Etc). So, really, for a given incident, try it, see if it helps. If it does, great, if it doesn't, stop taking it.
- fpgaminer 5y ago
  NyQuil also contains alcohol and pseudo (in some formulations). My pet theory is that NyQuil's biggest effect is simply to make you mildly "faded" so all your symptoms are more tolerable. DXM, the antihistamine, the pseudo, and the alcohol are all drugs that would definitely do that if taken in larger doses. While NyQuil doesn't have those larger doses, the combination of all of them may amplify the otherwise weaker effects into a general buzz/haze that helps you go about your day/night.
542458 5y ago
In Canada you can find cough & cold medications in both the Phenylephrine and Pseudoephedrine formulation, often under near-identical labels (IIRC one can buy "Tylenol Cough and Cold" with either active ingredient, for example - carefully checking the label is the only way to tell). I didn't realize there was a difference until one day after running out of Phenylephrine-based medication I bought the Pseudoephedrine-based one - it was a night and day difference! Now I tell everybody with a cold to check the labels and buy the good stuff. Interesting case study in being able to sell a low-quality product (one of the most important active ingredients doesn't work!) side-by-side with a much better product and most people won't ever notice that one is better.
- JPKab 5y ago
  In US, same deal, but you have to show your ID at the counter to obtain the pseudophedrine version. Phenylephrine is so useless. Nothing worse than getting to a store after pharmacy hours and being forced to only get the useless garbage.
joezydeco 5y ago
Original NyQuil also had a healthy shot of ethyl alcohol in it. Exactly the thing you weren't supposed to mix with pseudoephedrine.
- sva_ 5y ago
  I believe you're just not supposed to drink alcohol on Pseudoephedrine because you'd be combining an upper with a downer, and it's very easy to go overboard with the downers when you're on an upper (tolerance to alcohol increases dramatically and increases overdose risk along with all the other side effects and risks.) So a small amount of alcohol won't really have much of an effect, I'd claim.
  - joezydeco 5y ago
    In my experiences with old NyQuil it was enough to make you drowsier. And getting to sleep was the primary objective of NyQuil. Back in my college days you could replicate it with one 30mg Sudafed and a shot of Jagermeister. =)
    - sva_ 5y ago
      > NyQuil I don't know about this medication in particular (since I don't live in the US), but I see it contains DXM (dextromethorphan), which is a dissociative (such as ex. ketamine), which probably causes the effects you described. I'm seeing it also contains acetaminophen, which probably makes it hard on your kidneys, if you take too much, so that is probably why people don't abuse it more (I guess or hope).
      - genewitch 5y ago
        in the US Robitussin DM is the one you get if you aim for disassociation(?) - NyQuil is explicitly a sleep aid with some other stuff mixed in, I'd have to go dig a bottle out but i think the active ingredient is an anti-histamine (diphenylhydramine i think) - as a sleep aid, mind you. It is true that NyQuil used to have alcohol, and didn't have DXM or acetaminophen. If the liquid you are looking at is Orange, that's the "daytime" stuff, and that's overpriced garbage. One could buy generic "tussin DM" (or pill form of dextro), mucinex (for guafenasin), and benadryl (or generic diphenylhydramine) to get the same usefulness that a bottle of liquid NyQuil has.
mise_en_place 5y ago
From what I've read, d-amphetamine[0] was the decongestant of choice for much of the 20th century. It's just that the counterculture weirdos were abusing it and that led to its restriction. Compared to pseudoephedrine its way more useful with minimal side effects like drinking a cup of coffee. [0]https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/04/the-lost-world-of-benzedrine/255904/ https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/04/the-lost-...
- nimish 5y ago
  Counterculture weirdos and Paul Erdos
- erosenbe0 5y ago
  That's dangerous to think it's the same as coffee. You can have a daily coffee when pregnant but we don't know about a daily dl-amphetamine. Not even close to the same side-effect profile. Coffee doesn't dilate your eyes, for starters. It's just not the same as a dopaminergic
  - astrange 5y ago
    Dexedrine is a normal ADHD medicine so this has been studied and it seems fine. eg https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1087054719896857 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1087054719896857
    - erosenbe0 5y ago
      This is really good news but hardly a comprehensive meta analysis over thousands of infants.
      - astrange 5y ago
        Well, it's not the only study, it's just an example. I think it was already generally considered safe but doctors were worried it might be passed on through breastfeeding.
Damogran6 5y ago
Didn’t they also drop the alcohol percentage? It’s 10% now (I know this because post Covid I seem to be catching EVERYTHING), I could have sworn it was 14% or higher growing up.
- InCityDreams 5y ago
  - tptacek 5y ago
    Eschew flamebait. Avoid unrelated controversies and generic tangents. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
- djrogers 5y ago
  This may be regional, but it's been 10% here for as long as I can recall - although the alcohol free version is much more prevalent than it used to be.
fullstop 5y ago
This works for one or two nights with me, and then it feels like I've built up a tolerance to it and I think that it actually keeps me awake. I'll use it if I have a cough which keeps me awake, and, if I time it right, I'm pretty good at recovering within a day or two.
- munificent 5y ago
  Yes, I have the exact same response. If I take it more than a few days, I'll get a rebound effect. My strategy is to take it full strength for a day or two and then taper it off gradually for the next few days after that.
nostromo 5y ago
American law is so disjointed. On one hand, we're decriminalizing drugs. Pot is widely legal now. Other states are allowing mushrooms and LSD. Cocaine and heroin are not legal, but have all but been decriminalized on the West Coast. Meanwhile it's harder than ever to get pain killers from your doctor, even when you have a demonstrated need for them. Same with ephedrine -- a very useful drug -- it's very difficult to get even when in need. And if you mention enjoying tobacco products, you're treated as a leper. I wish we had a self-consistent view of the issue.
- coward123 5y ago
  >all but been decriminalized on the West Coast. There's talk that WA is going to introduce a bill in the next session to completely decriminalize.
- rangersanger 5y ago
  I just finished reading The Urge: Our history of Addiction. If you're interested in some background on how we got here, the author does a great job of laying out the historical, legal, and social constructs that have resulted in the inconsistent mess. https://www.harvard.com/book/the_urge/ https://www.harvard.com/book/the_urge/
- noobermin 5y ago
  There is probably some truth to this but it is worth noting the opiod epidemic is largely why it's hard to get pain killers now. A few of the pharma companies have settled that they sort of knew people were taking them from pharmacies and selling them on the black market.
- ianai 5y ago
  “Cocaine and heroin are not legal, but have all but been decriminalized on the West Coast.” Citation needed. Never heard this before now. Or is this just some California thing?
  - svnt 5y ago
    In several cities they are now citations. You may get a fine for possession but you will not be arrested. In Portland for example the ticket is around $150, which is about the same as the fee for an expired vehicle registration. This change in policies has basically stopped enforcement. As you can imagine it is not a profitable practice to ticket the unhoused.
lkxijlewlf 5y ago
Probably would be better to take two shots of whisky, a teaspoon of honey and a shot of Afrin in each nostril[0]. NyQuil isn't what it used to be. [0] Careful, you can easily form an "addiction" to this med.

hammock 5y ago

NyQuil is a combination medicine. The cough, cold and flu formula contains Tylenol (fever/pain reliever), DXM (stops cough) and an antihistamine (dries out your runny nose/postnasal drip). NyQuil can be a great all-in-one product when it's what you need. It's useful to know what it is composed of and why. All of the medicines in it treat symptoms, not the underlying cause, which will be fought off by your immune system. If you have only one or two symptoms, you can always buy each drug separately - doing so allows you to more precisely control dosage and timing as well. FYI, two other common symptoms not covered above are sinus congestion - which can be treated with Sudafed - and chest congestion (e.g. a phlegmy cough) - which can be treated with Mucinex.

bcrescimanno 5y ago
Prior to the regulation of pseudoephedrine, NyQuil also contained pseudoephedrine and since the nasal congestion from a a virus can often be the most disruptive factor for sleep (at least, in my personal experience, that's the case) it's considered by some to the be most important component. NyQuil with pseudoephedrine included is now marketed as "NyQuil D" and is available behind many pharmacy counters with the same restrictions as other pseudoephedrine products. However, it could also rightly be called "NyQuil Classic" (to borrow branding from Coca-Cola).
- Robotbeat 5y ago
  I feel like the true “Cocaine Cola Classic” would still have some of that, um, regulated stimulant in it. Cocaine. Might be good for decongestion?
  - genewitch 5y ago
    afaik coca cola is the only entity in the US allowed to import actual coca leaves, so, technically?
    - Cannabat 5y ago
      I’m not sure if it is still legal, but importing “coca tea” - that is, tea bags filled with shredded coca leaves - was legal at some point and a few enterprising folks imported a few kilos of it and processed it into the drug.
      - nkozyra 5y ago
        It's still legal to buy decocanized coca leaves but I think the odds of getting anything worthwhile out of it would be slim and probably more expensive than a plane ticket to Peru.
    - hammock 5y ago
      While true, the cocaine is processed out of the leaves themselves and sold to pharmaceutical companies. The remaining leaf product is used in the flavoring.
  - rscho 5y ago
    Cocaine is indeed an excellent decongestant. To the point that it'll pierce a hole through your nasal septum through vasoconstriction.
- vidanay 5y ago
  We haven't been able to find NyQuil D for almost a year here in Illinois
lostcolony 5y ago
Multiple clarifications - Antihistamines do not directly dry up your runny nose/post nasal drip. Rather, they reduce the histamine response, which is helpful when something is caused by allergies. It's usually not that helpful with an actual cold (but allergic rhinitis is often mistaken for a cold). Sudafed is what the parent was referring to with Pseudophedrine; a decongestant. This works by shrinking blood vessels, causing swollen passageways to open back up. It doesn't actually do anything to reduce the runny nose or post nasal drip, but by opening the passages more can help them drain more efficiently, preventing that feeling of congestion (hence the name). Guaifenesin (Mucinex being the name brand) is an expectorant; it causes you to generate more mucus, and reduces the viscosity, allowing you to cough/sneeze/etc your mucus/phlegm based congestion out more easily. Otherwise I totally agree; it is worth understanding what each of these do so you can pick and choose what you need. Nyquil includes DXM (dextromethorphan) to reduce cough severity, but the acetaminophen is not helpful unless you have a fever or headache, and the Doxylamine Succinate and Phenylephrine (both antihistamines; the Doxyl is added to Nyquil because it's also a sleep aid) aren't particularly helpful unless your cold symptoms are actually allergy related. Better to buy DXM separately usually; fewer side effects, cheaper, and you can pair it with what else will help you (if you need something to help you sleep, you can add Doxyl or Diphenhydramine if you want; YMMV as to how effective they are) Don't take Guaifenesin before bed (the increased mucus/phlegm production will make it harder to sleep), but it's good during daytime. A common side effect of Sudafed is trouble sleeping; if you don't have this side effect it can be helpful in reducing congestion while you try and sleep, but if you do have this side effect, obviously, don't take it before bed.
- nsxwolf 5y ago
  Do any of these compounds actually do what they say? I have always found all cold medicines to be entirely worthless. Supposedly a study found guaifenesin to be no better than a placebo: http://rc.rcjournal.com/content/59/5/788 http://rc.rcjournal.com/content/59/5/788
  - lostcolony 5y ago
    So the treatment of symptoms, in general, leads to some really inconsistent results, as it's really hard to measure them. Some studies have definitely found guaifenesin to not be helpful (others have), but the way all of them measure it is...questionable. Ultimately, what a user wants is a subjective experience of "I feel better", but what is being tested for is stuff like "what concentration of inhailed capsaicin leads to them coughing". So generally my take is "hey, this is what it's been found effective for, and it's generally regarded as safe to take. Is it going to help here, for you, in this situation? Who knows! Give it a whirl if you got the money and want to try".
tshaddox 5y ago
DXM doesn’t actually suppress cough either, right?
- hammock 5y ago
  According to whom?
- lostcolony 5y ago
  Sort of! There isn't consistent evidence that -any- antitussive is more effective than placebo. A majority of studies show a statistically significant result for DXM, but not all, and they aren't fully replicable which definitely calls it into question. But that's true of every purported cough suppressant, and there's understandable reasons for that; coughing is a voluntary response to irritation, so there's definitely a lot going to determine whether you cough or not on beyond a purely autonomous system response. Plus there's not really much clarity in how to measure improvement (reduction in frequency may not actually be a reduction in irritation; reduction in severity is hard to measure. Etc). So, really, for a given incident, try it, see if it helps. If it does, great, if it doesn't, stop taking it.
fpgaminer 5y ago
NyQuil also contains alcohol and pseudo (in some formulations). My pet theory is that NyQuil's biggest effect is simply to make you mildly "faded" so all your symptoms are more tolerable. DXM, the antihistamine, the pseudo, and the alcohol are all drugs that would definitely do that if taken in larger doses. While NyQuil doesn't have those larger doses, the combination of all of them may amplify the otherwise weaker effects into a general buzz/haze that helps you go about your day/night.

542458 5y ago

In Canada you can find cough & cold medications in both the Phenylephrine and Pseudoephedrine formulation, often under near-identical labels (IIRC one can buy "Tylenol Cough and Cold" with either active ingredient, for example - carefully checking the label is the only way to tell). I didn't realize there was a difference until one day after running out of Phenylephrine-based medication I bought the Pseudoephedrine-based one - it was a night and day difference! Now I tell everybody with a cold to check the labels and buy the good stuff. Interesting case study in being able to sell a low-quality product (one of the most important active ingredients doesn't work!) side-by-side with a much better product and most people won't ever notice that one is better.

JPKab 5y ago
In US, same deal, but you have to show your ID at the counter to obtain the pseudophedrine version. Phenylephrine is so useless. Nothing worse than getting to a store after pharmacy hours and being forced to only get the useless garbage.

joezydeco 5y ago

Original NyQuil also had a healthy shot of ethyl alcohol in it. Exactly the thing you weren't supposed to mix with pseudoephedrine.

sva_ 5y ago
I believe you're just not supposed to drink alcohol on Pseudoephedrine because you'd be combining an upper with a downer, and it's very easy to go overboard with the downers when you're on an upper (tolerance to alcohol increases dramatically and increases overdose risk along with all the other side effects and risks.) So a small amount of alcohol won't really have much of an effect, I'd claim.
- joezydeco 5y ago
  In my experiences with old NyQuil it was enough to make you drowsier. And getting to sleep was the primary objective of NyQuil. Back in my college days you could replicate it with one 30mg Sudafed and a shot of Jagermeister. =)
  - sva_ 5y ago
    > NyQuil I don't know about this medication in particular (since I don't live in the US), but I see it contains DXM (dextromethorphan), which is a dissociative (such as ex. ketamine), which probably causes the effects you described. I'm seeing it also contains acetaminophen, which probably makes it hard on your kidneys, if you take too much, so that is probably why people don't abuse it more (I guess or hope).
    - genewitch 5y ago
      in the US Robitussin DM is the one you get if you aim for disassociation(?) - NyQuil is explicitly a sleep aid with some other stuff mixed in, I'd have to go dig a bottle out but i think the active ingredient is an anti-histamine (diphenylhydramine i think) - as a sleep aid, mind you. It is true that NyQuil used to have alcohol, and didn't have DXM or acetaminophen. If the liquid you are looking at is Orange, that's the "daytime" stuff, and that's overpriced garbage. One could buy generic "tussin DM" (or pill form of dextro), mucinex (for guafenasin), and benadryl (or generic diphenylhydramine) to get the same usefulness that a bottle of liquid NyQuil has.

mise_en_place 5y ago

From what I've read, d-amphetamine[0] was the decongestant of choice for much of the 20th century. It's just that the counterculture weirdos were abusing it and that led to its restriction. Compared to pseudoephedrine its way more useful with minimal side effects like drinking a cup of coffee. [0]https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/04/the-lost-world-of-benzedrine/255904/ https://www.theatlantic.com/health/archive/2012/04/the-lost-...

nimish 5y ago
Counterculture weirdos and Paul Erdos
erosenbe0 5y ago
That's dangerous to think it's the same as coffee. You can have a daily coffee when pregnant but we don't know about a daily dl-amphetamine. Not even close to the same side-effect profile. Coffee doesn't dilate your eyes, for starters. It's just not the same as a dopaminergic
- astrange 5y ago
  Dexedrine is a normal ADHD medicine so this has been studied and it seems fine. eg https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1087054719896857 https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1087054719896857
  - erosenbe0 5y ago
    This is really good news but hardly a comprehensive meta analysis over thousands of infants.
    - astrange 5y ago
      Well, it's not the only study, it's just an example. I think it was already generally considered safe but doctors were worried it might be passed on through breastfeeding.

Damogran6 5y ago

Didn’t they also drop the alcohol percentage? It’s 10% now (I know this because post Covid I seem to be catching EVERYTHING), I could have sworn it was 14% or higher growing up.

InCityDreams 5y ago
- tptacek 5y ago
  Eschew flamebait. Avoid unrelated controversies and generic tangents. https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html https://news.ycombinator.com/newsguidelines.html
djrogers 5y ago
This may be regional, but it's been 10% here for as long as I can recall - although the alcohol free version is much more prevalent than it used to be.

fullstop 5y ago

This works for one or two nights with me, and then it feels like I've built up a tolerance to it and I think that it actually keeps me awake. I'll use it if I have a cough which keeps me awake, and, if I time it right, I'm pretty good at recovering within a day or two.

munificent 5y ago
Yes, I have the exact same response. If I take it more than a few days, I'll get a rebound effect. My strategy is to take it full strength for a day or two and then taper it off gradually for the next few days after that.

nostromo 5y ago

American law is so disjointed. On one hand, we're decriminalizing drugs. Pot is widely legal now. Other states are allowing mushrooms and LSD. Cocaine and heroin are not legal, but have all but been decriminalized on the West Coast. Meanwhile it's harder than ever to get pain killers from your doctor, even when you have a demonstrated need for them. Same with ephedrine -- a very useful drug -- it's very difficult to get even when in need. And if you mention enjoying tobacco products, you're treated as a leper. I wish we had a self-consistent view of the issue.

coward123 5y ago
>all but been decriminalized on the West Coast. There's talk that WA is going to introduce a bill in the next session to completely decriminalize.
rangersanger 5y ago
I just finished reading The Urge: Our history of Addiction. If you're interested in some background on how we got here, the author does a great job of laying out the historical, legal, and social constructs that have resulted in the inconsistent mess. https://www.harvard.com/book/the_urge/ https://www.harvard.com/book/the_urge/
noobermin 5y ago
There is probably some truth to this but it is worth noting the opiod epidemic is largely why it's hard to get pain killers now. A few of the pharma companies have settled that they sort of knew people were taking them from pharmacies and selling them on the black market.
ianai 5y ago
“Cocaine and heroin are not legal, but have all but been decriminalized on the West Coast.” Citation needed. Never heard this before now. Or is this just some California thing?
- svnt 5y ago
  In several cities they are now citations. You may get a fine for possession but you will not be arrested. In Portland for example the ticket is around $150, which is about the same as the fee for an expired vehicle registration. This change in policies has basically stopped enforcement. As you can imagine it is not a profitable practice to ticket the unhoused.

lkxijlewlf 5y ago

Probably would be better to take two shots of whisky, a teaspoon of honey and a shot of Afrin in each nostril[0]. NyQuil isn't what it used to be. [0] Careful, you can easily form an "addiction" to this med.