• Jake Farm
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    5 months ago

    It is about distinguishing addictive and damaging drugs from useful medicines with a low chance of addiction. You are not going to convince me that the majority of people that have used meth or crack are fine. Where as weed or lsd I would.

    • xantoxis@lemmy.world
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      5 months ago

      I will!

      The majority of people that have used meth or crack are fine.

      Now, don’t get me wrong: meth is fantastically addictive. It’s the most physically addictive drug there is, as far as I’m aware. And the fantastically high addiction rate for first-time users of meth is: roughly 30%.

      70% of people who try the most addictive drug in the world don’t get addicted, and go on to do other things like play tennis or do their taxes or switch to weed instead.

      • Jake Farm
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        5 months ago

        I am not just talking about addiction, I am also referring to the physiological damage it does.

        • areyouevenreal@lemm.ee
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          5 months ago

          While it’s possible to cause significant damage from a single overdose I don’t think it is likely from trying something at a sensible dose once. Most of the time the damage addicts have is done through repeated heavy use.

          • Donkter@lemmy.world
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            4 months ago

            Also, afaik, alot of the damage done by things like meth and heroin are side effects. Like meth gives you psychosis and brain damage from staying up for days and not eating any food. The long term effects of meth, like a rotting mouth and permanent chemical imbalances can take years to manifest. If you want an example see people who take Adderall for years. Heroin similarly stops you from getting proper nutrition because all you want is heroin and it can give you brain damage from a lack of oxygen, which is a side effect of getting really close to overdosing.

            As you’ve said, most people (at the very worst a whopping 70%) try these drugs and continue with their life without getting addicted. It’s very dangerous to stigmatize them cause all it does is make people afraid of getting treatment.

        • BlanketsWithSmallpox@lemmy.world
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          5 months ago

          Trying drugs once rarely does any psychological or physiological damage after one or even a few uses.

          There are few cases where taking certain drugs will trigger the start of people already prone to things like schizophrenia… But it takes a while for legit psychological and physical addiction with few exceptions. Even with the most addictive drugs there are.

    • PunnyName@lemmy.world
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      5 months ago

      Tried meth once. Felt like Adderall. I could see why people abuse it, but I didn’t feel the need.

        • Kampfkrapfen_Backup@lemmy.world
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          5 months ago

          Adderall is amphetamine, the base compound.

          Meth is methamphetamine, amphetamine with a methyl group attached to it, so it’s very closely related to Adderall. That small change makes it a bit more potent, longer lasting and euphoric though.

          But meth can also get prescribed for ADHD and narcolepsia (under the brand name ‘Desoxyn’) in very rare cases where even Adderall doesn’t seem to do the trick. So basically, both substances can be used therapeutically and they both can fuck up your life if you start abusing them, with meth admittedly being more potent and dangerous than regular amphetamine.

          • Clinicallydepressedpoochie@lemmy.world
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            5 months ago

            While there is some credence to this example, we all know chemistry does not work like this. For example, H2O, very good, essential for all life. H2O2, not so much.

        • PunnyName@lemmy.world
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          5 months ago

          Yep. I had an Adderall Rx for years prior, felt almost identical. But I also swallowed it, didn’t smoke or inject it.

        • SharkEatingBreakfast
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          5 months ago

          No it’s fucking not.

          And this kind of thinking is why the local cops raided a clinic my town and why doctors in my town are now scared to prescribe it.

          This is what happens when people stigmatize and demonize legal meds that actually help folks who genuinely need it.

            • SharkEatingBreakfast
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              5 months ago

              I take it myself and have done so for 10+ years, and know the chemistry of it. It’s in the same tree, but it’s absolutely not meth.

              If it were meth, it’d be called meth.

              • areyouevenreal@lemm.ee
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                5 months ago

                Adderall is not meth, but it’s still a form of speed/amphetamine and is still addictive to some neurotypical people. Maybe not as addictive or dangerous, but very much in the same category.

                The reason ADHD people don’t get addicted is because of their altered neurology and the doses it’s prescribed at.

                In fact actual meth is sometimes prescribed to ADHD patients in small doses. It’s called Desoxyn.

                • SharkEatingBreakfast
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                  5 months ago

                  Adderall is not meth, but it’s still a form of speed/amphetamine

                  Yes. Absolutely. But it is not meth, as people keep trying to claim.

        • datelmd5sum@lemmy.world
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          5 months ago

          The umbrella term is amphetamines. And not all ADHD stimulants are amphetamines, as there’s also methylphenidate (ritalin) which is a dopamine reuptake inhibitor kinda like cocaine, except for majority of people a lot less enjoyable.

    • Frozengyro@lemmy.world
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      5 months ago

      Yea, plus many people addicted to that shit end up doing bad things, Rob, steal, sell to kids, etc.

      • PunnyName@lemmy.world
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        5 months ago

        Sometimes, but not all of them.

        And generally, addiction is other issues that we as a society could help with before it becomes those issues.

      • cows_are_underrated@feddit.org
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        5 months ago

        That’s the same with heroin. At some point you’re addicted as hell and have no money left, so what do you do to get that relief from it again? Prostitute yourself, steal stuff and sell it, rob someone. This is literally an endless cycle. You become more addicted so you have to make more money. Since drug addiction imposes a high risk of losing your job and house you have to become somewhat criminal. The only ways out of this are either 1:dying from the drugs, 2: being able to get off of them(what often is literally impossible without help and even if you manage it without a stable living situation(house, job which both are hard to find as an ex drug addicted homeless person) its not unlikely that you start using them again) or 3: finding a place where you can get them for free. One of these places exists in Berlin where heroin addicted can get free medical grade heroin for free.