[hguhghuff]

Do you feel meth was something that someone said you “should try”, or was it something you chose to do?

Do you think anything anyone had said to you might have prevented you trying it? I’d like to know the words that might stop kids even giving a try once.

[empath75]

Here’s the thing about meth and most other recreational drugs. The fun part is immediate. The bad part is subtle and can take years to be a problem if it ever does.

If you lie to kids about what drugs are like, they’ll never believe anything you say about them.

The reality is that drugs a lot of fun and can improve your life in the short term. People wouldn’t use them if they didn’t. It’s not like you use meth and start looking for black helicopters out your window and you’re horribly dependent. You’re likely to have a great weekend listening to music with cool people and staying up all night talking and then you feel fine in the morning.

Drug dealers are not dangerous criminals and people that use drugs can be really fun to hang out with.

The thing is that gradually it gets less and less fun and most people just quit on their own. It’s only a small percentage that get hooked on any of these drugs (other than opiates) and most of them have extensive psychological and personal problems. Most people with happy childhoods and stable relationships don’t become junkies. Almost everybody I knew in the rave scene who became out of control addicts had histories of abuse and neglect from alcoholic or addict parents.

What it comes down to is this: don’t be an addict, model good behavior, love your kids, be honest with them, pay attention to them, don’t traumatize them with abuse, and it’s very unlikely they’re going to become addicts, even if they fall in with ‘the wrong crowd’.

[TheSpiceIsLife]

Almost everybody I knew in the rave scene who became out of control addicts had histories of abuse and neglect from alcoholic or addict parents.

It is concerning that these people have easy access to substances that cause further difficulties. I'd argue that these people are self medicating in a way that turns out to be a net negative.

I'm not entirely convinced I understand what should be done about any particular circumstance where someone(s) from an abusive background find themselves surrounded by meth users and then become a user themselves.

[empath75]

I think investing money in social services and education and early intervention for kids who are the victims of neglect and trauma and maybe treating addiction like the medical problem it is instead of a criminal problem, so people can get treatment without social stigma.

[tuesdayrain]

I never used meth, but I did a lot of weed and adderall at one point which decreased my quality of life by a significant extent. I think my initial outlook on drugs was shaped by everyone telling me how terrible they are, with almost no explanation why (just drugs are bad mmkay). Eventually I tried weed and found that it made me feel amazing, relaxed, and deeply inspired. At that point it felt like I was lied to and that all drugs are perfectly fine as long as you do them responsibly. What I didn't realize is that doing them responsibly is unbelievably hard and it's really just borrowing happiness from the future. I think I might have avoided them altogether if someone had told me "never do drugs because you'll love them so much that nothing else will be nearly as good in comparison. The things you previously enjoyed will become utterly boring unless you're high". I think it was mostly the adderall that caused that. I'm a month into quitting it all cold turkey and I still feel bored with everything. I'm hoping I just need to wait longer to restore my neurotransmitters because otherwise I completely ruined my life.

[nicoburns]

> I’d like to know the words that might stop kids even giving a try once.

Just be honest about the risks of different drugs, rather than making a big deal out of drugs like cannabis or mdma that are not particularly harmful (and that there's a good chance they will know are not particularly harmful because all their friends are taking them).

Kids will listen to you because they respect your opinion, not because you say particular words. So make sure that your opinion is worthy of respect, and matches up with their experiences.

[skilled]

It was social pressure, and I was pretty much the last person to do it in my immediate circle of friends at that time.

Down the line what helped me the most was advice from grown ups that I had a lot of respect for. It just felt different when someone was saying you have to stop and those people didn't necessarily have a way to know other than to look at you.