we are a nation of drug addicts

We are a nation of drug addicts. From the 5 yr old on Ritalin, to the grandma on Valium, the trucker on 'uppers' , the baseball player on steriods. Half of us are on diet pills, the other half on mood elevators.
And those are just the legal drugs.
We are a country of "dopers".
As this famous Dr. said, and I wish I could remember his name, "Drugs are a temporary solution for the lifelong responsibility for taking care of ourselves".
The drug companies love us.
If you're going to eat that greasy garbage, take Prilosec first. Now that is totally insane.
Prilosec is worth 11 million dollars a day, as per The Big Fix, by Katherine Greider. What is common sense worth???
Can you imagine telling a friend that can't sleep to smoke a joint to relax?
That's horrible, that's dope, that's illegal!!! But here, take this Valium.
Don't point your finger at marijuana smokers, the pills might fall out of your hand.
The drug companies love us.

you bitch but offer no solutions

I only take medicine if I have to.. I only take advil if I have a really bad headache. It upsets my stomache a little and bothers me. I don't really like taking pills or drugs or anything like that.

"The Spiritual Medicine for Many Illnesses."

Just for today:

I will not rise to anger.
I will not succumb to worry.
I will give thanks for my many blessings.
Iwill apply myself with dilligence.
I will manifest compassion for all beings.

You don't need a prescription, it isn't illegal, and you don't need a leap of faith.

You know what? I really get sick and tired of people who say those who are on psycho-affective meds like prozac, paxil, or ritalin really don't need them. :bnghd: They keep saying if only these people would control themselves or "have the right attitude", they won't need to be "doped up."

I've suffered from severe depression and social anxiety disorder since I was 16 years old. Depression is an absolute living hell. You feel hopeless, guilty, and can't enjoy anything. It affects your ability to be productive on the job and makes just getting out of bed a struggle. You can try all you want to elevate you're mood but because of low seretonin levels in the brain nothing except therapy and medication will work.

I've been hospitalized twice and last year attempted suicide. It took a long time, but I found an affective combination of meds and it's a difference between night and day. For the first time in years, I actually feel normal again.
I can't say I still don't relapse, especially when I'm stressed out. But if it wasn't for the Wellbutrin, Effexor, Klonopin, and Lithium I take, I would possibly be dead right now.

For me, it's not a matter of getting a quick fix, an emotional crutch or a "high,"
but whether I'll have a productive life or not have a life at all.


[edit on (4/2/0505 by nirrti]

I am bipolar and without my meds I am a mess...I either go manic, or severly depressed. I am thankful every day for my meds, and often think how if I had been alive 200 years ago I would have been locked u in an insane asylum. I think some meds are overprescribed, but for those of us that truly need them, they are life saving.
Nirrti, I am also on wellbutrin and it is the best anti depressant I have been on

[edit on 2-4-2005 by jadestonedoll]

Originally posted by nirrti
... if it wasn't for the Wellbutrin, Effexor, Klonopin, and Lithium I take, I would possibly be dead right now.

I'm not in your shoes, so can't speak to your particular situation with any acuracy, but we've only had these designed drugs for the last few decades. That means that humans suvived and prospered for 99.99% of our history without them. I suffer from severe depression and social anxiety as well (or used to), but I treat them with the one of the oldest, most widely used, and benign substances that nature has provided to help with this kind of thing.

The difference between my choice of drug and those you have been instructed to use are that my drug doesn't make Pharmaceutical companies rich. No Doctor or big business made a buck off of me by encouraging me to become dependant on something THEY say I need. Don't you know that the first step in marketing a product or a service is to generate a percieved need for it?

nirrti, with all due respect, there is probably not much profit in making you well. How much $$$ each month do you (or your insurance company) have to lay out for those meds? If they cure you, that stops doesn't it?

Originally posted by T Mystic
"The Spiritual Medicine for Many Illnesses."

In my previous, I ment what I said, "many", not all.
Every day I see so many people angry about insignifigant things, upset over what they thought they heard as opposed to what was really said, and expecting a rotten day right from the get go.
The there are the millions who hate going to work every day and wish away 5/7ths of their life. Yesterday I heard someone say that they wish they had every monday off so that they could actually enjoy their sundays...
I believe that modern society is responsible for much of the anxiety and upset that we as a culture experience. People have lost value to those around them and in place we have set up personal relationships with the one eyed god of the cathode ray tube, be it the PC, TV or video games. We are constantly bombarded with examples of what we should be/have. Be rich, famous, beautiful, drive the hummer and park it ina big garage and that will provide happiness etc.
I have read of many instances where those suffring from mental illnesses were helped, some even relieved of all their symptoms from meditation or other spiritual practice.
Again, withrespect to those who need meds to get thruogh theday, you have my compassion. I just think that we have created much additional suffering that isn't innate.

BTW, don't forget about nicotine and alcohol, the 2 most abused drugs in our society...

Kids, you shouldn't smoke meery-jee-wanna, M'kay.
Merry-jee-wanna is bad, M'kay.

I think that lynomor was just illustrating the hipocracy in American attitudes towards illegal substances:

Don't point your finger at marijuana smokers, the pills might fall out of your hand.

very poetic.

Originally posted by Susquehanna

BTW, don't forget about nicotine and alcohol, the 2 most abused drugs in our society...

...and caffeine. Is caffeine a drug? Are you addicted? You are a drug addict!!! Welcome to the club!!


[edit on 4/2/05 by poonchang]

yeah, thanks poon, how the heck did I forget about caffine?

~runs to get coffee fix~

this is an interesting thread.:w:

the point of cafeen and nicoteen(cigarets) being drugs is apsolutely correct. personaly i am addicted to both. i got hooked on smokeing dureing high school. that's what i get for listening when teachers were trying to tell me how to fit in. my bad.

as for caffine well i prety much only drink coke now. i started because it was something that tasted good and was cheep. i used to like milk but that was far too expensive to drink a lot of. any more i find i only realy like chocolate milk, hmm chockolate has caffine dosn't it.

on the other hand i have smoked canibus. i smoked a lot. then stopped several times yet i don't have a "need" to smoke it. gee and it's illigal:shk: kinda makes me wonder about what is illigal and legal. we have millions who are adicted to alcohol. a drug that kills braincells and can cause much violance and problems in society. a person high on pot is not wanting to hjave conflict, in fact a person high on pot will likely just tell you to leave because you are bothering them, if they just don't try to ignore you . hmm and pot is illigal? personaly i find the "high" from pot much nicer than the "high" from booze, not to mention that drinking tends to cause hangovers witch are misery in themselves, pot doesn't. so why is booze legal and pot not? woldn't pot being legal and booze illegal make more sence?

society has always blasted the use of illigal drugs, and yes most illigal drugs are very bad for you. but at the same time we use many "proscibed" drugs every day. heck i call my mother a walking drug store. if it wasn't for many of these "drugs" she would have died years ago. this is a good thing but at least one of these drugs has a bad side effects she has to take stomach medication because at least one of them causes severe acid reflux. so thats yet more drugs she is on. also she is on a wonderfull med that's side effect has caused her to go from a "normal" size (skiny) to a "fatso" this causes her to be a bit depressed (gee i don't know why) especialy as some tend to point to her and comment about the need to diet, as well as pointing out to children why they should eat healthy. she always tried to be a healthy eater. heck i always ate lots of "fattening foods" and i am skinny. so thats yet more meds she is on. i wasn't kidding about the drugstore comment she takes at least 10 prescribed pills a day. medicine that keeps her alive and medicen to deal with the side effects of the other medicine.

we are a doper society. we have weight loss pills, alcohal, tobbaco, depressants, uppers, vitamins, steroids, anti gas, anti acid, pain killer, pain supresants, go to your doctor with something and you will get a med for it. how did humans manage to survive before we had drugs? oh thats right we had "herbal" remidies. gee we are a species of druggies

I smoked pot for many years...if you want to see the difference between a mentally ill person off their meds and smoking weed, read some of my posts from a year and a half ago, and compare them to the ones where i stopped smoking and started taking my meds again...don't get me wrong, i loved smoking weed, but i finally realized that i was a paranoid wreck and landed in the psych ward. Just because someone has "the blues" or they can't find the right relationship, or whatever excuse, I don't think they should go on psychiatric drugs, but for someone with a serious illness such as bipolar or schizophrenia, they are a must. I have seen many posters on ATS who I think are candidates for medication.

[edit on 2-4-2005 by jadestonedoll]

Originally posted by drogo
we are a doper society. we have weight loss pills, alcohal, tobbaco, depressants, uppers, vitamins, steroids, anti gas, anti acid, pain killer, pain supresants, go to your doctor with something and you will get a med for it.

Exactly, makes one wonder if maybe it's a conspiracy of the major drug corporations...

Now I don't use drugs, just weed.

Damn, I'm such a liar. The only drugs I use are the illegal ones. Why use one of those dangerous psychotropics when you have good old hallucinogens like shrooms and '___'? Just remember: candy makes you dandy.

I like medicine, medicine helps me get through...

Originally posted by nirrti I can't say I still don't relapse, especially when I'm stressed out. But if it wasn't for the Wellbutrin, Effexor, Klonopin, and Lithium I take, I would possibly be dead right now.

Wow. I'm suprised you aren't dead now. Lithium? Talk about medieval.

Don't get me wrong. My husband was a heroin addict. Because of that he developed (so they say) depression and bi-polar disorder, and now ADHD (cough). Now he is a methadone addict. Methadone is the government's legal way of keeping heroin off of the streets. Oh, sure he gets his group counseling, as well as one on one counseling, but drugs are drugs, no matter which way you cut them. At least he doesn't run the danger of getting a "bad bag".

Thanks to his run in with the street drugs, my husband has introduced me to stress levels unbeknownst to the common man. I have dealt with the most heaviest of burdens as he went through withdrawal, acceptance, and now "treatment".

I never once leaned on Paxil, Xanax, Lithium, Kolonipin, Valium, Wellbutrin, Zoloft, etc. I did not need alcohol. I did not need a joint to sleep, or a line of coke to start my morning. Know what it was?

Perserverance. Strength. Something many lack. We are becoming a world of wimps.

Soon people will not go outside without taking their pill to:
Wake up.
Face their fear of showers.
Eat something, but not too much, and then curb the fat while it's there.
Stay alert.
Make it through the work day without becoming depressed.
Appetite suppresant for the after work snack.
Mood enhancer to deal with the kids.
Something to chill you out to sleep at the end of the day.

Oh, and don't forget:
Pain pills for tennis elbow, runner's shin splints, headaches, stomach-ache, ear ache, hair loss, hair gain, discharge, dryness, lack of tears, dry mouth, drooling.....

*sigh*


I quit smoking 2 years, 2 months, 6 days, 17 hours, 17 minutes ago. I am still a caffeine "addict", I suppose. And off on another thread is all of the addictive chemicals in foods that we can't stop eating.

But seriously, learn to cope on your own. Get off the junk. Sheesh.

For me, it's not a matter of getting a quick fix, an emotional crutch or a "high,"
but whether I'll have a productive life or not have a life at all.


[edit on (4/2/0505 by nirrti]

That is your understanding. Although, with the right positive redirection and internal reform everything is possible. Don't believe? U2U me and ask me a question that you cannot understand about your conditions. I am only as sincere as you believe, and believing is what makes it all possible. AAC