Do you or do you know others who take cocaine?

[clairemcnam]

I have been surprised reading here about people talking about taking cocaine. I don't know anyone who does and I never have. I have never been offered coke either. I know two people who used to take cocaine, but both of them say they used to take everything going. But apart from them, no one.
What about you?

I used to and it was a big part of my life once. Haven't touched the stuff in 15 years and don't like to think too much about the danger I put myself in. I know a few people who still do it, couples in their forties and honestly think it's rather pathetic. They act like gobby entitled arseholes when they're on it and flounce about like they're still cool, glam young things in their early twenties. It's embarrassing.

Coke use is massive amongst the under 35 nursing staff in the hospital trust I work in. No idea about doctors. I have no interest myself.

My dsis says plenty of people use it at the weekend from her school. They’re 15/16. She avoids parties and sleepovers now.

WillGym I am not wrong then, none of my friends or family take coke.

I never have and never would. No one I know has admitted taking it and to be honest I would judge them massively if they did.

Used to do a lot. Can't take the comedowns/aftermath now, my friday nights are boring as shit but my sunday mornings are amazing!

Never taken it, not my thing at all.

Know several who have, and sadly can now identify if someone is coked up just by seeing/hearing them.

Horrid drug, horrid consequences of it.

Tired it once in my 20s. Wasn’t particularly impressed, never done it since.

In my social circle I’d say around half of my friends used to regularly use it (as far as I know they don’t anymore since becoming parents / hitting our 30s) and the other half would never take it. Both groups are accepting of the other’s stance and have remained friends for years.

DH used to take cocaine most weekends throughout his 20’s. He reduced it significantly when I said I hated being in his company when he’d taken it, and now we have DD he has pretty much stopped, although admitted he had a couple of lines on the first night of a stag weekend recently. His choice, although I’d be annoyed if he had been coming home to us the next day.

Where I live it’s pretty prevalent and accepted, or at least widely known about, by the majority of people I know up to their mid 40s. My parents and their peers (50s-60s) would be pretty shocked though I think. I’ve certainly never discussed it with my parents, they are pretty anti-drugs and it would be a different world to them.

My own personal opinion - I choose not to bother myself and don’t enjoy the company of those under the influence of it. Can’t get too worked up about the effects of the drugs themselves though - the health risks are a personal choice and I certainly don’t think it’s the massive deal it was made out to be when we were all told to “just say no” as kids. However there is obviously a big moral and environmental aspect to consider (which i think is easy for a lot of people to ignore as it doesn’t affect most of us directly). Personally I think legalising and regulating the use of recreational drugs needs to be considered.

I used to and 2 of my grown up DC do, occasionally. I'm not happy about it though.

Yes plenty. I grew up in a fairly liberal, artsy town so I guess it was a bit normalised. DH grew up in the South West and is a lot more shocked by recreational drug use than I am. (Neither of us do though.)

Funnily enough, pretty sure my parents did and do more drugs than me.

I'm shocked at how common it has become, for reference I don't live in a posh area. I live in social housing in a small Scottish village, the people I know who use it are working class.

My niece was using for a while. She was an absolute mess, ended up seeing a psychiatrist who was unsure if it was mania. On her comedowns she would lash out physically and verbally to the point my sister threw her out. She is like a different person now she is off, you can actually have a conversation with her and she has mended a lot of family relationships.

I know some older people who take it too.

I think it must be fairly cheap now if people can afford to take it regularly.

Know lots who use it.
I have in the distant past, but not for years. Come downs and menopause don't go well together.

I tried it once 2 years ago, I was put under pressure by my ex, he used to constantly belittle me because I had never tried any drugs. It was horrible. About 20 minutes after I had taken it I had an awful taste in the back of my throat and an urge to gag, I didn’t feel sick though. He told me to chew gum which took the taste away. Then I started feeling panicky, really panicky like my heart was going to explode, I started shaking and couldn’t sit down because keeping still seemed to make the anxiety worse. We ended up going for a 3 hour walk until the worst of it had worn off.
What freaked me out the most was when I took it I was starving, within 15 minutes my appetite has vanished.
I spoke about this with my therapist and asked why it had that effect on me, he said it was because I didn’t want to take it and suffer anxiety. I’m quite highly strung without drugs, cocaine made it worse.
He and his friends are all early 30’s and regularly use.

Never taken anything I have never even tried a cigarette,

To be honest I really have never been around any of that kind of stuff, none of my friends ever did anything either, I don’t actually have any friends that smoke either!! 🙈😂

Yes I’m obsessive and get quite addicted quite easily - very habit prone etc, and I also suffer from anxiety. So drugs would be a bad idea for me.

I'm totally middle class. Took ecstasy, speed and acid as a teen but never cocaine. Have a few friends that dabble with it now and they all have kids, responsible jobs etc As already mentioned it generally seems to turn perfectly nice people into arrogant nobs!
I barely drink these days!!

Yes but less so now, read a lot on the industry behind it, largely created by criminalisation. Plus it’s expensive for a high that’s over pretty quickly. About half in my social circle take it. It’s rife at parties, as are other drugs. I’m an advocate for legalisation of most recreational drugs, but that’s a whole other conversation!

Once met a man whose mother was addicted to cocaine when he was a young boy. She used to take and bring him home from school coked off her face, and the gak turned a very friendly, gentle woman into a very aggressive, paranoid, even violent creature. In the end, she collapsed when her liver cried enough from her abuse, and nearly died. She got clean and recovered, and is completely remorseful about her behaviour when coked up. She told her son she never meant to become addicted and potentially die, but then that's true of all cocaine addicts? Quite chilling how an 8 year old boy nearly lost his mum when she was just in her 30s...……...

I used to take coke pretty much every weekend in my early twenties. I wasn't addicted as some would say. I could stop it whenever I felt like it but I enjoyed it.

I haven't, but according to my 19yo DS it's rife amongst his friends, really widespread. Naice, middle class town....

Luckily DS stays away from it because he's prone to anxiety and doesn't like the effect it has on his mates.

Those saying that they don't know anyone who takes cocaine.. I'm afraid you probably do, you just don't know they take it. It's ridiculous the amount of people that are taking it either regularly or just occasionally.
I've never touched it but I know it's far more common than people realise unfortunately.

LucyLOu Maybe I do know someone in my broader circle who takes it, but with closer friends we have talked about whether we take drugs or have taken them in the past.

I've never taken anything and never been offered anything either, not even at university in the 70s.

I'm not aware of anyone I know having taken coke.

I have never known of anyone in my social circles / work circles who take or have ever taken cocaine. Most publicly have the opinion drugs are for losers, they might be all cokeheads secretly, but none openly have it in the toilets on a night out!

Generally if you have a good friendship group that don't condone drug taking the losers tend to move on and find people more of their own ilk who think it is normal.

I have never done coke and never want to. I am a nervous, obsessive sort as it is without snorting that muck.

DH works in an industry where cocaine use is rife. He did it a few times before I met him but says he could take it or leave it. Interestingly, now lots of people that he used to work with are dying of heart attacks. Go figure.