Many, many people took recreational drugs in the 90s. Where are they now?

[perhapsiwill]

I'm not a drug addict and none of my friends were at the time, we just took Es at the weekend, sometimes other drugs. We all went to work or college, seemed like everyone else did this too. We had a great time, weekends were for dancing and hugging, I didn't get on with drunk people and one night stands and it suited me much better.
I moved away from where I grew up, nice area to another nice area.
When I mention partying in my youth to other mums where I live now, they look at me as if I'm an addict who needs help .
Are they all pretending? There were thousands of us doing this so where are they now? And why do people who never took drugs appear to feel so morally superior? One of the women where I live openly talks about cheating the system financially yet looks at me like I'm scum because I went out and had fun 20 years ago. (And probably once a year now!) I feel that because I mentioned this one evening in a pub I have alienated myself from the local mums.

Hive and Kr1stina keep making statements that I just don't agree with.
Seeing as both of them didn't take drugs, where are they getting these misconceptions from?

What are you talking about? I've said nothing about my own habits here.

And you are quite entitled to disagree with me, it's called a discussion board for a reason.

I've never said anything about why YOU or your mates take drugs. I've no idea , I've never met you. I assume you are telling me the truth.

But please don't extrapolate from your own experience to say that drug are fun for everyone . They are not for many people and their families . Or or the many people damaged by the drug trade .

I'm too young to be a 90s raver but enjoyed getting out of my tree a lot in my 20s, coke, pills and ketamine mainly. Met my husband on a very hazy Glastonbury weekend for example, we haven't done any stuff like that for years, certainly not since having our dd. We do reminisce and laugh about it though.

But kr1stna you are talking about unbalanced, addicted people with serious problems.
But those people were never what this thread was about. This thread was about people who took for recreational fun purposes, years ago. And then basically stopped, and started careers and families.
Why then do you keep referring back to serious addicts.
It's not relevant.

Similarly: Everyone whose ever had a glass of wine is a raving alcoholic with no ability to say no. No, many people can have an occasional drink, thank you very much. Same thing.

i bet you have spoken to more drug addicts than i have this week Kr!istina but people who've taken a pill, smoked some dope, taken coke or ket or whatever- i doubt it.

I don't understand what you don't understand about the OP or why you are derailing the thread with this?

Wow this thread has really gone to pieces. Started off as a lovely trip (wink) down memory lane and has been totally hijacked by born again evangelists, who can only see the world in black and white.

Amazingly; I can know, and even have experience of, bad things happening with various drugs playing a part. My dad was a violent alcoholic but I can still enjoy a few drinks. I still can remember what an amazing time me and my friends had in our raving days .. 1988 onwards. It was mind-bending brilliant, others have explained already. And it was in no way a middle class thing. When acid house took off in London all groups were into it. Black, white, posh, from the council estate, everyone. football hooligans gave up fighting cuz of e's.
Please start your own thread about drug AND ALCOHOL ADDICTiON next time, instead of crashing this.

It's like going on a parking thread and talking about motorway pile-ups.

No I'm afraid this thread asked were all the mums pretending they had not taken drugs.
I answered, no.
I am not evangelical about it, what I do or don't do is none of anyone's business. I really don't mind if people have or haven't. No judgement here.

I've never said anything about why YOU or your mates take drugs. I've no idea , I've never met you. I assume you are telling me the truth.

But please don't extrapolate from your own experience to say that drug are fun for everyone.

So all the people here saying they just did it because it was fun and most of the people they knew who did the same are also fine now are just extrapolating from their own experience, while you are... doing what? Also extrapolating? Except... from zero experience?

But, not everyone did or does take recreational drugs.
People take them for various reasons.
It's not as harmful as people worry about, although like ,Most things in life it does have risks.
Recreational drugs is wider than just illegal drugs.
Just because I don't partake doesn't mean to say I can't have an opinion!

I believe 'extrapolating from zero experience' is also known as talking out of one's arse, incidentally.

I've worked in MH for almost two decades and met hundreds of drug users.

Yes I know what ulcers look like, what gangrene smells like. Known a 23 year old have a stroke. Known a 25 year old amputee wheel themselves out of hospital against medical advice to get a fix. Seen x-rays of needles snapped off in groins. Lost people to overdoses (including a family member).

They're not just doing 'party drugs' on a weekend or smoking weed though which is what this thread is mostly about.

I've seen more alcoholic amputees and more damage done to families by alcohol. Violence, abuse, neglect. Selling the kids Christmas presents from other family members on Christmas Eve to buy cider sticks in my mind. I've seen Wernickes - Korsakovs (alcoholic dementia) in relatively young people. I've seen GI bleeds and known people whose bodies were breaking down to the point they vomited whenever they drank alcohol and then they drank the vomit because it's got alcohol in it. I've seen someone drink themselves to death at 23. Yes, 23.

One substance is legal and embedded in our society. Others aren't. I don't like the nonsensical 'one is alright' and others aren't.

And in meeting hundreds of recreational drug users I have never heard anyone say that MDMA use was anything other than a fun activity which doesn't tend to lead to any problems.

Fallon my DH grew boobs on Olanzapine, he wasn't overweight to start with.

i agree that it's nonsensical to say one is ok and the other isn't.
(Doesn't mean I want to take either! )

But I find people hugely defensive if you don't partake. Like you can't support their right to do so or understand the many arguments in favour of legalisation just because you don't want to yourself!

Exactly. How many deaths and lives ruined because of alcohol? And how many from E and MDMA?!

I'm not judgmental in the slightest in real life about what you do or don't partake in. Can't speak for anyone else here. But there has been a lot of judgement on the thread from the nons.

Unborn - I'm guessing you read my earlier posts about Olanzapine. Don't get me wrong, it's a really effective drug and when someone is floridly psychotic it is brilliant in bringing that down. But like benzos, I don't think it should be used long-term without careful consideration of risk, symptom management and whether alternatives may be possible. Obviously anyone who is prescribed it long term who have no problems and it works for them shouldn't worry and no-one should just stop such a medication without seeking advice from their care team. I've known people take it long term with no obvious problems.

But there are for a significant amount of people, side effects that are extreme. I think with a lot of Psychiatric drugs we'll be horrified in years to come that we (the Psychiatric profession and society) were giving it to people and view it in the same way as insulin coma therapy or giving phenothiazines to the point someone developed Parkinsonian symptoms because that meant it was a 'therapeutic dose'. Political dissidents incarcerated in Russia were given large doses of phenothiazines as a form of torture.

Fallon I agree with you. My old psychiatrist didn't like it for similar reasons.

He was been on aripiprizole (sp) for the past 18 month and touch wood he's been ok on it. I do worry about the long term affects for him though.

I'm happy to judge the drug takers . In fact I have no problem with Judging them at all. I also 'judge' people who drink too much.

If you take drugs you are supporting the drug trade. I understand there are differing levels of nastiness when it comes to the drug trade but even the bests bits aren't great.

I don't suppose I'm that fussed if someone grows some marijuana for there own private use but apart from that I don't think it's ok. Personally I don't want to support organized crime. I guess other people don't mind as long as they are enjoying themselves.

I know drugs are fun and I know they can be harmless - I understand that but I don't want to use them and I don't approve of other people taking them.

I wonder if I'm going to get judged for judging.....

Used to be a massive raver, lots of speed, pills, mdma, acid, mushies, weed.
Of all the friends most now respectable folk with decent careers. 2 have drink problems.

i bet you have spoken to more drug addicts than i have this week Kr!istina but people who've taken a pill, smoked some dope, taken coke or ket or whatever- i doubt it

I'm sorry to have to tell you that lots of people I know take coke and pills, benzos are big here.

I never mentioned alcohol.

I never said anything about my own drug use.

I simply disagreed with the statement made directly to me that " people take drugs because they are a lot of fun " .

I'm sure lots of people do, but not all. Lots have no choice.

And I refuted the statement that I was repeating what my mother had told me, which is pretty unlikely given that I grew up on care and only met her a couple of times.

And responded to the charming Klaphat who said I was taking out my arse. Although when people are reduced to personal attacks I assume they have run out of logical Arguements.

Offtotown you sound like a right laugh.
Can I ask what your objection to recreational drug use is? Is it only the drugs trade?
May I redirect you once again
"Ooh what about funding the drug industry" bullshit. Legalise it and let drug use fund the state through taxes. If you insist on keeping it illegal, don't be so fucking surprised that illegal operations supply the market and don't be ridiculous trying to guilt users for "funding drug industry". It's not the users' fault that criminals are allowed to operate the industry. It's the legislators'.

It is very difficult to live entirely ethically and I imagine you support some kind of suffering through your purchases along the way.
Do you Eat meat ? You are destroying the rain forest. Buy cheap clothes? You may be funding child labour.

Now can we go back to reminiscing about the good old days .
'I fuckin love you'

Organised crime generally centres around what people want but can't access legally or it's out of their financial reach.

That's why it's usually around illicit substances, firearms, human trafficking (modern slave trade and sex working) and fake expensive items.

Make what people want legal and accessible and the organised crime element has nothing to do.

Obviously not in terms of human trafficking which abuses and exploits other people. But capacitous adults choosing what to put in their own bodies with knowledge of potential risks?. Fine in my view.