A.I.B.U not being on cocaine or smoking weed?

[Drinkwinewithme]

Because everyone and his neighbour seem to be and no one says a word any more. I do not know many who do not take cocaine or weed. It,s all over my workplace- i know those who take it and don't we know when the weekends over, in awful moods.

The smell of weed is everywhere now. By shops , by schools, i can smell on peoples clothes and wonder really if i called the police would they laugh down the phone and suggest they thought it too be legal since lockdown, stop wasting police time?

Because people take drugs and always will and criminalising it helps no one.

Yes they always will - and the more they are available the more people take them. You can criminalise proportionately eg supply, and still offer help to people with addictions.
60,000 people die each year in the U.K. from cigarettes. Thousands die from alcohol (over 7000). Far fewer people die from opiates and some of the more harmful illegal drugs (3000) - because far fewer people use them. Legal = socially acceptable = accessible = widespread use.

Because many drugs are waayyy less harmful than alcohol and if their availability reduces alcohol use then that's a good thing.

No evidence that you’ll have anything other than widespread use of those drugs as well as alcohol. There are additional problems when they’re mixed as well.

Because legality means more tax for govt and reduces gang issues etc massively.

Gang issues and organised crime doesn’t go away. They deal in other things, other drugs, stronger drugs, or just the same drugs without people having to pay the tax.

Because taking a pill at the weekend is better for everyone than getting pissed up.

We are learning the long term effects of MDMA on mental health are huge.
www.drugabuse.gov/publications/research-reports/mdma-ecstasy-abuse/what-are-mdmas-effects-on-brain

We know how people behave when given easy access to intoxicating substances (like alcohol). You’ll most likely end up with people off their face on alcohol, or pills or alcohol and pills. I’ve rarely known anyone who does pills who doesn’t also get drunk sometimes - or at least drinks alcohol at levels that are potentially damaging.

It’s no worse than binge drinking ¯\(ツ)/¯

As much as people claim cannabis is harmless, it has serious negative physical and mental effects. Unfortunately parents in my school community smoke it without a care for the risk to their children from passive smoking. The children come into school smelling of weed and it affects their mood and behaviour. I fill out a care and welfare form and report it every single time, even if it is multiple times for the same child. It’s devastating to see the effects on these children, either from the passive smoking or the neglect from parents too out of it to care for them

Legalisation and decriminalisation hasn't caused that in the places it's been tried.

We already know how widespread alcohol and cigarette use is and they’ve been legal a long time.

It’s comparatively early days. Most people in those places have grown up in a culture of those drugs being illegal. You don’t know how people born well into the future will view those substances once they become as socially/ culturally acceptable as alcohol or tobacco.

I use cannabis in the evenings. Won't be long til its
legalised and even less of a big deal. Never touched coke ever

Well I'm not on either! I have smoked weed in the past but never done hard drugs. A couple of colleagues definitely smoke week, they claim it helps destress. To me, it's no different than a glass of wine.

I know lots of functioning ppl who use drugs regularly and it seems to consume them. Its not a healthy lifestyle and I’m saying that as someone who will occasionally dabble with mdma or coke (like once a year!). The rest of the time I’m sober. Regular users are generally very self absorbed and distracted and they end up building their lives around drugs. It isn’t ok when it becomes a lifestyle. You end up missing out on life.

Those of you who think it's no big deal. I take it you're OK with kids being used to traffic it? And the fucking nightmare that is county lines?

I take it you're OK with kids being used to traffic it? And the fucking nightmare that is county lines?

To be fair people are saying if you legalise it then you remove those problems.

But there’s no evidence that you would. Organised crime will still be there and will still traffic harder substances.

Me and DH don’t do either!

Both hugely antisocial and (especially coke) immoral. There needs to be a massive drive to cut it down and a zero tolerance approach by police.

It stinks to high heaven, and it makes me livid that I can’t go and take DS to play in a public park now without encountering it somewhere. It’s awful.

I am pretty keen to get my hands on some mushrooms and I keep looking for them when out with dog but can’t find them. No chemicals added, no county lines. That’s going to be my drug of choice from now on if I could only find some.

I don't think I know anyone who does coke but then again, maybe they don't broadcast it.

I can't get fussed about weed although I hate the smell but yes, lots of people smoke it.

It seems to be much more popular with a lot of people than alcohol, but then again the price of alcohol seems to have gone through the roof in recent years, so it's probably a cheaper way to de-stress.

I too think weed should be legalised and I think emergency services would be far less stretched, if people fell out of nightclubs stoned on a weekend rather than pissed and wanting to fight the world.

As much as people claim cannabis is harmless, it has serious negative physical and mental effects.

No, it can have. It doesn't always and obviously no-one should be smoking it around others anyway.

Interesting, Duplo - I know someone who did the same in their 70s. I worked with them briefly at treatment service - wonder if it's the same person!

Thought it was very sad - as I did for most of the people I saw. A huge amount of their problems could have been reduced by decriminalisation, proper harm reduction, and proper treatment of addiction. SO many people we saw got their 30 minutes with us in a week - largely staffed by substance misuse keyworkers, but not seeing a doctor or nurse unless on methodone, so only heroin users - and that was it. Without proper support - quick, specially-designed counselling programmes, better funded detox facilities with actual beds available (we frequently sent people hundreds of miles away), help with housing and getting out of existing living situations, less obstructive red tape for obtaining benefits etc when unhoused, safe injecting sites, decriminalisation/legalisation and regulation to lower the amount of dealer-related violence and pimping etc - people will continue to suffer.

(OP, YANBU for not doing either of those things, at all. However, I think recreational drug use should be legalised and regulated properly, with proper open conversations about harm reduction - the way it's drummed into people to drink water on a night out, we should be warning about serotonin syndrome with MDMA use etc, so people are aware of the risks and can make a risk-aware choice.)

I should add I've smoked weed (but it doesn't agree with me) and know lots of people who do - most with no ill-effect, and only with the same frequency I might have a couple of glasses of wine. Some who do it very often and it's affecting their life, the same as someone may be an alcoholic.

Same goes for other drugs - can't anymore due to some meds, but I've taken coke and MDMA in the past, maybe once or twice a year. I'm not 'proud' of myself (that seems to be the usual line on here when you admit drug use) but it's - as you say - relatively normal in a lot of circles. Most people I know who take them do so infrequently, a lot test their drugs first - thankfully easier to get hold of testing kits these days and a lot of festivals/events have testing facilities - and some are excessive users. Just the same as alcohol.

Of course, there are individual risks with each drug but as I said above - if they were legalised, regulated so we could guarantee quality and contents, and spoken about much more openly, we would still have people using drugs but they would be much better informed when making these choices. Criminalising them doesn't stop use, it just makes it more dangerous and more morally questionable.

never really noticed

@WorraLiberty

As much as people claim cannabis is harmless, it has serious negative physical and mental effects.

No, it can have. It doesn't always and obviously no-one should be smoking it around others anyway.

Yes everyone is affected differently but there’s no way of knowing until it’s too late. Unfortunately lots of people do smoke it around others without a second thought for their health. Children and young people are at risk when it is happening in their own home without the power to do anything about it.

YANBU
I have never tried either.
I wouldn't mind smoking a joint and if I enjoyed it I'd probably end up doing it regularly.

but coke? no fucking way.
even prescription drugs don't agree with me: morphine didn't even touch the pajm, tramadol made me paranoid and caused me to hallucinate (I was convinced there was an earthquake, that the nurses tried to steal my bags and that I had lost my thumbs - funny now, was horrible then) and even co-codamol is bad news.

I don't know people who have drug habits or dependency. (or at least I'm not aware if they do)

*pain

not pajm 🤨

@MissConductUS

Cocaine is highly addictive and easy to overdose on. Cannabis is legal in many places and much safer. The two are really apples and oranges.

This isn't entirely true. I have never known anyone to overdose on cocaine and through work (previous job in a relevant field) I know people who use a LOT of cocaine. I know FAR more people who become addicted to weed and use it daily to the point of their ending up unemployed/unemployable and often with a serious decline in their behaviour, parenting, and quality of life. The cocaine users I know mostly use it socially and are able to maintain a normal life during daylight hours, including keeping up an (often good) career alongsife using the drug. I know three people hospitalised due to weed use with psychosis. I know nobody hospitalised for any reason due to cocaine.

I don't use either drug, and wouldn't, but I think people shouldn't be downplaying the dangers of weed. Cocaine SOUNDS more serious but really weed is the life-ruiner.

And yes. It stinks.

That's in your experience, rather than across society though?

Deaths due to cocaine overdose are on the rise esp in women (still fairly low in the scheme of things).

All drugs can be used or misused. In the end.

@Dojacatpaws

Is it really so bad to develop a heroin habit in later life

it's v bad at any age.

@MynameisWa

I am pretty keen to get my hands on some mushrooms and I keep looking for them when out with dog but can’t find them. No chemicals added, no county lines. That’s going to be my drug of choice from now on if I could only find some.

have you tried sainsburys

I've never taken anything. Apart from the illegality, the risk of mental health issues, and the risk of getting addicted, I'd rather spend the money on something lovely.

Glorious clothes or books or music. Something to enjoy over and over. The idea of drugs is just so grubby.

When I was in my 20s, care-free and responsibility-free, partying and clubbing every weekend, I thought everyone was doing weed, cocaine and pills. It seemed like everyone was, it was easy to get hold off and had become so normalised.

Two decades on, and I don’t think like that anymore. I don’t know anyone who does either, and we all love a good get-together and knees-up.

I think it depends on your circle and where you live.

To add - everyone did cocaine, and no-one got addicted. I’m not saying it’s not addictive, but I don’t think it’s the substance per se that’s addictive; rather the person who’s taking it. Just like alcohol isn’t addictive - but the person imbibing may well become addicted.