Which came first? (the pain or taking opiates?)

I am curious. For most of you were you in CHRONIC pain before you started taking opiates, or did you start experiencing pain the first time you felt withdrawal symptoms and feeli like opiate dependance perpetuated the pain?

 

um, i've never had a daily habit, but I sure enjoyed oxys when me or my friends had them. then a year or two after I had some last, I started getting unrelated chronic headaches. I eventually got a script for real oc's (i stress EVENTUALLY), and my attitude about them has changed. I don't see them as the greatest and most panacean drug out there, as I did when I didn't have any. I see them now as helpful in doing my daily activities with less pain, and if I take too much I get dumb and tired, yet somehow I still go through a 4 week supply in just over a week, after sharing with friends . right now I only get 16 - 10mg oc's a month

 

why are you sharing them with your friends?

I am just curious.

 

good question. if it was just for their sake, I wouldn't do it, but I get a personal gratification out of sharing. when I first did oc's the greatest part was the connection I felt to the person I was using with. the oc buddies I don't talk to anymore are still in my thoughts because we had a unique liaison, based on oc's. so sharing helps resurrect that feeling; alone is good too, but when I share them I feel a connection to that person unlike any other, even if they don't fully appreciate it.

also, there are some I know who can never find oc's and thus are in a chronic state of thinking that oc's are an elusive and ultimate good. if I share them, that person might have more of a grounded look on them, or maybe I just whet their appetite and they want them even more. either way, they're grateful.

mostly I just try to expose ppl to oc's hoping that they'll see that all the horror stories are embellished, and based on reckless ppl being stupid or combining drugs. and that there exists a stigma only because the screw ups are seen by all, but the responsible ones quietly enjoy their substance without attracting attention

 

This is a good question and it's honestly hard to remember way back before I started using opiates... but I'm pretty sure I had chronic pain before using painkillers. I could be wrong though, because I take them for other reasons besides pain relief. I definitely had pain before I used them regularly. I may have tried them when I was a teenager to get high or whatever, before I had any chronic pain issues. But I only started using them regularly after having a condition known as epidytimitis, which is a swelling of the epidymal cord. I didn't get prescribed anything regularly, only small scripts of crap like Vicodin or Darvocet, so I had to go to a methadone clinic which helped the pain amazingly but ended up being too expensive ($400 per month).. so I quit going, came off of 70mgs per day cold turkey- holy fuck I don't want to repeat that experience!!! As of right now I am not on anything except what I can find off the street for temporary pain relief, so basically I just have to deal with daily chronic pain. It sucks but I don't really have any other option because I have no insurance and even if I did I've found that most doctors just assume I want to get painkillers to get high on, not for pain relief. :$ I think it has something to do with being young, and the fact that my condition is hard to document. If it gets very bad I may end up trying the clinic again, I'm not sure. It's just so fucking expensive!

 

The makers of Oxy are currently in prison. The FDA wants to pull it off the market, but does not want to get sued.

It's not fair to expose other people to something they will most likely get hooked on.

 

I could not disagree more. It is the essence of "fair" to expose people to a drug in an educated and responsible evironment, allowing them to determine their own attitude about it. it is wholly unfair to tell them they will be addicted to it when you don't know anything about them or their body chemistry. I know some people allow drugs like oxy to take them over, and when these individuals overcome it, they naturally assume that their experience is typical. Then they feel totally justified in informing everyone around them exactly what will happen, as if it's a universal certainty. The extreme cases are the ones we hear about...od's, busts, purdue executives. But the responsible ones don't get seen, on purpose, because they don't want to be confused for junkies. They enjoy their drug, go to work the next day, and live normally otherwise. These actually comprise more of the oxy-usership than the lushes, and it is these sensible folks who won't allow the gov't to shut down Purdue.



its not the drug i'm exposing them to; that alone would be common and debasing. its more an exposure to level-headed and educated drug use. people don't get addicted from a shared bump anyway; to say so would constitute propaganda.

the purdue guys r in prison? from what i've been reading in the news, purdue has been making gains in the market, and eliminating competition. do u have a link or something?

the embellishments about oxy use are worse than the drug itself. its not a new story at all. there have been many drugs which had a real place in medicine and therapy that people got scared of, started cracking down on, and the ill effects of the drug are compounded, mostly due to handing the market over to illegal vendors. mdma is a good example. its only got a bad rep now cuz it was criminalized, ppl started cutting it with shit, and now its hard to look favorably upon.

drugs don't give people a bad name, people give drugs a bad name

 

how is taking four weeks of your perscription in one week sensible?

A woman a few years ago gave me a percocet and after that one time taking it I know if I knew where to get it consistently I would have been an addict. The chemical effects opiates have when you are not in pain have more of an addiction quality than taking them when you really need it.

 

why is it that whenever someone speaks the truth, they get scrutinized as to whether they conform to it? no one is perfect; if I don't exactly conform to it it doesn't make it less true but since you ask: it's not really a four week supply, it's just all I get for a four week period. I was trying to sound dramatic. it's a total of 160 mg for 4 weeks. the lady at the desk even snickered at how little it was when I went to get a refill. anyone who's done oxy knows that's no more than a week supply. I give away 40 of it, and if I get a dose increase i'll give a larger amount away. i've always had an unusally high tolerance for all drugs, so I can't speak for all.

your previous post indicates that you are basing your knowledge on this subject on personal experience more than anything. the only thing you can really know about general drug reactions, is that you can't predict individual responses. That's up to the individual and hopefully that individual is educated about the drug and knows something about his or her own body chemistry.

 

Yeah, 160 mgs for 4 weeks is insanely small.
Honestly, I'm shocked you're willing to share such a small amount.
I'd probably be hoarding that shit.

 

I'm a drug counselor at a methadone clinic and only treat opiate dependant patients, so I know from what people tell me. I my patients hate the person who exposed them or enabled them to use opiates.
I am not saying I know everything by any means, because my background is in non-profit management not therapy. However, I do know what people report to me.

 

lol. yeah for real. I don't share because I'm an altruist, I do it because it gives me a selfish gratification. Not the same kind as if I were to take all of it, but it's not any more unselfish.

you're further proving my point, bella. If you work with those who are desperate enough to get their life back that they're willing to go into treatment, you're only getting a small percentage of the total drug users. It is not inevitable that all who use opiates end up in treatment at some point. Your test samples are very limited; but as far as that type of person goes, you are very acquainted. I just hate to see you putting everyone else under the same umbrella.

 

I see your point and am sorry if I offended you.

 

I wasn't ever offended. If I was going to be offended by that, I'd never be happy, since it's a common thing to see. I didn't intend any ill feeling either

for what it's worth this is my 420th post!
:wank: