Discussion Why are some people so ignorant about drug use?

[nigelhernandez]

My parents and extended family would fit into this category. I guess you could say that they're trying to protect me but still their ignorance is annoying. They refuse to believe that you can be a successful member of society using alcohol, weed, nicotine despite me telling them that many 20yr olds classmates my age do the same thing. They always point to homeless people and tell me that if I use weed, I'll end up on the streets.

Now don't get me wrong, I know drug use can be devastating to an individuals life in terms of homelessness, legal problems, mental health problems, and accidental overdose but those things are mainly reserved for hard drugs like cocaine, heroin, meth, pcp etc...There's a girl in my class who is pursuing a law degree, has good friends, is actually really attractive (a stereotype about stoner girls lol), and smokes cannabis with her mother. She's also tried coke but didn't like it.

But when I tell them this, it just goes into one ear and out the other. Instead of thinking intelligently about drugs, selection bias arises and they think only of the worst examples of people affected by drugs and not the best.

 

[Deleted member 1496]

Maybe they were brought up in an environment where those things were considered shameful or forbidden, so they create reasons why you should never, ever do them. You may never undo their experience.

Instead of thinking intelligently about drugs, selection bias arises and they think only of the worst examples of people affected by drugs and not the best.

If they're pointing to someone as worst case, and you're pointing to someone as best case, I think everyone is doing selection bias! :)

 

[SpareWheel]

Those that haven't tried them, usually believe all the bad stories.

Those have tried them, quite often look for the positive stories.

Whatever fits your narrative basically. Drugs are bad mmmkay, or drugs are amazing wooooooo!

If done in moderation, and relatively sensibly in a decent environment and with decent people, drugs can be amazing - I've had some of the best nights of my life while under the influence of drugs. But they can also ruin lives for those that abuse them beyond just wanting a good time.

You could argue til the Cows come home about whether drugs are a positive or negative thing, and nobody would be 100% correct.

My Mum, anti-drugs, never even smoked a joint despite being a teen in the 70s. My Dad, took LSD, speed, coke, E, weed right up til his 50s. He was also the first person to introduce me to a few, safely. His theory was, I was going to try them anyway (true) so he preferred I did it with him, knowing that the stuff he got was clean/pure and if I did take a bad turn, he'd know how to dissipate it.

Now to a Conservative he'd be a monster for that, but it set me up well. I was always more careful than most where I got my stuff from, or what I'd take and where/when.

I have no illusions of grandeur when it comes to drugs, they can and do ruin many lives. But so do a lot of things when they're abused. You need perspective dependant on what drug is being discussed. I remember the media in England going vociferously crazy when a young girl here died from E in the 90s. As sad as it was, it was one girl amongst perhaps a million clubbers that night who were all on E - these clubs serve alcohol, I'd love to know how many died from alcohol related problems that weekend. But E, baaaaad. Alcohol, good as long as it's legal and taxed.

I don't even bother arguing with people who blindly bleat on about how drugs are a terrible thing, it's always some narrow minded person whose opinion you'll never change - unless you dropped an Ecstacy tablet in their G&T, within an hour they'd likely be telling you they loved you and they'd never felt so amazing. A lot of them are hypocrites too, they'll dismiss cocaine as something horrific, while they hoover up oodles of Dr prescribed tablets they can't go a day without. Some of which can be far more damaging or addictive.

 

[Disintegration]

Drugs effect everyone differently, it isn't as simple as they will ruin or enhance your life experience. It is a very subjective topic, drugs can intensify underlying mental health issues in some individuals and ruin their lives. When parents show concern for their child's welfare concerning drug use and/or abuse, they might have a distorted view of how drugs effect people, but then again, perhaps they are looking out for their best interests and are protecting their child from harm that COULD potentially come from drugs.

In my experience drugs mostly amplify whatever issues you may have, especially on a subconscious level. If you feel emotionally, financially, physically, psychologically unstable, then it may be in your best interest to avoid drugs. It isn't a one size shoe fits all scenario when it comes to drug use. Maybe you soar for a while and feel on top of the world, only to find your adult self, later in life, to be a mental health nightmare, feeling suicidal with no way to support yourself. It happens.... and parents just want to protect their children, not just stifle their freedoms. Sometimes people need to learn the hard way, but the hard way could mean someone might be unhappy for a lifetime.