Addiction, Recovery, Relapse: The Heroin Crisis' Dirty Little Secrets

[Silhouette]

When people are arrested, or otherwise enter drug treatment, the #1 problem is relapse. And the #1 reason people relapse is from influence of old drug contacts keen to keep their own addiction going. Often this is driven by a desire for petty selling to their old "party buddy". What I mean by petty-selling is being fronted a larger amount by middle dealers, carving off most of it for sale to "friends" & then the active addict reserves a free dose or so for his own use. Sometimes it's merely the romance of partying interrupted by the threatening reality of the notion that someone can actually get sober. And other reasons.

Bottom line is that the demon that runs addiction in active addicts' minds becomes highly agitated & influential when one of the drug clan tries to get clean. Because of the immediate destitution heroin addicts sink into, because no one will hire them, their addiction drives them to any level of coercion or depravity to make sure their supply is uninterrupted. When addicts begin the steep slope of losing everything, the worst accelerator for the downward spiral is losing sober people who used to care about them. So being human, they seek out the only company that will still hang out with them. Drug buddies.

This is why relapse is so pernicious. We cannot address the heroin epidemic without understanding all the cogs & wheels that keep it flourishing. If we want all the money we are going to dump into court & law enforcement & detox & rehab to have any bite at all, we must create new laws & policies addressing newly recovering addicts & drug families & petty sellers seeking to derail sobriety of others so they can keep using.

Ideas? I'd especially like to hear from recovering or even active addicts on this topic.

 

[Silhouette]

The Reality of Relapse | Shatterproof

There are both environmental and mental triggers that may cause a person to relapse. Physical triggers include places where someone used drugs or alcohol, the people with whom someone associated at the time of the usage, objects (like a pipe), or even a song or movie.4 Mental triggers may include being exposed to one of the stresses that caused a person to turn to drugs or alcohol, such as a grueling job or a bad relationship.5 They can also be related to traumas including physical or sexual abuse.6 Of course, every person in recovery is different, and personal triggers vary widely.

You can smash a heroin pipe or throw away all your needles. But if an old party buddy is bringing those and the drugs back to your place, shouldn't s/he be subject to harsher criminal penalties? Serious jail time for those caught in possession of substances or devices to use substances in the presence of a newly recovering addict? Especially if all the money was spent in law enforcement, incarceration, court, detox & rehab? All to have some jack-wad come and derail the whole train because he wants his old party buddy/ petty-selling client back?

Let's get creative folks.

 

[RoshawnMarkwees]

Obviously a lot of addicts and dealers on USMB.

 

[Syriusly]

Obviously a lot of addicts and dealers on USMB.

I wish you luck on your battle with your addiction.

 

[Silhouette]

How about instead of sniping, let's get down to brass tacks with the topic eh? For once?

 

[The Sage of Main Street]

When people are arrested, or otherwise enter drug treatment, the #1 problem is relapse. And the #1 reason people relapse is from influence of old drug contacts keen to keep their own addiction going. Often this is driven by a desire for petty selling to their old "party buddy". What I mean by petty-selling is being fronted a larger amount by middle dealers, carving off most of it for sale to "friends" & then the active addict reserves a free dose or so for his own use. Sometimes it's merely the romance of partying interrupted by the threatening reality of the notion that someone can actually get sober. And other reasons.

Bottom line is that the demon that runs addiction in active addicts' minds becomes highly agitated & influential when one of the drug clan tries to get clean. Because of the immediate destitution heroin addicts sink into, because no one will hire them, their addiction drives them to any level of coercion or depravity to make sure their supply is uninterrupted. When addicts begin the steep slope of losing everything, the worst accelerator for the downward spiral is losing sober people who used to care about them. So being human, they seek out the only company that will still hang out with them. Drug buddies.

This is why relapse is so pernicious. We cannot address the heroin epidemic without understanding all the cogs & wheels that keep it flourishing. If we want all the money we are going to dump into court & law enforcement & detox & rehab to have any bite at all, we must create new laws & policies addressing newly recovering addicts & drug families & petty sellers seeking to derail sobriety of others so they can keep using.

Ideas? I'd especially like to hear from recovering or even active addicts on this topic.

Make Every Dose an Overdose

Poison the drug supply. Addicts are childish escapist sissyboys who chose to never grow up. They are our enemies; so are those whose legislation treats such subhumans like "victims."

 

[Silhouette]

Poison the drug supply. Addicts are childish escapist sissyboys who chose to never grow up. They are our enemies; so are those whose legislation treats such subhumans like "victims."

Some of these "subhumans" are real suffering people pal. I know of two of them, severely abused as kids, turned to pain pills then heroin. Classic tale.

Got to know one of them quite well before heroin knocked on his door. Very bright guy. Funny. But his life was so tragic. Drunk father beat the mom pretty much daily. Beat him too. But he still managed to carve a career out until the few people he loved/trusted in his life started to die. Too much pressure from all directions all at once pushed him over the edge. He struggles to get clean but a drug buddy keeps turning the screws to keep him addicted so they can keep profiting off of him coming back for more. Too poor to get away. Doesn't know where to turn even if he did get into rehab. Because he knows the second he's back out, these dirt bags will keep pushing, pushing, pushing him to use.

This is actually the inspiration for me writing this thread. Too many people know (and care about) these "subhumans" for your solution to be anything but infantile and brutal.

 

[Silhouette]

Obviously a lot of addicts and dealers on USMB.

One guy recently here was bragging about being an ex-heroin addict/dealer. Said he dealt mainly to Vietnam Vets. I'm sure there's a few people out there. Tell you what, y'all can use third person.... "I know this guy who..." Fine with me. Or just report accounts of people you know struggling with heroin, sobriety, relapse etc. This is supposed to be a problem solving thread. And the best way to get to the root of any problem is to listen directly to the trenches.

 

[The Sage of Main Street]

Poison the drug supply. Addicts are childish escapist sissyboys who chose to never grow up. They are our enemies; so are those whose legislation treats such subhumans like "victims."

Some of these "subhumans" are real suffering people pal. I know of two of them, severely abused as kids, turned to pain pills then heroin. Classic tale.

Got to know one of them quite well before heroin knocked on his door. Very bright guy. Funny. But his life was so tragic. Drunk father beat the mom pretty much daily. Beat him too. But he still managed to carve a career out until the few people he loved/trusted in his life started to die. Too much pressure from all directions all at once pushed him over the edge. He struggles to get clean but a drug buddy keeps turning the screws to keep him addicted so they can keep profiting off of him coming back for more. Too poor to get away. Doesn't know where to turn even if he did get into rehab. Because he knows the second he's back out, these dirt bags will keep pushing, pushing, pushing him to use.

This is actually the inspiration for me writing this thread. Too many people know (and care about) these "subhumans" for your solution to be anything but infantile and brutal.

Cry Me a River, One Named De Nial

Weaklings who use external excuses are infantile, self-obsessed, and vicious. And it's not even an excuse that the degenerate and sadistic preachers who dominate our self-destructive ethics have overwhelmed your escapist friend.

 

[Silhouette]

Poison the drug supply. Addicts are childish escapist sissyboys who chose to never grow up. They are our enemies; so are those whose legislation treats such subhumans like "victims."

Some of these "subhumans" are real suffering people pal. I know of two of them, severely abused as kids, turned to pain pills then heroin. Classic tale.

Got to know one of them quite well before heroin knocked on his door. Very bright guy. Funny. But his life was so tragic. Drunk father beat the mom pretty much daily. Beat him too. But he still managed to carve a career out until the few people he loved/trusted in his life started to die. Too much pressure from all directions all at once pushed him over the edge. He struggles to get clean but a drug buddy keeps turning the screws to keep him addicted so they can keep profiting off of him coming back for more. Too poor to get away. Doesn't know where to turn even if he did get into rehab. Because he knows the second he's back out, these dirt bags will keep pushing, pushing, pushing him to use.

This is actually the inspiration for me writing this thread. Too many people know (and care about) these "subhumans" for your solution to be anything but infantile and brutal.

Cry Me a River, One Named De Nial

Weaklings who use external excuses are infantile, self-obsessed, and vicious. And it's not even an excuse that the degenerate and sadistic preachers who dominate our self-destructive ethics have overwhelmed your escapist friend.

He was raised Christian, went to church all the time with his mom, still believes in God and tries to pray all the time for help in his struggles. So this square peg isn't fitting in your round hole. Sorry.

 

[WillMunny]

I think one of the problems with rehab is that people use that 12-step bullshit as the go-to source when it has a 97% relapse rate, higher than quitting an addiction on one's own without help. I think it's because of their defeatist victim mentality: "Oh, I'm a poor, helpless victim of a disease I can't control so I have to surrender myself to a 'higher power.'" Which is counter-productive because in order to quit a bad habit, it takes ballsy strength, not wallowing in weakness.

Back in my early 20s, when I forever stopped using my nose as a crystal meth vacuum cleaner, I went to one NA meeting and the self-pity I saw was so physically sickening to listen to, I walked out of there halfway through. Yet I've managed to not touch speed in 20-something years now. I did it without help and my personality is addictive enough, if I can do it on my own, so can many others.

 

[Silhouette]

I think one of the problems with rehab is that people use that 12-step bullshit as the go-to source when it has a 97% relapse rate, higher than quitting an addiction on one's own without help. I think it's because of their defeatist victim mentality: "Oh, I'm a poor, helpless victim of a disease I can't control so I have to surrender myself to a 'higher power.'" Which is counter-productive because in order to quit a bad habit, it takes ballsy strength, not wallowing in weakness.

Back in my early 20s, when I forever stopped using my nose as a crystal meth vacuum cleaner, I went to one NA meeting and the self-pity I saw was so physically sickening to listen to, I walked out of there halfway through. Yet I've managed to not touch speed in 20-something years now. I did it without help and my personality is addictive enough, if I can do it on my own, so can many others.

Can't argue against that too much. I've seen 12-step too. But the one good thing about the higher power thing is that many addicts are selfish and self-centered; in addition to have mental weakness. At least the higher power thing makes them look at the possibility that the world doesn't always revolve around them Jerry Springer style.

What do you think about "drug families" and such from the OP? Did you struggle with old buddies trying to get you back on the rock? How did you get around that?

Thanks for posting by the way. Love to hear from people in recovery; all different types.