Comment on This is your brain on drugs
Mk23simp@lemmy.blahaj.zone 16 hours agoIs the line you draw based on the intent of the user or the intent of the provider?
Like, for instance, if someone with ADHD uses caffeine to help them focus better, is that medication? Or, if someone tries a hallucinogen with the intention of opening their mind, is that medication?
Yes, secret third thing, yes, secret fourth thing.
Psychedelics for discovery are different from ones for fun and also from ones for dealing with ptsd or addiction
That said, doping to cheat is maybe recreation, but doping for body modification without attempting to resolve any issues is far closer to a piercing or tattoo than a line of coke imo.
All I was trying to do is draw a very basic distinction between a medical or scientific or clinical pursuit of taking chemicals, and a more “other“ pursuit, which could cover a lot of the more specific examples you have sided, but I think you at least understand the point I was trying to make
homes@piefed.world 16 hours ago
The intent of the provider is irrelevant
For black market hormones, that’s HRT and is obviously medical. i’m not sure I would call the performance-enhancing athlete recreational because they’re not doing it to get high. That’s also medical, but shitty medicine. like I said, it’s not about the source, it’s about the usage.
With your caffeine example, that’s clearly medication. Using a hallucinogen in that manner? That sounds recreational to me. although psilocybin is in the experimental and pre-clinical stages for being used to treat epilepsy, which would clearly be medical.
HikingVet@lemmy.ca 15 hours ago
Psilocybin is also being trialed for certain mental conditions like PTSD.
homes@piefed.world 15 hours ago
exactly. lots of recreational drugs are being tested for medical uses. cannabis is famously being used for a broad range of medical uses.
but my point is that I can take CHEMICAL-X for its intended purpose or for my own purpose, and there’s a difference between the two. one is medication, and one is recreation– and yes it’s possible to take it for a mix of both reasons. whether I get it from a pharmacy or someone at a party is irrelevant.
captainlezbian@lemmy.world 14 hours ago
Ok, but a lot of research chemicals’ intended purposes are opening your mind, and them doing anything helpful is a bizarre off label usage.