The real elephant in the room is alcohol is much more destructive and just as addictive than measurable controlled doses of opoids, and also equally if not more destructive than stimulants like amphetamines and cocaine. It’s basically the worst drug in every metric. If every alcoholic got their drinks replaced with MS Contin and or weed, the strain on the health system would be much less. Not to mention all the other negative externalities related to alcohol intoxication.
I say all this as someone who drinks. I am going to ensure my child is aware of all the negatives at an early age and be open to discussion about substances. People either like or dislike alcohol, and the people who like it have no self control. It’s a stupid drug, I wish I was never introduced the way I was.
BilboBargains@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I have a feeling that alcohol will come to be viewed in a similar way we now look at religion. It’s a cultural artefact from an ignorant time. It serves some purpose and there is a basic utility but overall it has a toxic effect. I hear that research is ongoing to find a credible alternative molecule without the deleterious health outcomes.
Western society has a generally incoherent and childish attitude to substances. Some are viewed as evil e.g. heroin but when this drug turns up in a therapeutic setting, it inexplicably becomes medicinal i.e. diacetylmorphine, which is the acceptable face of heroin, used for terminal cancer treatment.
No substance should be viewed as either panacea or disaster. They are tools that we can use when the time and place is appropriate. We ought to educate ourselves and have honest conversations. Prohibition is getting in the way of this effort and it must go. In it’s place we install education, healthcare and hygiene for the mind.
Happy to find a fellow psychonaut. What’s your next project in this area? I am considering a psychedelic voyage to the Netherlands.
Corkyskog@sh.itjust.works 1 year ago
Haha, I am a bit on the older side and basically have took all my trips. I have a hallucinagen stash for every couple years with my wife, but that’s about it. I have tried almost everything at this point.
I would like to take one of those camel desert treks, where before bed you get to smoke opium and then cuddle with a camel for warmth while you sleep. That sounds like the best nights sleep possible… Although it’s relatively weak opiate, opium is supposedly a very unique high compared to other opiates. My uncle did it decades ago and he said it was one of the best times of his life. Unfortunately there are few countries that offer the experience, and a few of them are going through very dangerous internal strife. (I mean the countries don’t support the drug use, they just turn a blind eye)
BilboBargains@lemmy.world 1 year ago
I’ve had a few trips over the years but never used them in a therapeutic setting. My mental health has become more fragile as I’ve got older and I took up meditation over the last year in an effort to improve it. They say that meditation works by stilling something called the Default Mode Network and psychedelic drugs also work on this process in your mind but in a completely different way. The plan is to take a Heroic Dose of mushrooms (people say 5g of dry shrooms) and then do an assimilation session afterwards. The session is guided by an experienced person.
Your camel adventure sounds great but all the camels I met so far have been hella grumpy. I would be worried that they were going to bite me for snoring too much. Well, that’s what my wife does.