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My Friend needs help quitting Smack
StormCrow420
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
So Mike is your typical obnoxious metal nerd. Mom's basement. Plays bass. Plays Magic. Listens to Mastadon & Three Inches of Blood. Still lives in the town he went to high school in, not alot of friends, and he has a heroin addiction.
Now I've been clean for over 5 years now, but the worse thing I did while I was using was show Mike how to boot up. Now he is having problems and I need to help.
What worked for me was playing Star Wars Galaxies for 16 hours a day in the summer that followed. That and I got a job working in a pretty fast paced kitchen. You gotta have something to replace it, because for a while after you quit it's all you think about. Hell, I still think about it.
I also told him that getting through the withdrawl is the hard part, that he needs to set aside some free time and just man it out. Coffee, cigarettes, pot, ice cream, whatever you need to do to get it over with. There is also a free clinic in the next town over that he can get help at.
He says he'll go to his mom if he can't quit on his own, and to be honest, he is a little bit of a drama queen and his current problem may not be as bad as he is making it out to be. I got through it myself, and the friend who talked me through it didn't go to my parents about it even though he wanted to, and I'm glad he didn't.
I would really appreciate any advice anyone has to offer about how I should proceed.
Now I've been clean for over 5 years now, but the worse thing I did while I was using was show Mike how to boot up. Now he is having problems and I need to help.
What worked for me was playing Star Wars Galaxies for 16 hours a day in the summer that followed. That and I got a job working in a pretty fast paced kitchen. You gotta have something to replace it, because for a while after you quit it's all you think about. Hell, I still think about it.
I also told him that getting through the withdrawl is the hard part, that he needs to set aside some free time and just man it out. Coffee, cigarettes, pot, ice cream, whatever you need to do to get it over with. There is also a free clinic in the next town over that he can get help at.
He says he'll go to his mom if he can't quit on his own, and to be honest, he is a little bit of a drama queen and his current problem may not be as bad as he is making it out to be. I got through it myself, and the friend who talked me through it didn't go to my parents about it even though he wanted to, and I'm glad he didn't.
I would really appreciate any advice anyone has to offer about how I should proceed.
StormCrow420 on
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Seriously? I mean, I don't want to start a whole pot is bad argument, but don't you think giving an addiction for another is just as bad?
Pot is nowhere near as addictive (or harmful) as heroin. If pot helps a guy give up heroin, then light it up.
edit: please note, I have no idea whether pot helps you give up heroin.
A rehab program is his best bet
But even that might not help him. He has to be 100% convinced he should quit otherwise he won't. Especially if he goes cold turkey on his own. Rehab is the best option in any case.
I'd avoid getting on a treatment program, but in the end it's the best bet for many people. Methadone does nothing but prolong your addiction with the benefit of getting a manageable and steady dose.
If you've been through it you can probably accurately gauge someone's risk level. I'm sure you're aware of the basic levels. Hey, Mike's playing with dope. Hey, Mike's using too much. Hey, Mike's got a problem. Hey, Mike's really junked out. Hey, Mike's stealing my shit. Being an ex user, hopefully you'll be able to take a good guess at where he is and if it's a case of simply taking his mind off of it/wanting to get stoned versus him needed it to keep from getting sick or needing it simply to function on a day to day basis.
Not arguing for it, but I'm pretty sure pot is not addictive.
You could have bolded cigarettes though...
I'd rather smoke a pack a day than run a cap a day.
If he's serious about it, then he'll stop doing drugs altogether. I'm not anti-pot or anything, but heroin addiction is a big deal, you don't want to replace that urge with one that's 'not so bad' you want to remove it completely.
o_O
It's not heroin, but if you think marijuana isn't addictive then you're seriously misinformed.
It's debatable and this isn't the place for debate (not that I'm trying to fakemod here).
However, from what I understand, Serious Business rehab bans anything that is even remotely habit-forming, addictive or not. They won't even let you take chocolate or coffee or cigarettes because they just encourage addictive and habit-forming behaviour. The goal of rehab, I guess, is not to replace one habit with another but to break the cycle of habit altogether.
They try to get you into an active routine to replace habits.
He's not asking what a cold turkey detox routine is like. We all know that. He's asking for ways he could help his friend.
Should have ended at rehab... *shrug*
Delicious irony.
Can trade TF2 items or whatever else you're interested in. PM me.
Agree. Like I said, what worked for me was finding something replace it with. In my case, playing swg and working my ass off in a high volume kitchen. He plays magic, but has resisted getting into magic online (my current addiction) because of the expense. I suggested he get into Warhammer with me.
Rehab is definately an option, but given the size of his habit, I think he can kick it on his own with some help. I don't want to sit back on it to much, but I respect people's ability to solve their own problems. If all else fails, I'll tell his mom.
Thanks for all the good thoughts. Keep them coming.
Yeah thats what I thought. It's fun, but I friggin lived swg in the pre-cu days. War isn't nearly as immersive, that's why I'm thinking getting him into magic online. Hell, I could drop a few bills myself to get him started.
@sheep
I appreciate what you said, I think the will is there for him to quit. And I don't think he is dependent enough at this point to where withdrawl would be a health risk. He is at the point now where it is a daily thing thing just so he can deal, whats preventing him from quitting is having to deal with job/life shit while coming off junk. If he could take a few days to get past the suckage, then slip into a routine, I think he'd be all right.
This needs to be stated and understood. The withdrawal symptoms from quitting heroin can literally kill you. Your friend needs professional help.
Thirded. Heroin sickness is not something where you can make your friend some chicken noodle soup and all will be well.
I really need to get him down to that free clinic. The people there can help him better than I can, I'm on the other side of the country.
Yeah... nothing more emo then heroine addiction.
What's your deal man? Is your friend a heroine addict? What's so "emo" about being addicted to heroine?
Good luck with it. In the end, it's gotta be him.
There is no shame in seeking help. It's better to seek help and succeed than try to tough it out alone and fail.
the "no true scotch man" fallacy.
But the withdrawal symptoms of heroin are rarely ever fatal. You may WANT to die. But most painkillers and their illegal counterparts do not produce fatal withdrawal symptoms. Unlike, strangely enough, alcohol withdrawal. There is plenty of information I can cite to back this one up if anyone really cares.
Personally I think the idea of using cigarettes and coffee and other activities are good. Addiction replacement and all that. It doesn't SOUND like your friend's problem is a serious case based on your description, so he may have an easier time than others who definitely need methadone or treatment.
PSN: TheScrublet
You don't really ever cure an addiction (at least the mental component), you simply replace it with healthier activities.
Generally complications with heroin withdrawal occur in extreme heavy users whose bodies are very weak. The symptoms are only fatal because the body couldn't take damn near anything at that point. It doesn't sound to me like the OP's friend is in this situation. There may be an opportunity here for the OP to leverage his own personal experience to help his friend.
PSN: TheScrublet
Is there any danger in not seeing a doctor?
Granted, if the guy uses only occasionally (though habitually), he can probably quit on his own... but are you really willing to make that diagnosis over the Interwebs?
Yes, it's in the OP's best interest to get his friend to a clinic, especially a free one. But no, I don't think the OP needs to tell everyone this friend knows to prevent an imminent death (thus airing this guy out for possible humiliation in short order).
edit: look just to further clarify where I'm coming from. I've watched my cousin get into a huge oxy habit. He had very severe withdrawal symptoms. Not life-threatening mind you, but kicking it on his own was going to be near impossible. He had to do the hospital, than rehab. I also watched a friend-of-a-friend type do heroin for awhile. After a year and a half or so he realized that he could no longer just quit with no problem, so he did things similar to the OP (he didn't do pot, he used cigs and relied on playing his instrument). It seems to me that the OP's friend is more the second category, and that there might not be the need to call in the heavy guns just yet.
PSN: TheScrublet
Tell him to get some benzos and weed, and power through the terrible week that awaits him after he drops the stuff. Then, hopefully, he'll feel a little clearer and be ready to start making lifestyle changes.
A few other things help withdrawal. Amphetamines can make you feel clear and awake when normally you'd feel foggy, junk-sick, and shitty. Anti-depressants and seratonin precursors make you feel happier. Valerian root interacts with your GABA receptors, like benzos, and helps you get through a day or two of withdrawal.
I've never been hooked on any of those things, but I've binged. I know how much it sucks. But I don't think the dude necessarily needs professional help unless he himself is a professional junkie; it can't hurt, but if he's unwilling, there are other ways to power through it.
I knew a few junkies who kicked smack. I've also known a few who kicked blow, crack, and meth with a little work - it can be done, you just have to adopt a weird Nietszcheian mindset and spend a week good and stoned.
Thanks very much for your thoughts. Exactly my take on the situation. While I obviously want to get my friend to a doctor or clinic, the only way I could guarantee that happens is to 'out' him, so to speak. One of the reasons he came to me is trust. I'm not going to betray a confidence like that unless I'm 100% sure his life is in danger. I certainly didn't need anyone airing my own problems to my family.
I'm gonna give the guy a call tonight and get a better gage of the situation.
and the road to hell is paved with good intentions. I'm not sure if a full blown teareyed come to jesus family intervention is the solution here when all he may need is a few days to get clean.
I'm just saying don't rule out the availability of a support system.