Balancing recovery and interest in information contained on this site

[Spare Chaynge]

I see that people who are on this site are clean and sober and still participate on it. How did you do this. Swim looks at all the post and is neutral about most of it. But when it comes to injecting psychedelics that have rarely been injected my disease and obsession return. swim only has 6 months. For some reason swim still has an interest with injecting things like LSD and Mescaline. This is probably because swims normal friends think it is amazing how swim led this crazy life and is now normal. And find the fact that swim has used iv LSD amazing too.

Swim dosent know why he added that but he thought it might help explain this situation anyways the question is how you balance your obsession and interest in drugs and information surrounding them.

[Nature Boy]

SWIM doesn't consider himself to be obsessive about drugs at all any more. He is still actively interested in various substances but there's a lot more to D-F than just an information library. People here discuss various things, some subjects completely unrelated to drugs but it's still fascinating. It's a vibrant community.

SWIM used to talk about drugs a lot more when he had not experimented with several psychoactives he was curious about. Now he's been through some form of all the commonly used recreational drugs so his drug experiences from now on are geared around enjoyment as opposed to experimentation.

[Fight Club]

NIK has been in recovery for 30 months, and will have 1 year continuous clean time next week. He was an IV cocaine user, but attends regular AA meetings as a part of his "program".

Because discussions about "other substances" are generally frowned upon at AA meetings, and it's geographically difficult to find CA meetings in his area, especially ones that fit his schedule, DF provides both support and an opportunity to help others in a way that AA can't.

Sure, some posts can trigger obsession and craving. On the other hand, helping others reduce harm, avoid risky behavior, and provide hope and support are worth those effects, on balance, and for NIK.

[chillinwill]

Originally Posted by Fight Club

NIK has been in recovery for 30 months, and will have 1 year continuous clean time next week. He was an IV cocaine user, but attends regular AA meetings as a part of his "program".

Because discussions about "other substances" are generally frowned upon at AA meetings, and it's geographically difficult to find CA meetings in his area, especially ones that fit his schedule, DF provides both support and an opportunity to help others in a way that AA can't.

Sure, some posts can trigger obsession and craving. On the other hand, helping others reduce harm, avoid risky behavior, and provide hope and support are worth those effects, on balance, and for NIK.

that is exactly how SWIM feels....SWIM has been an IV heroin user for several years now and likes to attend meetings but due to his schedule and the location of the meetings, SWIM can't always attend as many as he would like....therefore SWIM talks to many others on DF about recovery as well as providing support and hope to other people on here....this idea is basically the ultimate message of AA or NA that in order for SWIM to get better, they have to be willing to help others that are in need

[moda00]

Swim feels the same way- she loves being able to share her knowledge with others and hopefully help prevent harm- whether that is in regard to safer injection techniques, help quitting a substance altogether, tips for dealing with ODs, etc. She also has an interest in entheogens and psychedelics which she considers a very separate issue from recovery and addiction, and enjoys being able to participate in discourse on such a wide variety of topics. To me, whether someone is a former addict or not, actively using or not, we all have some basic things in common and it is definitely worthwhile to bring those perspectives together in this type of community. Swim doesn't spend a lot of time on the Heroin or Cocaine forums simply because of her past addictions and the fact she is not currently using those substances, but also finds that she has enough time away from them that occasional posts about them don't bother her or make her crave. She feels that drugs are a part of who she is, but at the same time she doesn't want drugs to be the focus of her day to day life. Being able to explore these issues online, while maintaining relationships and activities not related to using in her daily life, is a good compromise for her.