Culture - Life of a drug geek

[riaahacker]

SWIM ever since high school loved to study the effects of drugs on the mind and body. He wants to pursue a career in neuropharmacology after college. Ever since he was a kid he loved science, he studied biology, chemistry, mycology, and some other things and just loved the ability to comphrend the world around him. His interests in neuropharmacology lie in the fact that it is extremely interesting how these chemicals can alter perception in such profound and sometimes pleasurable ways. He loves reading things about drug policy and studies on the pharmacology of a chemical, recreational or not.

SWIM also has some recreational drug use experience. He has used DOB, marijuana, oxycodone, DXM, amphetamine, methylphenidate, alcohol, and caffeine. He used to enjoy marijuana but not so much anymore, it and the stimulants make him too anxious to enjoy himself at times. DOB was a low dose so the effects werent too great, DXM made him nauseous and he just generally didnt like the effects. Oxycodone seems to be his favorite and he plans to use it responsibly and to incorporate into his life.

SWIM's friends and family do not always see eye to eye with him. Whenever he tells them about drug use, they always see it as irresponsible or seem to think inevitably i'll become addicted (especially with oxycodone). It can cause some distress for him as he feels slightly conflicted gaining the disapproval of his recreational joys. I do not see myself quitting the recreational and intellectual sides of drug use and research unless the use becomes problematic which it really hasn't.

All in all, he is happy although conflicted with this sort of lifestyle. He loves what he does, enjoying a nice high and reading through abstracts and wouldn't change a thing, but the disapproval of family and friends can get him on the down side at times.

Any other swimmers experience things like these and is it problematic for them? Would love to know

Reputation Comments on this post:

	good post! very interesting topic, swim feels much the same as swiy
	Very interesting thread idea
	good idea for a thread

[Euphoric]

I think this was supposed to read:

Originally Posted by riaahacker

SWIM does not see himself quitting the recreational and intellectual sides of drug use and research unless the use becomes problematic which it really hasn't.

Anyone else see the irony here? If the use reaches a point where it is problematic, then quitting may not be as easy as SWIY thinks. That's not to say SWIY is using irresponsibly, just that drug use that becomes problematic and is repeated may constitute an addiction.

Originally Posted by riaahacker

Any other swimmers experience things like these and is it problematic for them? Would love to know

SWIM keeps his usage to himself, and other individuals who will not hold it against him.

[riaahacker]

Originally Posted by Euphoric

Anyone else see the irony here? If the use reaches a point where it is problematic, then quitting may not be as easy as SWIY thinks. That's not to say SWIY is using irresponsibly, just that drug use that becomes problematic and is repeated may constitute an addiction.

Indeed, he enjoys it like someone who enjoys a drink every Friday after work to relax. If that is psychological addiction, then he's addicted, but he doesn't intend to let it go further than that, maybe mushrooms for special occasions.

[psyche]

SWIM used to have the same experience, except his family didn't really disapprove. He considered studying neuropharmacology too, and loved to read books and articles about it. History was also interesting as a bigger frame of reference. He has pretty much quit now, though, and now concentrates on normal life without drugs being the center of his attention. He forgat how it feels to consider onesself a normal person who has normal expectations and normal prejudices which are part of him. The massive interest in drugs and neuropsychology made him a little bit outsider, though he doesn't regret those years because there is great insights to be made.

[sandoz1943]

Welcome to SWIMs world. She gets SO tierd of being Jeckle and Hide (Hyde) She is lucky her family all understand her love of psychedelics but her friends often do not.

SWIM is deeply disapointed that her drugs friends mainly do drugs for kicks any insight gained is lost on them. She wishes she had drug friends she could talk to about space, psychics, theology, ploitics, or philosophy. Unfortunatly they end up talking about movies, music, and video games. Most of her drug friends wont even watch a movie if its subtitled. If only there was a way for like minded peopel to meet eachother with out all the cloak and dagger and innuendos.

Hope it helps to know there are other intelligent drug users out there. Its not an oxymoron. Dont let someone elses ideas of what is normal and acceptable define you. As long as you are making educated and well informed choices and the only drawback is feeling like an outsider SWIM says let it be and dont get hung up on it. They most likely never will understand and it is seldom worth the trouble to even try.

Reputation Comments on this post:

	Excellent post SWIM can very much relate to what you say.
	great post swim can definetly relate too

[Bajeda]

Originally Posted by sandoz1943

If only there was a way for like minded peopel to meet each other with out all the cloak and dagger and innuendos.

There is, and this forum is it

[glimmi]

Originally Posted by sandoz1943

Welcome to SWIMs world. She gets SO tierd of being Jeckle and Hide (Hyde) She is lucky her family all understand her love of psychedelics but her friends often do not.

SWIM is deeply disapointed that her drugs friends mainly do drugs for kicks any insight gained is lost on them. She wishes she had drug friends she could talk to about space, psychics, theology, ploitics, or philosophy. Unfortunatly they end up talking about movies, music, and video games. Most of her drug friends wont even watch a movie if its subtitled. If only there was a way for like minded peopel to meet eachother with out all the cloak and dagger and innuendos.

Hope it helps to know there are other intelligent drug users out there. Its not an oxymoron. Dont let someone elses ideas of what is normal and acceptable define you. As long as you are making educated and well informed choices and the only drawback is feeling like an outsider SWIM says let it be and dont get hung up on it. They most likely never will understand and it is seldom worth the trouble to even try.

+1 It's like you read SWIG's mind. SWIG could not have put it better himself. SWIG can't even count how many times hes tried to expand his drug friens minds by introducing them to new concepts and ideas only to be shot down for a discussion about the newest FPS or some other bullshit. And introducing them to new substances is a lost cause as like SWIyour drug friends SWIG's do it for kicks too. SWIG just really wishes he could just meet more people like him unfortuneately because of whats involved thats incredibly hard for SWIG. It really get's SWIG down sometimes that he can't really have intelligent discussions when it comes to drugs or well almost anything really.

[cra$h]

haha! Swim is EXACTLY the same. family disagreeing, pharmacology, everything riaa broght up swim feels. even the same drug effects, exept now instead of oxy once in a while, it's where can swim get an opiate for the slightest discount.

[shogun875]

SWIM knows how you feel. His family is quite conservative and he would not discuss his drug use with them, and he is very disappointed in the ways most of his friends, and most other people it seems, use drugs. Every once in a while SWIM will come across someone who also sees there is more to drugs than just knocking yourself silly and it is always exciting when it happens

[samsa]

SWIM is blessed in that he was many friends in the drug geek community who feel the same way regarding intelligent use with discretion and documentation. swim knows a bunch of shulgin-wannabees heheh. He is also sort of cursed by his very simple and close minded family

[psyche]

SWIM is deeply disapointed that her drugs friends mainly do drugs for kicks any insight gained is lost on them.

This seems to be such a universal motivation for use that most people can't comprehend any kind of spiritual or intellectual aspect about drugs. It's just a fraction in the timeline of human history that plants do not contain spirits, but are only illegal drugs that go hand in hand with pure pleasure.

SWIM was very interested in reading about drugs from the beginning, but what really made him very motivated was that SWIM used to try to explain to his father why drugs really are so remarkable. Besides for simple kicks. First he wouldn't understand. After a year he had accumulated so much experience in trying to put verbally the inspiring effects on drugs and their practical effect on ones worldview that he managed to convince his father. But it doesn't last long. Without first hand experience the words fade quickly and the question 'why use drugs' becomes black and white again.

All that hype only built too much expectations. SWIM had practically dipped his dad in the wonderland of alice by his lectures about the history, teology, psychology, psychopharmacology and philosophy of drugs. And then came the day that he persuaded his dad to try cannabis. What happens when you have heard all those psychedelic tales about it and then approach it with highly critical mindset, constantly waiting for flipping and totally and losing it? Nothing happens. You just pay attention every moment and kill the high by doing so. More importantly by knowing that you are being monitored by expert on drug-induced feelings. Paranoia in the form of not noticing the high for the first time. SWIMs father only said that he felt 'numb' after 45 minutes of smoking quality bud from amsterdam.

During years SWIM got very entangled in proclaiming the message of psychoactive substance since he saw that people like his father can momentarily understand what it's all about. But in the midst of all that he also started paying more attention to his fathers narrowmindedness which hadn't bothered him before. It started to build a wall between him and 'simple' people, but he was certain that he had found deeper truth that all people needed to learn. But later on he realized the importanse of 'it isn't important what you say, but how you say'. Openmindedness can be contagious, but it can't be forced upon.

But that's just SWIMs story. All in all being a drug-geek is an interesting life. In a way comparable to being a mixture of laymen, shaman and scientist. If SWIM had to pick one hobby/lifemission, it would be this quest for consciousness.

There is, and this forum is it

Damn right!

Edit: In the lack of intelligent friends, one could always attend seminars and happenings. For example in Los Angeles there is

"EVOLVER 2013: WHAT COMES NEXT? An event filled with visionary speakers, music, art, film and practical tools and models for proper transformation."


It's so cheap that anyone could buy a ticket if only travelling distance isn't a problem. Found that from Reality Sandwich, which I don't think I'm allowed to link to, but google helps.