Casual Drug Use

I was reading an article today about cocaine use - and about its' popularity not just being relegated to celebrities and sports stars these days but very much a "mom and dad type drug".

A few lines from the article that really struck me were:

“It’s a special occasion, a social occasion, type of drug,” Vanessa says. “It’s a once every six months or a year drug. Most people take a sensible approach and it’s not a drug they have regularly. I’m sure there’s lots of 40th and 50th birthday parties going around where that’s the occasion where plenty bust out. In the circles it is used, it is socially acceptable.”

She adds: “It is fairly low impact. You can go to a party, have it and still get your kids to ballet the next morning. In terms of the time it takes to get over it, it’s far quicker than a hangover.”

What do you think about this sort of very casual, indifferent attitude to drug use?
It took me by surprise a lot, to be honest - I understand that not every addict is ready to admit they have a problem, but is this 6 monthly or yearly use that's so indifferent any better?

IMHO such indifference towards drugs is dangerous.

This apparently is how some people get themselves hooked on hard drugs. They could think, hey this is one-time thing but do they forget the experience? Obviously not. Next time they get stressed and they remember that a certain drug could relieve that stress temporarily they'll go for it. And it becomes a habit and before they know it, it's a full-blown addiction.

That was my thoughts too - the way she was just talking about it being a special occasion drug made me concerned. She's going to associate it with 'good' memories and fun times and have this completely skewed view on drug use. It also worries me from the standpoint that she's saying it's fine to just carry on with her normal day since it's apparently easier than dealing with a hangover. Her stance on it all was just far too comfortable that it made me uneasy.

People that can drink responsibly can honestly probably use drugs responsibility. The issue is addiction, not NECESSARY the substance. With that said experimental use can lead to activation of addiction, if you are an addict. In my opinion.

While cocaine is obviously a dangerous drug, just the like the rest of them, I think that it's probably a little easier to stop taking than the rest. While you can get addictedto cocaine, I think it's more of a mental addiction than a physical one and that does make it a little easier to break the habit.

Cocaine has a very powerful stimulating effect on the nervous system, so is not a good idea to be used as a recreational drug. Definitely not for special occasions!

I was shocked to hear that people use cocaine for special and social occasions. It's sad that there are people who think that this drug is so minor that they can use it at anytime and it will not have any effect on them. It seems like people are thinking they are immune to everything and nothing will happen to them anymore.

I would worry one of the big dangers is not to the people who seem to be able to regulate their casual use, but increasing exposure to those would are more susceptible to addiction. Additionally, do you think this would result in some parents taking a more liberal attitude to their own children's drug use?

I neither condone or oppose someones wish to casually take recreational drugs. I've no morality issue with it if that's their choice to do so. Introducing drugs into your body can possibly produce long lasting, physical and mental effects in the long term.

Addiction always starts with a single try or a small dose of casual taking. It's still unjustifiable to say that she only takes it on occasions once or twice a year. I hope someone would make this woman realize that what she's doing is still unhealthy even though she only does it occasionally. If she loves her kids, she should think twice about taking another casual drug soon.

"In the circles it is used, it is socially acceptable.” - This line chilled me to the very bone.

If you need drugs to have fun then I'm thinking maybe you shouldn't use drugs at all much less associate them with good fun memories. To an addict that could be a relapse trigger.

People can be worried about the fact that trivializing drug use can lead to bad things and all, but honestly, I think that's a quick judgment where we employ more prejudices than actual reflections. Let's think about it for one moment. Sure, there is this dogma about drugs being always bad and their use fucking one's life up. But drug use *is* common, among rich folk, poor folk, everyday life folk. Addiction though has more of a target population -- people with trauma, people with infortunate socioeconomical situations are more likely to get addicted. Maybe because they want a way out, cannot live differently, don't have the support around them, or have an addictive personality. But if some people use some drugs on occasions because they want to, I don't think we have a real stand to just oversimplify it and pretend that we KNOW that problems will occur. I know plenty of people of all ages who had done drugs a few times for fun and who did not **** their life up. We need to be aware that the substance is potent, sure. But let's not pretend that it has exactly the same set of effects on everyone everywhere. Studies keep making research and find still good and bad effects to those drugs; who are we to just cling to a one-size-fit-all answer then?

Of course I personnally would not go for this approach of "fun times = drugs". On the other side, the skeptic in me says that we abuse many things that are not seen as drugs, and I have a bad opinion of a lot of people and would think they'd be better if they changed their ways to what I believe would be more healthy and more moral. So I get why others here also hold this kind of strong opinion about people's behaviour and the consequences of it and how they ought to act.

The frequency with which we take drugs does not eliminate the fact that we take drugs. I believe the focus here has to do with addiction, and so whenever persons finds themselves addicted, they need to get help.
The situation explained above however, does not depict a picture of addiction to drug, but it does show a cause for concern by the fact that these individuals are taking drugs overall.

Taking drugs in itself is an irresponsible act. So yes it is said that one can drink alcohol responsibly, but the very fact that one drinks alcohol is a sign of one's responsibility. Taking drugs is a no no. It is a bad example for our children and it will only lead to deterioration of our bodies. It's best to stay clean.

This is shocking and just another sign of the times. It is clearly a case of desensitization. The more you see it, the less it bothers you. You get used to things. It seems that we humans are able to get used to any type of behavior. It is all acceptable until something goes terribly wrong.

I know a lot people who used coke casually as well, even I did. Until I started to become addicted and decided to drop it. It seems coke is the kind of drug you can try casually, unless you have an addictive personality. I'd still not recommend it to anyone, you never know if you could get addicted to it. Stay away from drugs folks! Not worth the risk, specially this one!

I think that the fact that they can wait for months before taking drugs again shows that it's indeed possible to take drugs and not be addicted to it. But their casual and indifferent stance regarding drug use isn't surprising at all. They're addicts after all, so they would be inclined to think that way.

This is very worrisome.
If you have ever been around people on cocaine, you would be disgusted.
People on that crap are just awful and annoying. If I ever went to one of these parties and that stuff was brought out I would immediately leave, it's not fun being around people high on cocaine.
I also would think less of the user, sure you can pick your kids up from ballet in the morning but you cannot repair the damage to your reputation.