Flibbertigibbet

Why Not?

In a recent post, I discussed some of my thoughts on drug use and admitted that I am very curious about what it's like to use them. Like most people who have a curiosity about "bad" things, there are times when the risks of that thing seem very low and easily surmountable. Such was the case when I wrote that post.

I ended that post by pointing out that I probably would not use drugs because I'm not comfortable with them.

That post invited a few comments on the reasons not to use drugs (specifically pot) which in turn invited response from me about why those reasons may be insufficient to deter me.

When considering whether or not I will try drugs, here are some of the reasons (some of them rather silly) that go through my head:

- I might get fired from my job and then I wouldn't be able to pass a drug test to get a new job.

- The police might see me and think I'm high and take me to jail.

- I like the fact that I haven't ever used drugs. It's kind of like my virginity in my mind. (A vulgar comparison, but still.)

- I don't like the idea of messing with how my brain works. (Even though I do drink alcohol.) I had surgery once and went under general anesthesia and it was very disorienting. I still don't like how that affected me.

- Even though I've met some good people who have used or do use drugs, I have an image in my mind of a drug user that is not at all flattering and I don't want to be that.

- This might oblige me to talk to people I really don't want to talk to. Like at the party I went to, the person with the pot brownies was super obnoxious and I was contented to have him get far away from me.

- People who have taken LSD talk about how they have crazy, random acid flashbacks or something. That is terrifying to me and although I know other drugs do not do that, but that doesn't stop me from irrational speculation along those lines. Actually, just the idea of hallucinating is terrifying in itself, but to detach it from a proximal cause... well, that freaks me out.

- What if the person offering the drugs did something bad to them, like mixing two drugs together? And then I die?

- Genetically speaking, I'm in high risk groups for all kinds of diseases, not the least of which is cancer. Some illicit drugs carry with them increased risks of these diseases, although long term use is probably a critical factor.

So, those are some of the (admittedly exaggerated) things that go through my mind. There are all kinds of other things in addition, but all of these ideas wind up creating an emotional response to illicit drugs that keep me away from them when perhaps my intellectual assessment of the risks is low.

The important thing to do is to revisit that emotional response and identify its causes.

When I sit down to actually consider using drugs, I come to the conclusion that it's not good idea. Even so, that doesn't stop me from being curious about it.