addiction

to be fair, the human mind is an extremely delicate machine, whose exact workings are far from fully understood. a person can be 'addicted' to anything really. you see it all the time on TV. the furries, the hoarders, the compulsive sex addicts (i know, i know), OCD-style events like counting, hand washing, etc. all of these, when viewed through a strictly clinical perspective, can be viewed as addictions.

ultimately, the consumer is the only one who can qualify a behavior as an addiction or not.

UUUMMM not sure I would openly admit to taking illegal drugs...

why not? are the feds in here or something?

open conversation about this topic is necessary to move past the neanderthal mr mackey mindset of 'drugs r bad. mkay.'

my dear man the police as you call the feds, are everywhere..

Lets just say that due to recently having my eyes opened to where the law men and women are I am very careful about what I say and how I say it.....

"It's not a war on drugs, it's a war on personal freedom, it´s what it is ok?. Keep that in mind at all times. Thank you!"
-- Bill Hicks

also, i know beyond a doubt that ALL of my communications are monitored for a variety of reasons, not least among them that i have an active security clearance and it comes with the territory. i will not live my life in fear of repercussions for something i may or may not have done and that may or may not happen. to be perfectly clear, i dont even DO illegal drugs. i just dont want anyone else to tell me that i cannot.

I drank, did a few illegal drugs, and all the partying type things when I was younger. I quit everything a bit more easily than any of my friends have said they did, so I doubt that I was ever truly addicted to any of it regardless of the frequency that I did them.. which was extremely frequent.

I'm fairly open about having borderline personality disorder which comes with a few strange addictions: although I prefer to not socalize often I become addicted to people, anger, violence, and things of that nature. I will be honest in saying that yes, sometimes I feel completely powerless when it comes to these things.. sometimes it seems as if I'm a prisioner in my own body watching helplessly from the inside. I can be thinking two polar opposites at the same time as well.. its extremely difficult to describe and even more so to understand if you've never experienced it..
I work on it constantly. I have to or it will destroy me and I know it. I think that's a big reason I'm always trying so hard to do the "right" thing and become distraught when I don't.

i was addicted to a self distructive habbit...i have to consiously keep my self from repeating but it is possible.

The fact that you no longer part take or endorse such partings shows responsibility and encouragement for others. Admitting to a problem that you longer wish to be slave to, is a huge success to recovering. Thank you Reliah and Lycaenion for your openness. Your both worth the world and please don't forget it...

First, the "Feds" don't care about an individual admitting to addiction, they want traffickers of illegal substances. There is no money in prosecuting me or you. (see New York's new drug arrest policies)

Ok, I was smoking "mary jane" for 3 solid years in the mid to late 70's. With the help of my father and my now wife, I was able to clean up. Fast forward to 1990-02, I was testing to become a firefighter. I felt that the background checks conducted by the police would find facts about my past that would be detrimental to my getting hired. So I decided to tell the truth at every test.

During one interview with the Board of Commissioners of a local town, I relayed my whole experience and how I was able to overcome my problems. For 1 hour they grilled me about my life before and after my drug abuse. I was candid and honest throughout the interview process. by the time it was over, I was told that they respected me for my honesty and felt that I had become a responsible citizen.

I made number 1 on the firefighter eligibility list for that town.

You can beat it, you can overcome addiction, you can save your life and your future...but it takes help from others and a strong will to succeed. My mantra through the whole ordeal was simple...I will never let anything control my life again!

though slightly aggressive in your approach to the subject, I do respect your admitting your addiction. I am only a British peasant and my experiences are of course only what is happening here within my community.

The community has noticed though that when drugs are among our population then the crime rate does have a pattern of comparison.