Posts by Thomas Peterson46

urbanmason11 said:.[/I]

Your post isn't exactly comforting, though you and Herzega are pretty much the only ones who truly understand this situation.
I agree with you, and it breaks my heart how people still stigmatize former addicts. That’s just how society works sometimes, but I want you to know there are still people out there who don't judge—people who are willing to offer a hand or just hang out without bringing up someone's past, even if we are in the minority.
Honestly, I'm feeling pretty down right now because I care about someone who is a recovering addict. They are very close to me, and reading your words doesn't make me feel any better, especially since I've spent so much time convincing myself they are completely fine and fully recovered after everything they went through. 😢
I really hope you don't end up like some of those friends you mentioned. I hope you pull through for the long haul and find happiness (if you haven't already—I wasn't entirely sure if you were still struggling with substances or not).
🙂

Megan Reed said:I had the exact same experience. 😠

I'll admit I was a bit distracted about two weeks before my appointment 😁, but even so... their instructions clearly stated I needed to head to the main clinic. Then my sister tells me she "wasn't allowed to wake the doctor" [honestly, hearing that just makes me want to 🙂] 🙄

Yeah, me too. 🙂 😁

Colleague😘
Standing together against medical malpractice and corruption 😉😬

Justin Fox said:It’s always the same when doctors make calls that you just can't challenge. Maybe some high-profile surgeon was rushing off to a gala in Manhattan and just told his patient, "Look, it's done, now deal with it."

If you're planning on going to medical school, please: don't ever treat patients like they're just pieces of meat. Never forget that they are intelligent people with souls who feel pain, humiliation, and suffering.

Believe me, that isn't my goal at all. I actually posted in the careerism thread about what kind of professional I hope to become, and there's nothing wrong with ambition—especially since I want to focus on helping people rather than just climbing a ladder. If I were just looking for status, I would have picked a different field entirely. Don't worry if you ever end up under my care; honestly, I'll likely be working out on one of the islands, but regardless, I promise to give my absolute best to be both a great doctor and a decent human being.😉 😘

Hannah Davis18 said:We might as well just ship all addicts off to Alcatraz.
I honestly don't even know what to say about the family aspect of this.

At least with drug users, a huge chunk of them were shaped by those very same families. I don't feel any sympathy for parents who neglected their kids or failed to provide the love and stability a happy home is supposed to offer.
And snorting isn't even the end of the story; injecting isn't the final chapter either. You can see that for yourself if you just look at the statistics on mortality rates—or even just browse through some CNN reports.

It’s not always the family's fault. In my own experience, the user admitted they just desperately wanted to fit in with the older crowd and be seen as cool, which is how it all started.
They had nothing but unconditional love from their inner circle,
but that still doesn't mean we should throw stones at them. They made a mistake during one of the most vulnerable times of their life—puberty.

I was wondering if anyone here has heard anything about Elvira’s sister and her commune over in Italy?
If you have, how does everything actually work there?
Btw,
I’m also curious—once you eventually leave a community like that, do those old cravings to go back start creeping up on you? And if they do, how do you deal with them?

I feel like some people here have an incredibly negative and discouraging outlook, which honestly saddens me because that approach doesn't help anyone. It sends this message along the lines of:
"This person is a lost cause, there's no point in helping an addict, let's just focus on preventing others from starting so they don't end up in the same boat..." To me, that mindset is deeply pessimistic and fundamentally wrong.
In my view, someone struggling with addiction deserves every bit of support and optimism we can offer; that's really the only way to achieve lasting recovery.
Sure, relapse happens—whether it's drugs, alcohol, or something else—but I don't believe that gives anyone the right to write them off or essentially leave them to die. It’s even worse when people stigmatize them as if they are completely broken beyond repair.👎
I truly hope that in a few years, I'll be able to look at the people in my own life and proudly share their stories as examples of those who successfully made it through for good.👍

Megan Reed said:As for me, my mom barely made it through her C-section because they wouldn't perform it at the hospital she was supposed to go to.👎

My mom and sister had similar scares; both nearly died because, in addition to my mother needing an emergency C-section,
my sister was in a breech position (I think 🤔—basically a complication), so they barely escaped with their lives.
Thankfully, they did... To make matters worse, the specialist who managed my mother's pregnancy, a well-known doctor recommended by my grandmother when she used to be a high-level pharmacy director at Johnson & Johnson 🤔, didn't even show up for the delivery. I honestly don't know why he wasn't held accountable, especially since my mother's pregnancy was so high-risk.🙄
2) Another instance
When my sister was little, she dealt with some limb and spinal issues (which she thankfully outgrew), and a certain doctor almost left her disabled by trying to push an unnecessary surgery on her...
Anyway, I really hope that one day I can be a much better doctor than these examples suggest...

I’d actually like to suggest that my thread, or perhaps the one started by Casey Ramirez2, be pinned as a top topic. I feel like we aren't talking enough about the issue of addiction, even though it's becoming such a widespread problem. These kinds of discussions are always necessary; I'm certain there are people in our community struggling to quit, as well as young people who might be curious and could really benefit from learning about the consequences beforehand.
Once I have a bit more free time, I plan to write up some details regarding the side effects and characteristics of the most common drugs, opioids, and other types of substance abuse...
🙂

Gary Anderson38 said:Once someone is an addict, they're always an addict; there’s no such thing as truly being "clean." It’s just a matter of when life hits you hard enough to trigger that relapse, causing them to fall right back into it.

Honestly, look at us smokers. I can tell you from experience—after four years of staying away from it, one bad moment and I was back at it. Or look at alcoholics; someone might go years without a drink, then something snaps and they're back to square one. Life just throws those curveballs at you...
Now, imagine dealing with heavy stuff like heroin. Give me a break, talking about "getting clean" is a fantasy.🙄

It really is just a question of timing, which is pretty sad....

The only real fix is making sure people never start in the first place. We have to focus on prevention and reaching out to kids so they never even touch that garbage....

With enough willpower, anything is possible😉,
thank God we see plenty of real-life examples of people who successfully quit and are living great lives now. Of course, it depends on the individual and their environment, especially since former addicts here in the States often face a certain level of stigma, which I find 🙄.
I still believe, and will continue to believe, that everything is possible if you have the drive.
After all, the glass is always half full, and I try to keep it that way... at least in my case.😉

Casey Ramirez2 said:Haha..
Well, here I am again...
Yeah, I've been...
Yeah, I'm doing okay now...
And yeah, I'm planning on a fresh start. I'm moving to NYC, actually. I'll be heading there next week to hunt for an apartment and a job.
🙂
Thanks, everyone. If I said anything foolish earlier, I just wasn't quite myself...
I guess I was just bummed that I didn't see anyone else reaching out with similar struggles. It's almost like there aren't any other addicts on Reddit, right?

I'm really happy for you, 😉.
I actually started a similar thread about addiction myself, so feel free to share your story if you're comfortable with it.
There are plenty of younger people on here who haven't gone through this yet—or might be tempted to—and it could help them understand the potential pitfalls ahead of time.😉

Gregory Turner71 said:I once knew someone incredibly close to me who struggled deeply with alcoholism... Sadly, despite every effort at rehab, hospital stays, and everything else, they could never stay sober for more than a few months at a time.
I just laid them to rest recently.

I am so sorry for your loss... 😢
In my opinion, education is vital—even if we have to be a little blunt or hard on people to get through to them.
We really need to involve the family, too.
I believe we have to make an addict realize that their addiction doesn't just destroy their own life; it drags down everyone who loves them, pulling those people right down into the depths along with them.

cp.tar said:Sandra Hernandez13 mentioned he’s been clean for three years—she didn't say it once, she said it repeatedly—and that he avoids drugs at all costs.
Both of those points sound pretty encouraging to me, even if I can see where you're coming from.

True, he did go through rehab; he spent three years in Elvira's community over in Italy,
but I still find myself feeling a bit uneasy. He doesn't strike me as someone unstable, but he's almost too polished and put-together for his age. From what I've read about recovery, most people end up back in a group setting at least twice. I'm not saying he'll slip up—he's clearly working hard and is vocal about staying clean—but that tiny seed of doubt is always there, especially after dealing with the nightmare of addiction. You have to understand, that's what eats away at you. You never quite know if they're being honest, or if they've crossed paths with old friends from their past...

brightmarlin44 said:This is such a great topic! :-) A few years back here in the States, there was this big debate between people who thought rehab centers were the way to go versus those pushing for harm reduction, like methadone programs and needle exchange initiatives. Personally, I tend to lean toward the latter; it seems much more practical to provide clean supplies to protect people from things like Hepatitis or HIV, and then offer methadone as a path toward recovery if they're ready. That said, you can really see how a person's entire personality shifts over time because of how these substances impact the brain and the rest of the body.
Rehab facilities often feel a bit like long-term psychiatric stays, which modern medicine is moving away from. Still, for some people, that structured environment actually works. Even if they do relapse, at least they’ve had a break to let their system reset somewhat. The scary part is when someone goes back to their old dosage after being clean—it happens far too often, and it's usually fatal. As for public service announcements and education, I sometimes wonder if they just end up making drugs look interesting to kids.

That's true, but I think it all comes down to how we approach the messaging. We definitely need better programs starting in elementary school—maybe around 5th grade—and continuing through high school, ideally involving parents in the conversation as well.
To be honest, I feel like the core of any addiction education or awareness campaign shouldn't just be the cliché "drugs are bad" 🙄
approach. Instead, we should show the actual reality—the brutal consequences and the downward spiral that follows. If a young person truly understood what happens right after those few hours of euphoria, I doubt anyone would even think about touching them. Beyond that, we need to teach kids about the ripple effect—how addiction doesn't just destroy your own life, but tears apart your family and everyone around you.

😢
Someone I know used to be part of a commune, but I really hope they don't go back to that lifestyle...
I honestly feel like we need more public awareness and education regarding drug use here in the States, especially in places like California where the numbers seem incredibly high. I'm not saying there aren't prevention programs out there, but things feel a bit disorganized when you don't see significant results. From what I've gathered, many people struggling with addiction end up seeking help in communities over in Italy, which just goes to show that we aren't having enough honest conversations about this issue in America.

This is my first time starting a thread here. I’d really appreciate it if everyone could keep things respectful; this is a serious topic for me. I’m hoping for some genuine insight and education, which is why I chose the Health section rather than one of the joke subforums...
I happen to know someone personally—very closely, actually—who managed to pull off what they called a "golden shot," narrowly escaping a fatal overdose...
My question is: since he’s been sober for three years now, what are the actual odds of a relapse? He truly learned his lesson and goes out of his way to avoid triggers, even though he struggles with certain impulses. More broadly, I’ve read that most people struggling with addiction end up cycling through rehab multiple times without success. How much truth is there to that statistic? I’d love to hear your thoughts on the nature of addiction itself. Do you have any personal experiences or stories from people close to you? I would truly value your perspective...
🙂
thanks

Megan Reed said:I think I saw a list somewhere once regarding the average years spent in school for various majors... for medical school, it was hovering around seven years...

But wouldn't you finish on schedule if you really put your mind to it? Regardless of what your GPA looks like. 😬

Fair enough 😬 ,you've got a point; "Perseverance" might actually be my middle name 😈 ,🙂...
Thanks for the replies, ladies. You've actually made me feel even more motivated 😘

jadesailor14 said:1. Yeah, but that really comes down to you.
2. It's a great idea, but you're going to have to work incredibly hard to make it happen.

Why do you think I'd have to struggle so much to pull this off? 😢 😬
I don't mind the grind—the best things in life rarely come easy—but I'm curious what specifically made you say that.🙂

I’m looking into medical school, but not because of the status or any material perks.
My main motivation is that I feel like I actually have the right foundation for it—I have a genuine desire to help people, I'm not driven by money, and I tend to pick up information quickly through photographic memory. My primary goal is simply to graduate on schedule and do as well as possible. I have this dream of eventually living on an island like Key West 😍 and practicing there, especially since doctors are always in such high demand in coastal communities like that.
Since I'm still quite young, I was hoping you all might be able to help me out with two quick questions (I know this might be a bit out of left field, but... please!)
:
1) Is it actually realistic to finish med school on time? I've heard some pretty scary stories about people spending ten years in training. 😲
2) What do you think of my plan?
😘Thanks so much in advance!