Written by Drug Rehab Man on 8:47 AM
Drug use amongst friends creates a difficult scenario - if one of you wants to either have a break or quit taking drugs altogether, rotating in the same social circles can make action on your decision very hard.
Talking about it with your friends, unless you know they will be supportive, is often a waste of time, as humour, and joking amongst friends will often lead to a "God we're silly for even contemplating stopping" decision.
You can try a number of positive steps:
- Be selective of when you hang around your friends - meals at restaurants, watching sports, social drinks out at bars etc. are environments where drug taking is less likely to occur
- Find someone in your friendship group with a similar stance to you and 'buddy-up' with them, not to turn against your friends, but to have safety and strength in numbers if drug taking does become an easy option. You will then have someone you can do other things with.
- Most of us have more than one circle of friends - try spending more time with the friends that do not take drugs. Yes, it will always feel great when you do go back to your original group of friends to 'get on it', but at least you are limiting your intake.
- Experiment with alternatives - things such as organic herbs (www.happyhighherbs.com) can give you the same highs that illegal drugs would, without the come-down's or extreme negative effects on your body. Plus - they're so much cheaper!
- Depending on your age, another effective technique is to take the stance that 'it's time to grow up'. Teens may find this harder because it is a prime time of experimentation in life, but those approaching mid-20's or 30's+ should be starting to think "Ok, I've had my fine, time to ditch the habit and move on with the finer things in life". The longer you leave it, the less of a life you will have!
Extreme measures such as cutting yourself off from friends or moving state are often less viable options, and more likely to increase the chances of depression. Friends are an excellent support mechanism, and often they will show concern if you express your views in a polite, non-condescending tone.
I have a good friend that is in a relationship with a former school friend of mine. Whilst she used to be accepting of drug taking and often took drugs herself, she has now done a complete flip, and is condescending of all her friends. It's great that she is not supportive of it, but her extremely firm stance somewhat distances her from the rest of the group, to the point that she's unlikely to 'draw out' others that might be contemplating a move away from drug taking because she is so removed from the feelings of the group.
Whilst a group of friends that are into drug taking can lead you a-stray, they can often be your best support mechanism for collectively moving on.
