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[666c52718216dPacmikey]

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[666c52718271bRocketMan]

Not trying to take the romance out of the topic but everything any living being has ever done is reliant on drugs in some sense.  All the signalling in the body is a result of endogenous substances in careful balance with one another and are part of a feedback mechanism that resonates with the environment.  It's when that machinery goes to hell that we start putting other stuff into ourselves.  I try not to get involved in how other people rationalize what they do to themselves.  I mean, I drink and enjoy the occasional cigar.  But as with pretty much anything else, the question you have to ask yourself is, "is this helping me achieve my goals in life and can I accept the consequences?"  If you're a person of conscience, then you know the consequences can sometimes involve other people and the goals can sometimes be short lived... or short sighted.

I would contend that it wasn't drugs that brought you here.  It was probably a catalyst but something attracted you to this game and this forum that you already had in you.  If drugs helped you to see or feel it more clearly, then some good came of it.  But I would question why it's time to leave.  Did it really become boring that quickly?  Or did you have certain expectations of the community that weren't met? 

If you enjoy what you're doing, your enthusiasm will rub off on others.  If you're good at what you're doing, it's even easier.  I've seen enough evidence so far that people here acknowledged your talent and offered words of encouragement.  Others offered mostly or entirely criticism but that's to be expected.  It may not be the most uplifting thing to get shat on for trying to do something cool but if you are sufficiently self-aware you can control the defensive emotions that inevitably occur and focus instead on how to make a better product, express yourself more clearly or do whatever it is you're trying to do.  Don't let a few people take away your passion for something.  I see drugs as largely tangential to this point but I don't speak from experience so take it with a grain of salt.  I just think you should hang around and maybe just temper the TMI posts.

[666c5271828ccGhostJetEngineRumbler]

If you want to fix all your problems just take 670mg of Benadryl

There are spiders in my skin

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA

[666c5271829e3RocketMan]

...and maybe posting during the daytime is also a good idea.

[666c527182e61sarge945]

This is definitely a post.

Pro tip: When I decide to get high, I purposely seal myself away from other people. While I do occasionally like to do a "lol haha high stream", I always quit the moment I start feeling serious effects.

Posts like this are why. They seem like a good idea at the time, but they rarely end well and you can easily leave impressions that you later regret.

I'm sure as a 20-something year old there's a lot going on in your life - you're probably finishing up a degree of some kind, looking for housing to move out, and trying to foster a relationship of some kind. If you're like most 20-somethings, you're failing at it, and it probably all seems hopeless.

As someone in their thirties, I assure you that even a schlub like me can end up okay, and you can too. I am exactly where I need/want to be, and anyone can get there with a little effort. Don't throw it all away in your 20's because everything seems hopeless.

I know the common wisdom is that the world sucks and everything has gone to shit. But people have been saying that for at least the last 3 decades, probably forever. There's plenty of good to still be found.

I'm not going to be your mom and tell you to stop drinking alcohol. There's nothing wrong with getting drunk. You are free to do whatever you want. But posting online using what amounts to at least somewhat of a respectable identity is probably a bad idea. If you want to kick the alcohol or the weed, you can do it, it's not that hard if you have the right supports and are driven to do so.

Anyway, if you want to sculpt/model professionally you absolutely can, I promise. 3 years ago as a business programmer I had no idea I could work in the game industry, now I do it professionally. You can too.

[666c52718318fRoSoDude]

based????

We get a lot of schizo ramblings here for some reason, but I endorse everything you've said here. Alcohol is dreadful — I've never gotten any positive feelings from it, only dizziness, nausea, and dissociation. It's also messed up the lives of several people I care about, which makes the constant social pressure to drink in our culture really reprehensible in my eyes. Weed is cool, I've only used it sparingly and never to get through a bad day, just as an experience enhancer. I think it's important to avoid self-medicating with recreational drugs in that sense, as that's the trap a lot of people fall into. Never tried psilocybin so no comment there.

Good luck with the SS2 mod

[666c5271832f0icemann]

Cigarettes and alcohol for me in moderation. Can't stand drugs, but whoever else wants to do them doesn't bother me.

[666c527183573JDoran]

Sugar was my addiction. I used to love chocolate, choclatey snacks, sugary soft drinks (Irn Bru is the greatest drink in the universe!), ice lollies, the occasional chocolate cake, etc. Then my body decided to develop diabetes 

And that's when I learnt that diabetes doesn't just mean that you can't have sugar, it means that carbohydrates are now off your menu too. And so it's not just sugary stuff like Mars Bars, Minstrels, Galaxy or Cadburies chocolate bars, etc, that you can't have, it's also bread (seriously, I never thought bread could be considered harmful), anything made from potatoes (it had to be potatoes, of course, the one vegetable that most people, myself definitely included, actually like eating), and even squeezed orange juice.

There is one rule to diabetes: If you want to eat it, then you can't.

I'm exaggerating of course. There are a few non or low sugar things that are great (and I am SO grateful for really nice sugar-free soft drinks like Pepsi Max, and Irn Bru Xtra), and I am allowed some sugary stuff. Still, diabetes really does cut into your quality of life, especially if, like me, you love tasty food. At least I've never liked alcohol, so that's one loss that I don't feel.

And I don't understand why supermarkets (at least in England, where I am from) has special sections for Gluton-free or lactose-free products, but never (in my experience) for sugar free stuff, even though apparently diabetes is getting more and more common.

Oh well, enough moaning. Life's rubbish, but it's better than the alternative.

[666c527183651Pacmikey]

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[666c527183a9eicemann]

Sugar was my addiction. I used to love chocolate, choclatey snacks, sugary soft drinks (Irn Bru is the greatest drink in the universe!), ice lollies, the occasional chocolate cake, etc. Then my body decided to develop diabetes 

My wife suffers from diabetes type 1. So whilst I personally don't experience it, I see her struggle with it daily.

There's a possible cure in the works by Monash University (over here in Aus). A few years away from testing. For my wifes sake I hope it turns out successful, to have that quality of wife back and not needing to take insulin anymore.

[666c527183b98Pacmikey]

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[666c527183c78Pacmikey]

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[666c527183eedfox]

I find alcohol to be a really bad drug (if used as such). Pretty much the only thing that makes it a little bit understandable as to why it became the legal option in many countries, is that it isn't known to unexpectedly trigger psychotic episodes in first time users and persons with a pre-disposition for it, afaik. I personally know people who merely tried canabis or psychedelics for the first time and got themselves into serious, potentially lifelong, mental trouble.

At the same time who doesn't know several alcoholics who ruined their lives over the course of time? The addiction can be extreme, it's toxic as hell for the body and feeling drunk is also pretty terrible compared to other kinds of intoxications/highs in my personal opinion, at the very least the hang over is.

Unfortunately no drug is completely harmless. It's important to know that everything comes at a (non-monetary) cost, even if it 'only' envolves getting high on endogenous (body's own) drugs. It very much boils down to being smart and honest about the cost-benefit calculation, which requires some knowledge and a certain amount of maturity to do right. "What goes up must come down" and "The dose makes the poison" are two phrases to always keep in mind.

[666c527184423Join2]

Entirely drug-free these days, including cigarettes, coffee, sugar and alcohol. ...I need a vice before I do something drastic haha.
Well, I do have video games. Good, solid, engaging and inspiring ones. That and sex addiction. That's all the vice one could ever need.

Currently playing Everspace. I highly recommend this modern gem.

And I don't understand why supermarkets (at least in England, where I am from) has special sections for Gluton-free or lactose-free products, but never (in my experience) for sugar free stuff, even though apparently diabetes is getting more and more common.

Sugar free or low sugar alternatives are everywhere next to any given product across the entire store. Open your eyes? Sure, not everything has this option, but most do. Just flip that shit over and look for "sugars 0g" on every single item. That said, you shouldn't have to...this shit preys on children and the uninformed. As always. This world is so fucking predatory, and in such an underhanded and sly way.

[666c527184825icemann]

At the same time who doesn't know several alcoholics who ruined their lives over the course of time? The addiction can be extreme, it's toxic as hell for the body and feeling drunk is also pretty terrible compared to other kinds of intoxications/highs in my personal opinion, at the very least the hang over is.

I find alcohol (like all drugs) to have different effects on each person differently. In a small percentage it can bring out violent tendencies (from my family and friends circles I only know of 2 people who it had this effect), in others it just makes them more mellow and anxiety free (me) though it can also make them more cocky, and in some others it can make them more emotional. Weed wise - Not seen many bad effects there, beyond making people sleepy, hungry and aggression free.

Acid, coke and the rest - Seen more negatives there. Very high aggression in some, wanting to be continuously active, and a really bad effect after it's high has worn off. Tend to have very negative effects on the friends and family of those people. Seems to attract people of more negative walks of life to those people who choose to do those drugs in addition.

That's all just life observations.

[666c527184ed1fox]

I find alcohol (like all drugs) to have different effects on each person differently. In a small percentage it can bring out violent tendencies (from my family and friends circles I only know of 2 people who it had this effect), in others it just makes them more mellow and anxiety free (me) though it can also make them more cocky, and in some others it can make them more emotional.

Absolutely. I also think that alcoholic drinks are not acting all the same. For example, there's quite a difference between softer stuff like beer or wine and hard liquor. Drinks containing lots of sugar or caffeine also create a different kind of intoxication. And it is totally true that people themselves react quite differently to alcohol although it has to be noted that the physical reactions are mostly the same for everybody (at varying doses). I just said, that I personally don't really find the effects on me all that enjoyable. I normally don't have that urge to drink more and more (like Pacmikey, according to his comment) because it feels so great - not since my youth anyway.

Weed wise - Not seen many bad effects there, beyond making people sleepy, hungry and aggression free.

Lucky you. As I said, I have witnessed people getting psychotic or catatonic from their first joint or bong hit. And by that I mean that those eventually had to be placed on psychiatric wards for days or even weeks and two of my close friends have to take psychopharmaca every day ever since. We, meaning me and the kids around me all overdid it (and we all were way too young to do so) and science tells us that a certain percentage of people are born with (and/or may have aquired) a pre-disposition for mental illness that they don't know about until something triggers it. There is no doubt that THC is one such trigger, which made me reconsider my stance on complete legalization pretty early on. That is where I see an important difference to alcohol, which seems to be far less dangerous/unpredictable in that specific regard. Apart from that, I totally think that canabis is the "better drug" in terms of toxicity (in more than one sense) for both, the individual and society. Personally, I'm done with it though. It shouldn't be underestimated in terms of potential for psychological dependency and also that the strains get more and more potent. Same thing with alcohol, people react differently and different intake methods create different reactions.

Acid, coke and the rest - Seen more negatives there. Very high aggression in some, wanting to be continuously active, and a really bad effect after it's high has worn off. Tend to have very negative effects on the friends and family of those people. Seems to attract people of more negative walks of life to those people who choose to do those drugs in addition.

That's all just life observations.

That is way too generalizing. Can't compare psychedelics (like acid or mushrooms) to stimulants (like cocaine or amphetamine) or opiods (like heroine or opium) at all. Totally different effects on body and mind, totally different dependency potentials, very different user profiles (although the prototypical junkie you may have seen on the street corner probably takes it all, if the chance arises).

Psychedelics (and MDMA) are actually quite an interesting subject and there's currently tons of serious research being done again after a 30-40 year long hiatus for political reasons. I'm not talking about your alternative practitioner/hippie neighbour but Stanford-levels. There's lots of talk about it becoming the next breakthrough thing for treating, even curing,  various serious mental illnesses and addictions, which I find quite ironic. Of course this has not much in common with recreational use though.

[666c527185006icemann]

As noted at the bottom of my post, that was all judging purely off life observations. So all from what I've observed, not from what I've read online or heard from others. Not from personal use either (except for alcohol and weed).

[666c527185955JDoran]

JDoranI'm sorry to hear about your diabetes situation, it genuinely saddens me. Is there any message you want to get out to the world? I'd be glad to include it in some form in my game.

Same goes for anyone. This game is a chance for me to scream into the void and have it not be completely in vain.

That's very kind of you, mate, and if you could maybe reach some people by telling them in your game that they should watch their sugar intake, then it might prevent some from forcing their body to develop diabetes. Some people are sadly born with the condition, whereas others, like me, just consumed far too much sugar, didn't exercise nearly enough, and then when their body starts showing signs of age and it's ability to self heal starts to break down then they became diabetic. I used to live on sugar, and never listened when anyone said it wad bad for me, and around ten or fifteen years ago (around my late thirties, or early forties, I can't remember exactly) I was diagnosed with the condition.

Icemann, I'm really sorry to hear that your wife has it. I often wonder how much scientific and medical research we have lost due to Covid 19. When Covid 19 came about, no doubt a large part of the then current research into other diseases and conditions was put on hold in the race to develop a cure for Covid.

Sugar free or low sugar alternatives are everywhere next to any given product across the entire store. Open your eyes? Sure, not everything has this option, but most do. Just flip that shit over and look for "sugars 0g" on every single item. That said, you shouldn't have to...this shit preys on children and the uninformed. As always. This world is so fucking predatory, and in such an underhanded and sly way.

Open my eyes? Do you think it has never occurred to me to actually look for sugar free stuff? Maybe where you live the shops do stock prolific amounts of sugar free products , but where I live, in a poor, concrete covered town in the North-West of England, the shops aren't exactly over-stocked with diabetic friendly food. And when you can find some, it often tastes so bad that you don't want to bother. Have you tried low-sugar milk, or the various 'organic' types? Ugh. And cheaper brands of frozen or stored in a chilled fridge types of food tend to be loaded with additives and sugar to add taste and extend the length of time that the food can be stored before being eaten. I (and most people around here) am not well paid or wealthy, so the local shops don't tend to offer better quality food. Even the frozen burgers can be high with sugar, due to additives, even though meat itself is supposedly very low on sugar.

And I have walked all around town (I can't drive) and tried every supermarket, bakery and shop that I could find that sells cakes, hoping to find sugar free cakes, but nowhere makes or sells them. Literally not one single place sells them. Granted, cakes are luxury items, not something you need, but I would love to be able to eat cake occasionally.

And yes, as you imply, products that say "No added sugar", or similar can be misleading in that they can still have a high sugar content.

[666c527185fc8icemann]

Icemann, I'm really sorry to hear that your wife has it. I often wonder how much scientific and medical research we have lost due to Covid 19. When Covid 19 came about, no doubt a large part of the then current research into other diseases and conditions was put on hold in the race to develop a cure for Covid.

Could tell lots of stories of trips to hospitals both from the low sugar end (where she was nearly comatose and I had to give her a glucose injection which was quite scary the first time) and high end, or a D.K.A as my wife calls it. She only out of the blue developed diabetes type 1 back in 2015. Was quite the scare. Fast forward to present day, and we at least have some good strategies down. I don't even pretend to be an expert on the topic, but just do what I can to assist when the need is there.

Recent one was recommended by my dietician, of when she's having a hypo (low sugar) to put 2 spoons of sugar into a cup of water, and if that gets her back over 4.0 (sugar reading) then take some milk which stabilizes it apparently. Works quite well most times. We originally tried 3 spoons of sugar but that led to a big sugar jump.

A year or so ago, over here the government made the sensor devices (which attach to your chest or arm) free for anyone with type 1, which made a HUGE difference vs the standard finger pricking method. Being able to see the sugar reading on the mobile app is quite handy.

[666c527186690Join2]

That's very kind of you, mate

My motto as my growth stops and the physical decline begins has become "If it goes through a machine or is fucked with in any way in food processing, it doesn't go in my stomach".
Obviously that is extremely difficult to accomplish and often the rule gets broken but it is best to follow as much as you can. Eat like you live on a farm and/or fishing village. Steaks, eggs, fresh fruit and veg as strict as possible, fish, oatmeal. No pre-made sauces. No canned anything. No frozen stuff...within reason. Make your own stuff and freeze it. No snacks, treats or cakes...again maybe one small exception for the week. This is more expensive than the alternative, more time-consuming to prep, often not as tasty (use salt/seasoning), but you avoid the absolute garbage poison they put in our trough and you protect your health.

 "I (and most people around here) am not well paid or wealthy"

As we say in the shithole that is the UK: "Five Finger Discount".

Harkening back to a previous discussion: No wonder you never had a problem with England if you live in a quaint little village. Those are the rosebuds in a thorn bush. Towns and cities are grim, at least where I'm from.

[666c527186798Pacmikey]

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[666c5271868abJoin2]

Probably. The degeneracy, corruption and decline was bad when I left and seems to have only gotten worse. Glad I escaped. And I am using that term without irony.

[666c52718697bPacmikey]

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