On the Use of Drugs for Their Prescribed Purpose

Note: I’m sorry for having to continue to blog about this. Ignore it if you prefer my posts that aren’t about community issues. I try to keep those rare and still have a point to them beyond “they said / did a thing, here’s what I think.”

To follow up to my last post, Eshto reactivated then deactivated his Twitter, but not before quoting two of my friends-only posts on Facebook. These have been apparently been shared on a certain thread dedicated to hating on us Skepchick / FtB types on a certain forum. The sharing, including that of a post in which I mentioned that I use marijuana and Ambien, was ostensibly out of concern for Ryan Grant Long. How my personal choices represent something “cruel” I’ve said about him, I will never know.

That said, I’m going to publicly set the record straight: In my view, using legal drugs for their prescribed purpose is nothing to be ashamed of.

I live in California, a medical marijuana state. I have been a legal medical marijuana recommendation holder for several years now. One of the reasons why I have a recommendation is my insomnia. In addition, I have a prescription for generic low dosage Ambien, which also helps with the insomnia.

On Saturday night, after I got home from the art opening, I was annoyed beyond all reason and for good reason. Behaving yourself around someone who has been beyond horrible to your friends is hard work and involves suppressing a lot of impulsive reactions. My insomnia doesn’t always correspond with my mental state, but in this case, I had a lot of leftover adrenaline from what had transpired. I was wound up without outlet.

I sometimes let my insomnia do its thing and resign myself to sleeplessness, but as I had matters to tend to the next day, I decided to handle it. Ambien, more often than not, leaves me groggy, so I turned to the less potentially-harmful drug first. The effects wore off two hours later, leaving me still awake. I took my last resort, Ambien, and managed five hours of sleep, which was better than nothing.

Once more, with feeling: I do not feel ashamed that I use legal drugs for their prescribed purposes. I don’t think anyone else should have to feel that way, either. If anything, American drug laws and policies are mechanisms by which injustice is perpetuated, and I am openly pro-legalization.

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On the Use of Drugs for Their Prescribed Purpose
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7 thoughts on “On the Use of Drugs for Their Prescribed Purpose

  1. 3

    I’m really annoyed that this issue even came up. I simply don’t understand the joy of making trouble for the sake of making trouble, which is at the heart of this. Life’s too damn short to waste that way.

  2. 4

    Your blog is acting a bit weird for me at the moment but I hope my comment goes through. It seems like you’re being excessively generous with people who are gaslighting scumsucking jerks, and I’m sure many of us would not think less of you for banning them from here.

    I’m an atheist and American is in my handle, so you’d think I’d be all up on an American Atheists party. But no, that sounds like a tooth grinding creepy-ass nightmare. Fuck that entire room off, as far as I’m concerned.

  3. 5

    As a person whose attitude is “what goes into one’s body is nobody’s business but one’s own”, my attitude towards drugs is that they should all be legal, whether or not they’re taken for enjoyment or for treating an illness. I am aware of the many potential and real risks and dangers of drugs, but I think that total legalization (and regulation) is the least harmful course of action. Why do so many people have this strange need to control what other people do to themselves or do to others with consent?

  4. 6

    I’ve never used marijuana and never had any desire to start, but I’ve never seen the point of criticizing people who do or making it illegal. The only reason people call it a “gateway drug” is because kids realize they’re being lied to about marijuana, and figure they’re being lied to about the other drugs as well.

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