What actually causes drug abuse?
What causes heroin addiction?
Well, heroin causes heroin addiction.
Does it?
Doesn’t it?
Let’s go back to the beginning. I am fascinated by human history, more specifically pre-history, hunter gatherers. I often find the answers to so many of my questions by looking back. Let’s look back at the relationship our early ancestors had with higher states of consciousness, aka getting high.
Every single human culture: our culture, the so called ‘civilised’, The Gabusi of New Guinea, The Bushmen of Africa, The Inuit of the Arctic, I shan’t go on; everyone of these cultures — including ours — has had, does have & will always have a spiritual, social or ceremonial relationship with substances that alter our state of consciousness. Excluding our chemically obsessed culture, most tend to use plants, such as mushrooms, ayahuasca brews amongst many. The Inuit struggle to find such plants in the frozen land of the Arctic — so they starve themselves. No, this is not missing lunch and dinner — more like weeks of fasting. This relationship has existed over 3 million years & will never cease to exist.
It begs the question, why are some people able to use these substances, have a positive reaction & not become addicted? While others (it’s actually only 10%) do the opposite? Let me tell you another fact: Morphine is the purest form of heroin, the good shit, the Walter White product (but better). So if your grandma’s had a hip replacement, she’s had the purest, most potent heroin you can imagine. Addict? I think not.
During the Vietnam war 25% of soldiers were frequent heroin users, Nixon and gang at the White House where worried that this would create a huge influx of addicts, fuelling demand for dealers and the whole trade. So, these returning soldiers were carefully studied. 95% stopped once they got home. Applying the commonly believed theory, that the chemicals in the drugs cause a physical addiction — Heroin causes heroin addiction right? — this makes no sense.
Let’s make this clear — people do NOT become addicted to SUBSTANCES. People become abusers of substances when they can longer stand to be present in their lives. These returning soldiers were with the families in a much more comfortable setting, not a war-zone where they might be blown up at any moment. They now had reason to be present in their lives; abusers of alcohol, coke, weed, heroin, etc. abuse because they don’t have anything in their lives to be ‘around’ for.
With this in mind, I believe we need to rethink how we treat abusers. Isolating them? Jailing them? Ostracising them? Will this give them a life they’ll want to be ‘around’ for? Or will it lead to continued abuse? I think the latter. Let’s show compassion, care, love.
A massive thank you to, writer, Johann Hari for the work you’ve put in on this topic.
And to Daniel Vitails to hosting Johann in a truly eye opening interview.
They don’t just stop at addiction — the drug war & legalising drugs are discussed in a much more eloquent fashion than I could so here’s the link guys — give a listen. Worthwhile!
Rafiki x
Author: Rafiki
Originally published at comeasyouareblog.com
