Heroin Addiction in the UK

[Humberto]

In my experience it's deemed acceptable by seemingly otherwise reasonable people to stigmatise and casually use all kinds of slurs against heroin addicts.

There's a fair bit of addiction on Merseyside, as in many places, but from my perspective the addicts are deemed practically a kind of refuse.

 

[Humberto]

Some mother's son or daughter.

 

[farmerbarleymow]

More a medical and social problem that needs a sensible approach, rather than name calling.

 

[tonysingh]

I have compassion for those whose lives are blighted by addiction, that's what i got..

 

[krtek a houby]

Smack rats
Bag heads

What else you got?

A lack of patience. How would you feel if someone put up a thread about alcohol addiction and resorted to slurs about drunks? And for what? What are you trying to achieve here?

 

[dessiato]

One of my sisters was an addict for 15 years. She's clean now and has been for about 15 years.

What would I call her? Beautiful, wonderfully caring, an exceptional woman, someone of whom I'm very proud, loud, full of life, a joy to be around, and many other things.

Addicts, as has been said earlier, are people with a problem. They are still people.

 

[LakieLady]

Addiction often goes hand in hand with undiagnosed mental health conditions, history of trauma, neurodivergence etc.

If, as a society, we were better at indentifying and addressing such problems in children and young people, we might have fewer addicts. And I include alcohol addiction in that.

 

[tonysingh]

One of my sisters was an addict for 15 years. She's clean now and has been for about 15 years.

What would I call her? Beautiful, wonderfully caring, an exceptional woman, someone of whom I'm very proud, loud, full of life, a joy to be around, and many other things.

Addicts, as has been said earlier, are people with a problem. They are still people.

15 years clean is amazing. Well done her.

 

[klang]

X

 

[8ball]

Whats the op about then?
A collection of insults to remind us we are better than them?

Time of posting may be a clue.

 

[klang]

X

 

[dessiato]

15 years clean is amazing. Well done her.

I'm very proud of her for this, especially when I recall how hard she worked to get clean and stay clean.

 

[Numbers]

I don't give a fuck. It's nasty.

Thread should be binned, or initial posts deleted.

dessiato ’s post is brilliant, shame it’s within this shit thread tho’.

 

[Humberto]

No that was my point believe it or not. Was drunk and thread is shit. And I'm gone because. But that was what I meant.

 

[Humberto]

Like, at least in my experience, it's an acceptable stigma. You can love cocaine with no irony and be full on about it. Otherwise reasonable people.

 

[Numbers]

Edit your OP Humberto

 

[Humberto]

Edit your OP Humberto

Thanks. I pactched it up a bit. Sorry guys.

 

[klang]

Thanks. I pactched it up a bit. Sorry guys.

Have edited too

 

[ice-is-forming]

The United Nations and World Health Organisation have clearly stated that pwud are the most stigmatised against group of people globally.

I know you all have good intentions - but language like 'addicts' stopped being used years ago by people working to eliminate stigma, and the word 'clean', continues to perpetuate stigma and discrimination.

What you probably think you know about this subject - because it's the predominant narrative - is likely to to be very wrong compared to best practice, current research and evidence.

 

[danny la rouge]

Worth a read:

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/00380261221150080

I’m not an expert or even close, so I’ll avoid further comment. Provided for information.

 

[BristolEcho]

I read the thread this morning and it was a bit confusing so I'm not sure what the purpose is.

What I will say having just come from a really poor service is that there is still a lot to do when it comes to supporting people who use drugs, and it's important to not "other" them.

If we want to talk about stigma then it's important to reflect on our own stigma and to challenge it. For example I regularly come across people who may view one substance as "acceptable" be it alcohol, cocaine, or whatever, but will then speak about other substances in ways that stigmatise the people who are using that substance.

I don't know... I think the way that we view substance use and dependency are still very archaic and most of the people that I know who have developed dependency have significant trauma that is then compounded by all the stigma that comes with using substances and all the barriers that creates. It's so much harder to access mental health support, housing, healthcare, work etc when you use substances, or have a history of using them.

It's also important to notice people who also face other forms of discrimination for example women, people of colour, disabled people etc will face even more barriers and stigma on top of their substance use.

Oh yeah and fuck the coaricive and unevidenced methadone scripting that demands people must do daily pick ups often in front of the general public and all sorts of barriers put in place to make it impossible to access their medication.

 

[InArduisFouette]

Addiction often goes hand in hand with undiagnosed mental health conditions, history of trauma, neurodivergence etc.

If, as a society, we were better at indentifying and addressing such problems in children and young people, we might have fewer addicts. And I include alcohol addiction in that.

I agree

alcohol , benzos , caffiene , opiates and various other psychoactives all have some of their addicts / misusers using them as an attempt to self medicate things even if it is just to 'quieten a noisy brain' / block out troubling thoughts.

 

[InArduisFouette]

In my experience it's deemed acceptable by seemingly otherwise reasonable people to stigmatise and casually use all kinds of slurs against heroin addicts.

There's a fair bit of addiction on Merseyside, as in many places, but from my perspective the addicts are deemed practically a kind of refuse.

i do think there is a lot of stigma left from the 1980s when IVDUs were the other initial large group of people along side Gay men contracting HIV/AIDS and the way in which the whole tombstone era pulbic information stuff went and healthcare related paranoia aobut BBVs epsecially when Hep B and hepC were not able to be managed effectively

 

[InArduisFouette]

A lack of patience. How would you feel if someone put up a thread about alcohol addiction and resorted to slurs about drunks? And for what? What are you trying to achieve here?

can we fit Humberto's devices with one of those breathalysers ? as humberto himself admits there is an issue with posting while inebriated ....

 

[Silas Loom]

Mote, beam, eye.

 

[krtek a houby]

can we fit Humberto's devices with one of those breathalysers ? as humberto himself admits there is an issue with posting while inebriated ....

That's probably not helpful.

It's best left to the poster to sort themselves out, am fairly sure they know the score at this stage.

 

[8ball]

Hasn’t heard the term “pwud” before.
Can’t see any improvement over older terms tbh.

 

[InArduisFouette]

Hasn’t heard the term “pwud” before.
Can’t see any improvement over older terms tbh.

assuming it's ' people who use drugs' presumably as those promoting the use of that term feel that 'addict' or 'drug user' / 'drug misuser' are stigmatising terms

 

[8ball]

I think “pwud”s turn on the euphemism treadmill might be short-lived.

 

[farmerbarleymow]

assuming it's ' people who use drugs' presumably as those promoting the use of that term feel that 'addict' or 'drug user' / 'drug misuser' are stigmatising terms

Similarly, the term MSM is men who have sex with men - more inclusive than terms that only relate to self-identified gay men, and obviously includes men who don't identify as such.