Hot Button Topics (religion, politics, sports)

[Chocofreak13]

Addiction in the case of alcholhol takes effect when there is an emotional pain or a need to mask emotion.
As someone who likes to drink, I can say that that is the case.
However I do not find myself addicted. I can easily go for long periods of time without a drink with not negative side effects though I know there are cases where there have been. fatigue, hangovers and in some cases, death from cold turkey.

you misunderstand a bit how addiction works; while there are some that use alcohol to numb the pain of depression/etc, many others get addicted due to brain chemistry. addictive personalities, genetic predisposition, etc etc. alcoholism runs in my family, and while depression does too, the pair are not mutually exclusive.

also, you are entitled to your beliefs about meds and i respect that.

@nej: it seems that botox (like viagra) has transcended its original purpose for other needs. it's nice that there's still a use for it, especially since i imagine the addiction/side effect risk is lower than those of heavy-duty painkillers.

also, sheet, hope your fam's okay. are your mum and brother in therapy for it, or having something done surgically? i believe both my parents have some kind of spinal issue (i think they both have either herniated or impacted disks in addition to a host of other problems) and they're both going to physical therapy.

@pent: building a tolerance to painkillers only occurs if you take them on a regular basis, so unless you're in pain every day, taking pills shouldn't be much of a problem.

[NejinOniwa]

No, both of those are done and over with. My mom's been training and yoga-ing a lot more since to make sure she doesn't get any more problems, but the surgeries they had (both of these were a few years back) were quite enough to deal with things.

Based healthcare and whatnot.

[Chocofreak13]

that's good to hear. back problems are a bitch, i know.

[Bella]

I have a relative who got hooked on pain meds due to chronic spine issues (which actually got worse after surgery). He seems to have improved (years ago he predicted he'd need a wheelchair by now, but his mobility's actually gotten better and he no longer needs a cane, even) but I'm not sure whether or not he's still on medication.

Honestly though I hesitate to call it an addition if a person absolutely needs it just to be able to have mobility and some semblance of quality-of-life.

[NejinOniwa]

I believe that's what's called a dependence.

[Chocofreak13]

dependence is the more proper term for it, but sometimes it's not a bad thing (as dependence usually is viewed as). some people literally cannot go through their day without some sort of medicated help.

[SleepyD]

As for me, I tend to eschew taking medicine until i'm surely debilitated and unable to function. I kinda grew up like that. My parents are both in the medical field and are the same way. We have a lot of painkillers in stock, but I hardly ever use them. If I come down with a cold, I tend to just sleep a lot and drink a lot of water. I have a fairly high pain tolerance and I tend to get over colds and aches pretty quickly, so I think I'm okay without the painkillers.

They certainly have their place though, and taking it when the pain hinders normal function is okay with me. Whether that normal function means "able to work" or "able to stare at 2D prons on my screen" is up to the person taking it. As long as the person knows the limits of said drugs and keeps within those limits, then it's all fine with me. What you do with your meds is your business, not mine. I have a preference to not take drugs the instant I feel pain, and you might feel otherwise. But that's what it is, a preference.

And as a side note:
Can't say I'm one that drinks a lot. I don't use alcohol as a social lubricant or a emotional safety net. I'm closer to a foodie when it comes to alcohol, really. (which doesn't bode well for the wallet, so it's even more incentive to not drink a lot)

[Chocofreak13]

hahaha, food is my anti-booze. i like that.

i tend to be a wimp when it comes to colds, but that's mostly because i did and still do get them SO FUCKING OFTEN it's like i'm constantly sick in the winter (in fact, i claim to be). as such, i keep a steady supply of Nyquil on hand (not as big a fan of Dayquil, though), since though it's been reviled by some, i swear by it when i'm sick. dries your nose right up and knocks you right out. pair that up with a can of campbell's and you have my level 1 sick treatment all winter (late october - early april) long.

my family tends to be the same way about pills. both my parents have arthritis/pain issues, though, so they both take aleve during the day. my pain is bad, but i've gotten in the habit of ignoring it since i was about 12 or so (not a good practice AT ALL), so i usually only take painkillers when i have a stubborn headache. usually, though, i try to self-medicate with caffeine beforehand to make sure that withdrawal isn't the cause.

[Simonorged]

http://www.businessinsider.com/originalguy-the-icloud-hacker-who-leaked-naked-celebrity-photos-2014-9#ixzz3CGYKTVwn

'OriginalGuy': The Full Story Of The iCloud Hacker Who Leaked Those Naked Celebrity Photos
There are articles  out now that state that a few of the images are of (at the time in the photos) underage girls.

And a Donation following for prostate cancer. Which in all seriousness is a bad joke.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2740481/How-Reddit-one-stop-shop-celebrity-iCloud-photos.html
Prostate cancer charity gives back Reddit donations after online forum offering advice on how to share hacked celebrity photos raises $6,000 'in honour of Jennifer Lawrence'


Discuss?

[Bella]

Sleepy, we same to have the same mindset vis-a-vis medicine and alcohol. I'd probably drink (occasionally) if I could actually afford nice booze, lol

[Chocofreak13]

figured this might interest someone.

http://www.thedp.com/article/2014/09/sadness-isnt-beautiful

[Chocofreak13]

Your Thoughts on Ferguson?

[Bella]

Everything considered, the whole incident is tragic (unarmed theft and a confrontation with a store clerk should NEVER end with somebody being killed, period) and I feel terrible for Mike Brown's family and the community as a whole. However if Mike Brown DID indeed attempt to grab Officer Wilson's firearm, as the forensic evidence suggests, I believe Wilson was justified in using deadly force to defend himself. (Police officers being killed with their own weapons isn't super common but it does happen - 3 of the 72 officers killed in 2011 were killed with their own weapons, and 5 had their weapons stolen before they were murdered.)

[Chocofreak13]

i find the whole incident revolting and think the officer should have been prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. if you're going to represent it, live it bitch.

this is an incident in which i would adore seeing him strung up on a tree. poetic justice done where actual justice was not. despite any allegations against the victim, and any past crimes, real OR imagined, an unarmed, college-bound teenager is dead, and a cop is the cause. this not only could have been handled better, it could have been handled, PERIOD, rather than just letting a bullet sweep up the trash like usual. >>;

the police are corrupt and the supreme court disgusts me. i officially have no faith in this country sans the ability to panic over indirect, phantom threats and the ability to protect the status quo. if it weren't for the massive volume of cons here, i'd toy with the idea of moving to canada or europe.

[Bella]

Honestly, I do not care if a person is black or white, a man or woman, young or old, a college bound teen, a mother of five, a nun, a PhD student, a doctor, a gangster or what - if they attempt to pull a weapon from a cop they have to expect anything that comes next. Does that make it any less tragic? Of course not. The loss of a human life will always be a tragedy. But cops have every right to act on their self preservation instincts also. Barring a conspiracy (which I do not believe in as a general rule) Brown was not retreating when he was shot - it occured in the midst of a struggle.

That said, I do believe that we need to seriously examine police response with regards to PoC and have discussions about police militarization and brutality. Those are real problems and they're terrifying. However, it makes me cringe seeing this particular case compared to to the murders of Trayvon Martin, Jordan Davis, Renisha McBride and countless other unarmed African Americans who have been attacked or killed for simply going about their daily lives.