Getting High, Why?
Welcome to From Insults To Respect. Today, we begin with the question, Why do we like getting high?
Many people, for their New Year’s resolution, seek to cut back, or even completely give up, drinking or consuming other drugs. They have begun to wonder why they have been spending so much money and time on this activity. They may recognize that although for many the use of these substances is an enormously popular pastime, it comes with known and unknown risks. Yes, it may lead to feelings of pleasure, relaxation, euphoria, and pleasant distortions of perceptions. It may also help to escape discomfort, or to enhance certain experiences such as social interactions, music listening, or the enjoyment of meals.
Moreover, certain substances can temporarily ease feelings of stress, anxiety, or depression; or boost confidence, energy or attention. Although these experiences are often viewed as positive, their use can enter into intrapersonal and interpersonal negative situations. If one becomes viewed as a sloppy drinker or an addict, respect can suffer. The recognition that the perceived positive effects are so very temporary, can be physically harmful as well as mask the need to address underlying issues, are frequent reasons I hear for drug and alcohol New Year’s resolutions.
Social and Cultural Influences
Peer pressure, cultural norms, and media portrayals are powerful influencers of drug use. Media are particularly powerful for normalizing, encouraging, romanticizing, and glamorizing drug use, making it seem appealing.
For adolescents, experimenting with drugs can be an exciting form of rebellion, a way to assert independence, or define their identity. Moreover, if peers believe that a substance will make one feel happy, relaxed, or adventurous, one may be more likely to have these experiences when consuming them.
In time, tolerance to these substances typically occurs, and a person may feel compelled to use larger and larger amounts.This can lead to damaged relationships, job loss, and create significant financial strain. Or it can be a reason to entirely give the drug up.
The Getting High Experience As Expressed In Songs
Above, I’ve tried to give you a pretty good idea why people get high, and why they might resolve to ease off these substances that lead one there. But, it seems to me, that we can get a much better sense of such experiences by considering the lyrics of a few songs.
The first of these is “The Bottle Let Me Down,” an introspective piece sung by Willie Nelson in his relaxed, behind-the-beat, off-center phrasing that is accompanied by his distinctive guitar playing. If you think alcohol can always pick you up no matter what, here’s a little tale that just might change your mind.
“The Bottle Let Me Down”
Each night I leave the bar room when it’s overNot feeling any pain at closing time
But tonight your memory found me much too sober
Couldn’t drink enough to keep you off my mind
And let your memory come around
The one true friend I thought I’d found
Tonight the bottle let me down
I’ve always had a bottle I could turn to
And lately I’ve been turnin’ every day
But the wine don’t take effect the way it used to
And I’m hurtin’ in old familiar ways
and let your memory come around
The one true friend I thought I’d found
Tonight the bottle let me down
The next song, “Seeds And Stems (Again)” is by Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen. Its heartfelt piano and violin playing captures beautifully the mournful feeling that occurs when a pot smoker is left with just seeds and stems. For those of you who buy pot from fancy legal stores, you might become confused about what the title is referring to, so, let me explain. In the old days, your purchase didn’t just come with leaves and buds, the part of the plant that, when smoked, got you high. You also got useless seeds and stems, which is what you would end up with when the intoxicating part of your purchase was all gone.“Seeds And Stems (Again)”
There’s some fine piano and violin playing on this one.
A bottle of wine, some cigarettes, I got no place to go
Well, I saw your other man today; he was wearing my brand new shoes
And I’m down to seeds and stems again, too
He had the prettiest little gal that I’d ever seen
But I couldn’t hide my tears at all, cause she looked just like you
And I’m down to seeds and stems again, too
They don’t seem to understand I’m too far gone to try
And I’m down to seeds and stems again, too
The finance company dropped by today and repossessed my home
That’s just a drop in the bucket compared to losing you
And I’m down to seeds and stems again, too
Got the down to seeds and stems again blues
The final song for today’s post is sung by Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson. It tells us about another way one might get high.“I Can Get Off On You”
Take back the pills, take back the whiskey too
I don’t need them now
Or nothing at all
Take back the pills, take back the whiskey too
I don’t need them now, your love was all I was after
I’ll make it now, I can get off on you.
This was somethin’ that I’d ever do
Mellowing out on you.
Take back the pills, take back the whiskey too
I don’t need them now, your love was all I was after
I’ll make it now, I can get off on you
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Some people will enjoy reading this blog by beginning with the first post and then moving forward to the next more recent one; then to the next one; and so on. This permits readers to catch up on some ideas that were presented earlier and to move through all of the ideas in a systematic fashion to develop their emotional intelligence. To begin at the very first post you can click HERE.
Hi Jeff, I would like to stress that alcohol, cannabis, and drug use are a direct path to psychiatric emergencies and lifelong drug intoxication together with psychosocial disability. That’s because some physicians claim to see this as incurable biological diseases called schizophrenia or bipolar disorder or other things, without any proof. There are recent studies which are trying to demonstrate a causal link between heavy cannabis use and schizophrenia lifelong labels.
I think these substances are used by some young people to mask the inadequacy of their personalities, shaped by childhood abuse of various kinds, or by older traumas, dating back to past lives of their soul. I think this is best addressed through self-work, with a period of preparation, including withdrawal from all intoxicants. I think Pierre Janet and others explained this. It’s also my own personal story.
Hi Luc,
Thanks for sharing your perspective on this. You begin by writing, “drug use are a direct path to psychiatric emergencies and lifelong drug intoxication together with psychosocial disability.” I think much of what you describe are real possibilities. In my view, drug use can be an indirect path to all that you say rather than a direct path because I have seen some people who use these substances for a lifetime without experiencing psychiatric emergencies and lifelong drug intoxication together with psychosocial disability. There are a great number of people who do experience what you describe, and it is important that people like yourself point this out..
Sorry that your personal story has had such rough aspects to it.
My best,
Jeff