Define better.
There’s people that think they’re better with a few drinks in them. There’s people that think they’re better when they’re on meth. Same with pretty much every drug.
But drugs are never, ever a one stop shop for self improvement. I’m not talking treating medical conditions here, that’s a different issue entirely.
It doesn’t matter if an a given drug helps, it never fully works in a vacuum. It takes some degree or another of willingness to change, and some degree of work.
Example: roids. Used appropriately, they can help improve your body. But if you just shoot them and stay at home, it’s a waste of money. That being said, I’ve seen way too many otherwise good people turn into wrecks by using them, so don’t unless it’s on a regimented and careful medical plan. So, while the drugs have benefits, they can only give you an edge, they don’t do the work for you.
If you go to something that isn’t as often abused, antidepressants are a great tool in dealing with depression and related illnesses. But they’re a bandaid. If you don’t do the work needed to fix the underlying issue that’s causing the depression, they aren’t any better than weed, or booze, or whatever because they do have side effects that can be just as problematic as use of recreational drugs (as opposed to abuse or dependency, which aren’t the same as having a toke or a drink after work to deal with the stress).
Afaik, there aren’t any drugs, legal or illegal, that improve the self without effort on the part of the patient. Again, this is not about treating an injury, infection, or whatever. It’s about self improvement in the general sense.
Example: roids. Used appropriately, they can help improve your body.
Correction: they can improve aspects of your body, at a very, very steep cost. Pretty much all oral anabolic steroids are C17α-alkylated, and they’re hepatotoxic (i.e., cause liver damage). All steroids will fuck up your lipid profile to one degree or another, and all of them can cause heart disease, specifically hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. While most AASs will increase red blood cell count, Boldenone in particular will sharply increase RBC production, which in turn increases blood pressure and can cause strokes. All of them will shut down the hypothalmus-pituitary-testicular axis (HPTA) feedback loop in men, leading to testicular atrophy. Most AASs will cause hair loss in men that are sensitive to DHT. AASs can fuck up your hormones enough that men can start lactating (!!!). High doses of testosterone can cause gynecomastia, because testosterone aromatizes into estradiol. In women, all AAS will cause some degree of virilization.
There are not very many IFBB pros that make it to 80; if you want your candle to burn brightly, it’s going to burn out fast.
ADHD drugs improve people’s ability to focus and concentrate even without effort on the part of the patient. So that’s a counter-example.
It just improves the ability to focus. It doesn’t really make one focus on the right thing. Also, the alteration in abilities isn’t free. The good effects of any drug are weighed against the side effects. There is always an opportunity cost to any drug. The poster above you was right on with his steroid comparison.
That’s not improvement though, it’s augmentation. It only works while on the drug, no lasting changes.
I mean, I get what you’re saying, but there’s a difference in that bit of semantics that matters.
Stuff like adderal is like using special fuels in a car. You’ll get benefits while on it, but it doesn’t change the engine itself. Something like steroids bores the engine out a cubic inch or so.
Antidepressants are closer to running a fuel with extra detergents. If you stop using the detergent fuel, and then go back to using the old fuels, you’ll just get clogged up again. But if you rebuild the engine piece by piece while using it, you end up with the engine running smoother no matter what fuel you put in.
But, you have a good point, some drugs can become your standard fuel for when you’re driving in the mountains and need better response. Or you can just run that fuel all the time and negate the drag from adhd that hinders your performance overall. Drugs like that, while they don’t actually improve or change the person, keeping them in your system amounts to the same thing when you’ve got an underlying issue that can’t be “rebuilt” in the first place.
They improve your ability to focus, but you still need to make the active decision to concentrate on whatever you need to do. No drug will make you automatically clean your room or do your homework.
Don’t take non-OTC drugs without consulting a physician first. You could really screw yourself up with some of them, the hard stuff especially. The potential ups of doing them aren’t worth the likely losses.
People who take aspirin or ibuprofen take it for a specific purpose, and when they no longer need it, they stop. With things like steroids, heroin, cocaine, and Adderall (if they don’t have specific conditions like ADHD), people frequently end up chasing a horizon that only gets further away the harder they run to catch it. It’s a miserable existence and it causes them, and often their friends and loved ones, endless pain.
You deserve the best from yourself. That includes self-care. You’re more than your flaws and disorders, whatever they may be. Don’t make those an excuse to wreck yourself in pursuit of a goal that probably isn’t real.
What a cracker of a question!
Short answer, yes.
Long answer, what sorts of side effects happen as a result of said medication? I don’t think there’s a single medication or even supplement out there that doesn’t have some sort of side effect (e.g., ibuprofen can cause gut bleeding, iron supplements can lead to constipation, grapefruit can screw with all sorts of medications), so balancing the cost benefit ratio is important.
Which drugs?
I think you answered your own question. If taking drugs actually makes you a better person, of course it’s OK. That’s true for both physical and mental considerations.
But look, you put everything into one definition. What is “better”, who decides, and how do they decide? If you don’t have anywhere to go, you probably won’t get there. Or maybe you will get there but you won’t realize it.
There is much debate on all kinds of drugs, but I can tell you that some of my friends have had various experiences that are relevant. For several friends, acid or shrooms helped them deal with some harsh trauma. For several other friends, various uppers helped them handle ADHD relatively effectively. But of course we all have different problems and goals, so the burden is right back on you to figure out what you want to do. There’s no way around this basic fact of life.
It really depends on the drug and who gave it to you.
When a doctor gives you medication against high blood pressure its to keep you healthy.
When the guy from the gym gives you testosterone that he got from his friend its a very bad idea.
If its a drug you can buy yourself at the store, like caffeine, it really depends on the dosage cause you can get caffeine poisoning.
Regarding stuff like weed or LSD or similar. They shouldn’t be taken regularly because they can be mentally addictive and might further psychological issues or get you over the edge faster regarding psychosis.
And for harder drugs like Heroin, Meth… No. Just no.
Man, I wonder how many people answering this question “need to” have coffee every morning
Being physically better does not make a bully any less of a bully. Being physically better is cool, and practical, but as humans our social interactions and mental health are much more important. Especially in the modern world where physical problems often aren’t major problems anymore.
Talk to your doctor to figure out if medication works for you. It’s helpful to a lot of people. That’s what medication is for.
It’s unfortunate that in some cultures there’s a bit of a taboo on medication
Drugs are fine, great even! If you have the personality type where you can just do them once in a blue moon and not get addicted or do anything that could harm you, or others, or potentially ruin your life.
Although no matter what there’s some you should probably just stay away from. Like heroin or meth.
Depends on what drugs
Mental healþ aids, perfectly fine
Heroin, bro why?
deleted by creator
Does heroin make a person better?
Sure makes ð person taking it þink it can make a person better!
No. And it makes no difference if it’s mental or physical. Take only what’s prescribed by your doctor for medical necessity.
If no, it’s not okay to take drugs to make yourself better, then why would you let your doctor prescribe you meds? I wouldn’t want to take meds for no reason. (Or worse, meds that make me worse off.)
for medical necessity
…to make you better.
