Your personal experience re. the meth problem in Thailand ?

[little mary sunshine]

My personal experience is limited to watching these junkies and freaks on

the nightly news making their lives miserable and the lives of those around

them a nightmare.

I go out of my way to avoid contact with these as# hol#@....just bunch of loosers..........

[Chicken George]

Alcohol is a pussy compared to Yaba.

[ultimate weapon]

I tried LSD back in the late 70s, but once was enough to scare me off any form of hallucinogen. Despite being born into a family with a long history of alcohol problems, I've enjoyed drinking since I was 16 or so, but I've also seen the damage it does. I can drink every night for 3 months and then go without for 9 months - currently one drink in the last 20 months - but I've know people who have to make a conscious effort to 'dry out', and they are only 'social' drinkers.

Had a friend at Uni who claimed speed (another amphetamine) allowed her to do something like a 'move out clean' - she would just clean for 36 hours straight. Truck drivers use it for the same reason, but that lone LSD experience told me everything I need to know about drugs. To be fair, I've had hangovers where I've felt much the same way about alcohol, but it's rarely been as profound as the morning after that 'bad trip'.

All that aside, look at the photos in that article I linked to earlier. We've all seen the 'before and after' mugshots of crack addicts - those photos look just as nasty. Who the hell wants to look like that ?

I took weed by smoking it through a bong and boy did it screw me up. I couldn't handle the feeling of being high. I also smoked weed through blunts but that was ok.

The high feeling was like it somehow made me unable to control my limbs. I had to lie down cos i couldn't stand straight. I felt like i wasn't able to control my body at all so i had to lie down and wait i think for hours before that feeling subsided. I don't know why so many people like that high feeling they say that weed/marijuana should be legalized and you can smoke it openly in amsterdam but i didn't feel good at all.

[chrisrazz]

One of the wifes teenage boys was using. Luckily for him he's the sort that just can't lie. So, when we caught on to him, we tested him. He was positive. His uncle is a cop, we arranged for him to be arrested, put him in the lock up for 3 days. The cops offered him the 45 day rehab or a psychiatrist. He signed an agreement with the doctor to undergo 6 weeks of therapy, he was to be randomly tested throughout and was shown videos for aversion therapy. Often the sessions included his mother and/or girlfriend. He was never bad, but, so easily could have been if he'd stayed with his peers. We, together with his GF family conpsired to get them both away. They are now working hard and making good money and as a consequence no worry for the families.

I've had a lot of experience with various drugs, never been addicted or impaired, though I have shied away from real nasties. Everybody is different, I did a lot of reading and research prior, so, for me it was a matter of wanting the experience armed with as much knowledge as to the consequences. In the case of meth, I have no desire.

Edited November 13, 2013 by chrisrazz

[Wimbledon]

Meth is the only drug i can speak on It is highly addictive and the coming down or of it once taken ascends lower and lower so its comparison is like a partime binger . One night drunk is a two day 48 hour hangover although there is an added and the most negative result paranoa!!!!!!' yaba , crack, meth in the final analysis much different than achohal . you can cover it up a lot . These drugs meth maybe being a higher class drug , they all create Massive paranoa , and addictive, and they will selltheir children or? ( like a perpetual gambler ruin everything associated with them ..... Anyone who has a loved one who cares has to take the gloves off ,.... And i MEAN IT .. DO WHATEVER IT TAKES .....with not taking one syllable they say ...Dont trust them and seize any opportunity to remove them from this addiction .... Its ahuge challenge ....many people dont understand it .... They must be treated severely and tricked out of this lifestyle or families , loved ones suffer terribly and death is acommon result! Massively tough love is the only chance they habe!

Edited November 13, 2013 by Wimbledon

[HardenedSoul]

Meth is the only drug i can speak on It is highly addictive and the coming down or of it once taken ascends lower and lower so its comparison is like a partime binger . One night drunk is a two day 48 hour hangover although there is an added and the most negative result paranoa!!!!!!' yaba , crack, meth in the final analysis much different than achohal . you can cover it up a lot . These drugs meth maybe being a higher class drug , they all create Massive paranoa , and addictive, and they will selltheir children or? ( like a perpetual gambler ruin everything associated with them ..... Anyone who has a loved one who cares has to take the gloves off ,.... And i MEAN IT .. DO WHATEVER IT TAKES .....with not taking one syllable they say ...Dont trust them and seize any opportunity to remove them from this addiction .... Its ahuge challenge ....many people dont understand it .... They must be treated severely and tricked out of this lifestyle or families , loved ones suffer terribly and death is acommon result!

Sounds like this geezer's still on it

[Wimbledon]

Notice only 1 comment on this particular thread that sounds like a...... Well lets leave at that.. Likely has no family that it cares about

Edited November 13, 2013 by Wimbledon

[Tapster]

Like Neeranam and HardenedSoul, I have to agree that alcohol is the worst drug in the world, defined by number of users and total damage done, both physically and mentally.

I the 80s my best friend became a heroin addict and that was very sad. He later became an alcoholic and once (that I know of) drank his own vomit to get back all the alcohol that he'd 'wasted'!

Would any of you do that?

This is an argument that can go on and on BUT those who have been close to drug addiction and to drug taking in general do know that it's the psyche of the user that it the biggest factor in addiction.

There is no drug in the world to which you will become addicted on the first try if you're not the right type of person. The problem is that some people try heroin/crystal meth/cocaine etc. and find that it is what they have always been looking for. It fills a hole (maybe) and makes them feel like the person they've always dreamt themselves to be. That's very sad but it's less due to the drug than the person.

I don't think all drugs should be legalised.

I do wonder, however, if there is something missing in what Thai culture instils into it's young people right now that makes ya ba fill a need that they have???

[thailiketoo]

Like Neeranam and HardenedSoul, I have to agree that alcohol is the worst drug in the world, defined by number of users and total damage done, both physically and mentally.

I the 80s my best friend became a heroin addict and that was very sad. He later became an alcoholic and once (that I know of) drank his own vomit to get back all the alcohol that he'd 'wasted'!

Would any of you do that?

This is an argument that can go on and on BUT those who have been close to drug addiction and to drug taking in general do know that it's the psyche of the user that it the biggest factor in addiction.

There is no drug in the world to which you will become addicted on the first try if you're not the right type of person. The problem is that some people try heroin/crystal meth/cocaine etc. and find that it is what they have always been looking for. It fills a hole (maybe) and makes them feel like the person they've always dreamt themselves to be. That's very sad but it's less due to the drug than the person.

I don't think all drugs should be legalised.

I do wonder, however, if there is something missing in what Thai culture instils into it's young people right now that makes ya ba fill a need that they have???

By God we can make anything anti Thai can't we. Ya Ba is crystal meth. The United States government reported in 2008 that approximately 13 million people over the age of 12 have used methamphetamine—and 529,000 of those are regular users. In 2007, 4.5% of American high-school seniors and 4.1% of tenth grade students reported using methamphetamine at least once in their life. The Czech Republic, Sweden, Finland, Slovakia and Latvia reported amphetamines and methamphetamine as accounting for between 20% and 60% of those seeking drug abuse treatment.

Edited November 13, 2013 by thailiketoo

[sangsom69]

At the risk of appearing flippant, what surprises me most is why anyone would get addicted to such a crap drug like ya baa. The feeling is negligible, you smell like stale chocolate and it's effect is akin to taking a few pro plus. So, I'm told :-) Maybe TV expats whou='ve been here a while could clarify whether pre Thakisn it was sold openly for long distance truck drivers and the like: is that hearsay?

But to be serious, the detailing of the tragic story of the guy whose missus was hooked on meth is a warning against addiction and not a drug per se, and addiction can be devastating whether it's a legal or illegal drug.

The difference I notice in drug use between the UK and Thailand is the lack of drug education or awareness about what is acceptable drug use (obviously to hardliners none is acceptable but then they get all confused about their own legal narcotics of choice) and the dangers of addiction. I come from a generation where recreational drug use is acceptable and nothing to be frowned upon, and judging by the successful careers my friends enjoyed had no negative impact upon them. But they knew when to draw the line, they were informed about drug use. Compare that to the bug-eyed bar girl who tells you she love ice because give you power. There seems to be a ridiculous class status in Thailand where ice users look down their noses at ya baa uses, equating the higher expense with higher quality even though both are probably made from skanky ingredients in a Cambo or Burmese lab. And, it appears despite relatively draconian drug laws, it's spreading though that's only anecdotal.

As another poster mentioned, the poor get the worse end of the stick getting banged up, while others will buy themselves out of trouble, and this being Thailand there are a fair few places where the cops will be paid by dealers to recycle product and stay off their backs. Given that it's not going to go away however much they escalate punitive policies, it'd be nice to see some more preventative measures in place and better education about the effects of takings such drugs on daily, long term basis, as when long term ice use ages you prematurely and many female users thinks it makes them look beautiful, there's a clear gap in informed use.

[DoctorB]

Addressing this topic from a purely pragmatic point of view, I found on the couple of occasions when I tried it that crystal meth (ice) really is very poor value for money. It cost around 3,000 baht per gram in Bangkok, enough perhaps for a couple of days, the pleasure effects I found were absolutely minimal, and the undesirable ones, like not sleeping for 48 hours and the feeling of restlessness and frustration, difficult to bear. The disastrous long term effects are too well known to need listing here; just see the online photographs. I would stress that I have only tried it because I was in bad company for the evening and on my way out to Europe where I have no drug contacts, so there would be no temptation to take more, thus removing the risk of dependency (and also at 70 years of age I wanted to know, before my time was up). On the other hand marijuana in Thailand is dynamite, giving an amazing "bang per buck" ratio. Before anyone starts on me I must stress I do not recommend anyone to take drugs of any sort. You risk prison and destroying your health. I'm just telling it as I found it to try and move away from endlessly re-cycled received opinions.

[A1Str8]

^{Ice is evil.}

 

^{My ex got hooked.}

 

^Result?

 

^{Marriage destroyed, two kids with no parents.}

^{She is selling herself in Singapore.}

^{She lost 10 million baht worth of houses that were owned outright. They were bringing in 70,000THB per month rental income.}

^{A 1.3 million baht Toyota gone.}

 

^{I can't visit my kids because I don't trust I will remain alive. I know, dramatic but after 7 years of separation I still get constant death threats "you come thailand you die" "you gib me money or you die" "I cant take care of the kids, please come and take the kids" 5 mins later "You come thai you die" "F*&^k you" "I already pay man for you die if you come thailand"}

 

^{Ice turned her into a raving lunatic and she has sunk to become the lowest form of life.}

 

^{It happened slowly at first, she would go out and come back late. Then she stopped coming home for days and when she did get home she looked like she had spent the last week in a brothel.}

^{She became violent. I dodged knife attacks, hurled objects, vuccuum cleaner pipes and so on.}

 

^{I had no choice but to leave (I needed work, and I got work in Indonesia). Leaving was more an escape. A fellow TV member answered my call for help one night and come to pick me up. Only I was being held against my will by the Father and the Uncle. The ex was hitting me with a chair.}

^{I managed to shake myself free and dived into my mates car as he was driving off.}

 

^{I know, people will call BS on this story. I dont mind.}

 

^{Ice is the devil MrWW. The devil.}

 

^{(I just know I will regret posting this)}

 

 

That's a sad story. I wish you the best in the future.

...if it was me I would come back for sure and make it painfully clear to her that she is not going to threaten me once again or tell me not to come back. She would get it.

[Halion]

I'm involved with the largest drug rehab in Thailand, where I have been going regularly(once a week or more) for the past 9 years.

Ya ba is bad and everywhere at the moment. It does seem to come and go though.

IMHO there is a bigger problem with alcohol as it is legal. The Ya Ba addicts have a lower recidivism rate than the alcoholics. Which is worse? I'd say alcohol by a long shot.

Not everyone gets addicted to Ya Ba - I didn't years ago, when it was called Ya Maa. Not everyone gets addicted to alcohol. It is stupid to make one legal and the other not.

Do nor really understand the point you are trying to make and your statistical claims defy the medical and criminal evidence. Recidivism expressed per capita of users is far higher with drugs such as crystal meth (yaba ice) than with alcohol. Both are truly drugs and posses addiction triggers, however, the addiction rate of Ice is one of the highest in the world and far beyond alcohol . Further the use /abuse level than can be tolerated by the body without inherent and irreversible damage is far more detrimental with Yaba ice.

There is little question that those of us above 50 have all had personal knowledge of friends and acquaintances having their lives destroyed and also the lives of those around them through alcohol however ,there is no sane or logical arguement that can be made to justify the legalistion of class 1 substances.

[Tapster]

@

thailiketoo

I'm sorry you interpreted my post as in any way anti-Thai........it wasn't.

The OP was looking for experiences and maybe a reason for the crystal meth problem in Thailand and I ventured a hypothesis based on my experience of crystal meth.

It's a particularly big problem in the Pacific North West of the USA - Washington State especially. I have been there several times and the nearly 400 inches of rain per year would drive me to some sort of drug, I'm sure!

In Mexico (been there too) and many other hot places (been to many as well) there is a culture of 'mañana' but it doesn't drive them to drugs all the time.

In Thailand the weather is too benevolent to drive me to drug dependence so I'm simply suggesting that there may be a social or cultural issue.

I don't think many Westerners in Thailand are addicted to crystal meth, so why are so many Thais?

Raising this question isn't Thai-bashing any more than asking why farms in Zimbabwe which were taken over by black Zimbabweans have largely been run poorly, is black-Zimbabwean-bashing.

[thailiketoo]

@

thailiketoo

I'm sorry you interpreted my post as in any way anti-Thai........it wasn't.

The OP was looking for experiences and maybe a reason for the crystal meth problem in Thailand and I ventured a hypothesis based on my experience of crystal meth.

It's a particularly big problem in the Pacific North West of the USA - Washington State especially. I have been there several times and the nearly 400 inches of rain per year would drive me to some sort of drug, I'm sure!

In Mexico (been there too) and many other hot places (been to many as well) there is a culture of 'mañana' but it doesn't drive them to drugs all the time.

In Thailand the weather is too benevolent to drive me to drug dependence so I'm simply suggesting that there may be a social or cultural issue.

I don't think many Westerners in Thailand are addicted to crystal meth, so why are so many Thais?

Raising this question isn't Thai-bashing any more than asking why farms in Zimbabwe which were taken over by black Zimbabweans have largely been run poorly, is black-Zimbabwean-bashing.

There are many meth heads in Washington State. Most of those addicted are American. I wonder why there are not too many Thais Washington State that are addicted?

You wrote, "I don't think many Westerners in Thailand are addicted to crystal meth, so why are so many Thais?" Because not many Westerners live in Thailand mostly Thai people live in Thailand.

Ps. If you want to respond to a post please quote the post. In this case your first post where you wrote, "I do wonder, however, if there is something missing in what Thai culture instils into it's young people right now that makes ya ba fill a need that they have???" was clearly anti Thai as the meth problem is a world wide problem no more common in Thailand than CA or WA.

Edited November 13, 2013 by thailiketoo

[mrtoad]

A number of posters have decided to make this a ranking order of what is worse, from my own work experience we should look more at the addiction, as opposed to the specific substance. Irrespective, addiction of any substance causes all sorts of problems. Sorry though to piss on ones fire, Tobacco products are seen as the number one killer if we are looking at addictive substances, it's just that the social impact is far less , talking about crime etc.

Interesting points have been made, and there are certainly regional variations in substance of choice.So far the Meth problem is not widespread in the UK, whereas in Australia it is far more prevalent. In this region there are varying differences, country to country.

An interesting topic.

Edited November 13, 2013 by mrtoad

[MegaRanter]

Hope my sons don't ever fancy these kind of stuff.

Anything I can legally buy should be ok. The rest depends on upbringing and personal convictions.

[thailiketoo]

Hope my sons don't ever fancy these kind of stuff.

Anything I can legally buy should be ok. The rest depends on upbringing and personal convictions.

Legal highs flooding UK pose immense overdose risk, warns drugs tsar

Users face growing threat from 200-plus synthetic drugs in circulation across UK, says government's chief drugs adviser.

http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2013/may/16/legal-highs-risk-overdose-drugs-tsar

[tingtongteesood]

No experience' whatsoever. I have enough good sense to steer clear of it.

[Tapster]

@

thailiketoo

I'm sorry you interpreted my post as in any way anti-Thai........it wasn't.

The OP was looking for experiences and maybe a reason for the crystal meth problem in Thailand and I ventured a hypothesis based on my experience of crystal meth.

It's a particularly big problem in the Pacific North West of the USA - Washington State especially. I have been there several times and the nearly 400 inches of rain per year would drive me to some sort of drug, I'm sure!

In Mexico (been there too) and many other hot places (been to many as well) there is a culture of 'mañana' but it doesn't drive them to drugs all the time.

In Thailand the weather is too benevolent to drive me to drug dependence so I'm simply suggesting that there may be a social or cultural issue.

I don't think many Westerners in Thailand are addicted to crystal meth, so why are so many Thais?

Raising this question isn't Thai-bashing any more than asking why farms in Zimbabwe which were taken over by black Zimbabweans have largely been run poorly, is black-Zimbabwean-bashing.

There are many meth heads in Washington State. Most of those addicted are American. I wonder why there are not too many Thais Washington State that are addicted?

You wrote, "I don't think many Westerners in Thailand are addicted to crystal meth, so why are so many Thais?" Because not many Westerners live in Thailand mostly Thai people live in Thailand.

Ps. If you want to respond to a post please quote the post. In this case your first post where you wrote, "I do wonder, however, if there is something missing in what Thai culture instils into it's young people right now that makes ya ba fill a need that they have???" was clearly anti Thai as the meth problem is a world wide problem no more common in Thailand than CA or WA.

Sorry, man.

I'm quite new to forums and I thought that '@Thailiketoo' was the way to address you, specifically.

No worries, I'll quote in future.

All I want to do in this post is show you that I am very much not anti-Thai. My experience since 1987 has led me to quite the opposite position.

You said:

There are many meth heads in Washington State. Most of those addicted are American. I wonder why there are not too many Thais Washington State that are addicted?

As a 'hard scientist' (as they say these days), I have to say that your statement doesn't make any point at all, really.

Sorry, but you might as well say, 'why are there fewer North Americans addicted to crystal meth in Thailand, than Thais?'. The demographics speak for themselves.

My point in that quoted post was only that there are regional factors which might predispose someone to drug addiction, if they were already psychologically susceptible to addiction.

​You also said that my suggestion:

"I do wonder, however, if there is something missing in what Thai culture instils into it's young people right now that makes ya ba fill a need that they have???"

was......"clearly anti Thai as the meth problem is a world wide problem no more common in Thailand than CA or WA."

Look, I may be putting my points in a way that makes you feel that I am anti-Thai, but that's 'your stuff', not mine.

Of course the crystal meth issue is world-wide. I am simply looking for a reason why it is so prevalent in young people in Thailand at the moment.

Ready availability in Thailand doesn't help, however it's readily available in the UK where I come from and there isn't a high proportion of addicts. People I know in the UK say that crystal meth is very expensive there, but it's also very pure, so why isn't everyone getting hooked?

Addiction is obviously a multi-factorial issue and I was simply suggesting that there might be a social issue in Thailand.

That doesn't make me anti-Thai.

A hypothesis is suggested in order to be disproved by evidence. I have no problem finding out that my hypothesis is complete rubbish.

P.S.

That's my rant over. I will not start flaming all over the place. If you met me, you'd know that I wasn't anti-Thai.

[hellodolly]

Some of the issues with YaBa in Thailand is continuing esculation of violent street crime, road safety, contribution to the endemic corruption in law enforcement agencies and so on. I know some Thais, via my Thai family, who were caught in possession for sale and all they did was 'compensate' the RTP and released back on the streets. If they don't have enough cash just borrow on the black market. Same applies for those tested positive for YaBa, to avoid rehab sentence of 45 days, just compensate the cops and the cycle continues. As a generalisation it's the poor who are the ones who do jail time; in reality was does that achieve in the longer term?

Where I live in East Pattaya, in a matter of hours, 80 Thais were tested positive for YaBa during a road check point exercise. Alcohol is well know for damage to people & society, but YaBa in Thailand has far worse overall ramifications.

Well having had a little experience in the area I can assure you that yaba may have far more ramifications but it comes no where near doing the damage that alcohol does.

That is part of the overall problem here in Thailand. They treat each drug separately even legalize the one. The 45 day rehab is nothing but a joke. There is no Government rehabilitation center in Thailand that is any way connected with a treatment centers for addicts. Back where I come from I was involved with a government treatment center that tried different methods The best they could come up with was a 8% recovery rate. Many of the clients had been through several different treatment centers. Treatment centers had the nick name of three hots and a cot.

It is not commonly known but a percentage of the problem lies in the addiction to the life style. Years ago I had some one very close to me go to jail for drug related crimes in the states. Actually it was 24 years ago. My brother who had worked in the field and had a college degree in working with others told me you can take the drugs out of the addict but you can not take the street out of the addict. Here we are 24 years later and he has 3 years clean. Yes he went through a treatment center but it was no help. He finally reached a bottom where his life was not even acceptable to himself and reached out to a 12 step program.

Here in Thailand it is almost imposable for a Thai to admit he/she can not control it. It is part of the save face at all cost culture. The cabins was mentioned go up and see how many Thais they have there. They are all from other countries. There is not much hope for Thailand as long as the BIB allow it. Yes I know once in a while they will put on a big show but nothing ever comes of it, Also people must learn that there are times when saving your face will kill you as well as hurt people that truly care for you. Back home I knew of cases where couples split up over the ones using. The one leaving the other would say they loved their partner but could not stand watching them kill themselves.

There is no way of judging a treatment center on it's rate of recovered addicts. They may not use for a period of time some times years but the majority go back to their drugs. They can more than likely claim a good rate of recovery for 6 months but no where as good a one for one year.

[meom]

Alcohol is a pussy compared to Yaba.

LOL.

With alcohol you want to get it up but you can't while with Ya-Ice once you get it up you can't seem to get it down anymore which explains some of it's party popularity.

It's also way more sociable then coke.

Try having a party with a few grams of coke on the coffee table. After a few lines everybody's eyes remain fixed on whatever's left on the table and you can kiss your party goodbye.

With Ice people smoke a bit and they're ok for the next couple hours and everybody just continues having fun.

Sure it's not something to do all the time but plenty of people around that seem to enjoy their hard drugs recreationally.

[hellodolly]

Meth is the only drug i can speak on It is highly addictive and the coming down or of it once taken ascends lower and lower so its comparison is like a partime binger . One night drunk is a two day 48 hour hangover although there is an added and the most negative result paranoa!!!!!!' yaba , crack, meth in the final analysis much different than achohal . you can cover it up a lot . These drugs meth maybe being a higher class drug , they all create Massive paranoa , and addictive, and they will selltheir children or? ( like a perpetual gambler ruin everything associated with them ..... Anyone who has a loved one who cares has to take the gloves off ,.... And i MEAN IT .. DO WHATEVER IT TAKES .....with not taking one syllable they say ...Dont trust them and seize any opportunity to remove them from this addiction .... Its ahuge challenge ....many people dont understand it .... They must be treated severely and tricked out of this lifestyle or families , loved ones suffer terribly and death is acommon result! Massively tough love is the only chance they habe!

What you say about getting them off it is true if you can get them early enough, After a while you have to let them find their own way. It can be a very ugly scene no matter what the drug is.

Your picture reminded me of a fellow I knew years ago who overdosed in an abandoned warehouse. When they found his body three days later his dog was protecting him.

I then looked closer at your picture. Entirely possible when under the influence of any drug.

[danbradster]

My experience is...not even hearing anybody talk about it or of anybody using it in 2 years here (in an Isaan city). I mainly know lecturers and university students. The only mention I've seen is a drug dealer in this province getting into a gun fight with the police. I do see the loan sharks/collectors driving around every day or two though.

[Nayet]

I am friendly with a freelancer who used yaba. She claims to be clean now, but even though she is not manifestly a junkie - as a matter of fact, she looks very good and quite a bit younger than her actual age - I have my doubts. I don't know any surefire "tells" when a person is on yaba.

[ultimate weapon]

^{She is selling herself in Singapore.}

Do you have a picture or a name or anything to identify her by? Has she returned to thailand or still overseas?

[robblok]

I have tried my fair share of drugs so unlike many here i can speak from experience instead out off hysteria and from book or newspaper wisdom.

I have tried yabaa xtc weed alcohol mushrooms and can only say some people become addicts and others don't let them be as long as they dont bother others. Not everyone becomes crazy or addicted. Id say most don't become crazy and addicted.

Just think logically else you would see addicts living on the street all over the place given the volume of drugs that is being sold.

I have seen people get aggressive on alcohol far more then any other drug. I am lucky nothing makes me aggressive and i seem not to get hooked to stuff just like the majority of people.

But by all means please go on demonizing something you never used or only have noticed the worst things about and failed to notice the untold numbers of people using stuff recreationally.

Most guys here are armchair experts leading each other in a feeding frenzy too look good and probably drink too much alcohol.

Ok off to the airport for a nice holiday in the south diving / fishing / relaxing.

So if you hear less from me im not stoned out of my brain in jail but on one of the great islans looking at tropical fish.

Sent from my iPad using ThaiVisa app

[MrWorldwide]

Guys, this was never intended to be an 'alcohol vs the rest' discussion - my intent was to get some personal experience of the violent, paranoid 'zombies' that meth allegedly creates, not expressly to have AKers 'come out' on a public board and discuss their own drug use. This isn't a finger-pointing exercise, and I apologise if it seems that way.

We all know people who simply shouldn't be allowed anywhere near alcohol - they become aggressive, suspicious and vindictive and that only seems to be magnified by the fact that everyone else is laughing and happy. They often end up getting into some sort of confrontation and might end the night locked up or throwing up in the gutter : I don't know any universe where that is considered a 'good night out', although the binge-drinking culture in many parts of the West seems to be modelled on achieving precisely those outcomes.

I dont know of any drug where the upsides exceed the downsides - possibly alcohol in very mild dosages, but how many of us have *never* had a hangover ? Would I try mescaline in a facility specifically set up to ensure that I came to no harm for the duration of my experience ? Possiblty. Would I take a random pill offered to me by someone in a Jakarta nightclub ? No freaking way. Mescaline is a natural substance - potent, sure, but it wasnt cooked up by some feral who hasnt bathed since 2009 and thinks household cleaners are purely for cutting his 'product'.

Everyone here makes their own choices, but I dont go looking for homemade hooch that will 'blow my head off', even though I know it can be found all over SEA - I dont want anything where I have no guarantee of the contents. The problem with meth, as I see it, is that the consumer has absolutely zero idea exactly what it is they are smoking/injecting or shoving up their anus (apparently an increasingly popular delivery method). I hand you white powder and tell you it's some 'seriously potent Shabu, man', you make for the nearest toilet only to end up convulsing in a stall 20 minutes later - not my problem, man ....

Several have mentioned peer pressure - I expect that most of us grew up with people who thought weed was completely harmless, but even with a 'soft' drug like cannabis we have people who overdo it - psychoses and paranoia the end result. Others cant handle prescription meds, shovelling handfuls into their gobs when the bottle says 'Take 2 per day' : add alcohol and you've got an accident waiting to happen. My nephew has been diagnosed with an addictive personality, and how he cant have anything - tobacoo, alcohol, painkillers - nothing. Tried to hang himself, got busted for dealing - the whole mini-series of misery - and it was only when they got him off everything that he could put his life back together. Some folk, sadly, just don't have the body chemistry to handle anything stronger than caffeine.

Apologies for the length of this post, but if you didn't want to read my rant, what chance a 16-year old Thai guy growing up in Klong Toey ? This will get worse well before it get's better.

[MilesofSmiles]

There are many meth heads in Washington State. Most of those addicted are American. I wonder why there are not too many Thais Washington State that are addicted?

You wrote, "I don't think many Westerners in Thailand are addicted to crystal meth, so why are so many Thais?" Because not many Westerners live in Thailand mostly Thai people live in Thailand.

Ps. If you want to respond to a post please quote the post. In this case your first post where you wrote, "I do wonder, however, if there is something missing in what Thai culture instils into it's young people right now that makes ya ba fill a need that they have???" was clearly anti Thai as the meth problem is a world wide problem no more common in Thailand than CA or WA.

Look, I may be putting my points in a way that makes you feel that I am anti-Thai, but that's 'your stuff', not mine.

Of course the crystal meth issue is world-wide. I am simply looking for a reason why it is so prevalent in young people in Thailand at the moment.

Ready availability in Thailand doesn't help, however it's readily available in the UK where I come from and there isn't a high proportion of addicts. People I know in the UK say that crystal meth is very expensive there, but it's also very pure, so why isn't everyone getting hooked?

It's possible to be critical of something / someone without being "anti" it.

Moreover, simply asking a question or putting an idea out there for discussion doesn't necessarily mean that is their personal belief. And so what if it is ?

If their belief is wrong, correct them. Rigorously examining ideas and beliefs is healthy, thinking critically, instead of just regurgitating blindly what you're told.

Certain cultures result in very different outcomes for people in them, some cultures are prone to certain problems.

Some aspects of Thai culture really do suck, some are quite nice.

The "anti-thai" crap is a total bore though. Harden up.

There's lots I don't like about the culture (or lack therof) of my home country too.

Addiction Stats from Gov. Sources.

Thailand

• 1.8%
• The Government of Thailand estimates that there are up to 1.2 million addicts.
• http://www.havocscope.com/number-of-methamphetamine-addicts-in-thailand/
• http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/14/world/asia/drug-surge-clouds-myanmar-reform-effort.html?pagewanted=all

USA

• ****Off topic obfuscation comments removed****

RE: What's missing / not instilled in youngsters. (I'm no expert so YMMV)

• Discipline
• Impulse control
• Constructive criticism / Not being able to openly admit & talk about a problem and change.
• The way Thais live purely in the moment without regard for future consequences.

  (there's good aspects to that too!)

Geography plays a part,but people do drugs because they make them feel good.

[ChoakMyDee]

When we lived in Sakon Nakhon, a few months ago the Thai son of our landlord, who is a meth addict, knocked on our door a few times looking to borrow money. Of course I was away at work each time and my wife was afraid. She would tell him that she didn't have any money because her husband was gone and only left her enough for food. He would go away and come back a few days later asking again. I was very worried because I was afraid he might get violent at some point and I wouldn't be home. I'm glad we moved away from there.

Every so often I see a news item about somebody going crazy and violent in Bangkok and quite often they are meth addicts who've been using too long with no sleep...one day they suddenly go over the edge and there's no telling what they'll do...very scary stuff.