23 July 2011

"Your views on drugs and alcohol."

I like caffeine.
Okay, I'm addicted to caffeine.
My body requires a certain amount each day, or I end up with a headache.

Medicines:
("All medicines are drugs, but not all drugs are medicines.")
I don't take over-the-counter pain relievers (Tylenol, ibuprofen, etc.) unless I have a true migraine or am too irritable to deal with whatever pain I'm feeling.
But that's more about my own pride than about being opposed to medication.
I am not opposed to chemotherapy or epidurals or Vicodin.
I hate that pain and death and disease exist.
I believe that the medications that can prevent or cure disease are gifts from God.
But they should be used responsibly. Antibiotics should be prescribed carefully. And they should be taken as directed in order to prevent those terrifying superbugs that we hear about.

Other drugs (illegal drugs):
Not for me.
I like to be in control of my mind and emotions.
And I wish that everyone felt that way, but I know that it is sometimes easier to turn to substances.
If these substances were less addictive, if they were less controlling, if they were less gripping of the lives of those who use them, I might be more positive.
But I have seen how lives are ruined, how families are torn apart, how children are left broken-hearted as a result of illegal drugs.
And I am not okay with that.

Alcohol:
This one is a bit of a grey area for me.
I was in the UK two months ago, where the consumption of alcohol is legal for those over the age of 18.
If I had been willing to break the Community Life Covenant I signed with Bethel, not to mention my parents' trust, I would have tried it.
But that would have left me with two years of waiting for another drink.
I don't know how I would feel about that, and it has bothered me since.
I have been in situations in which I could easily take a drink, and I am tempted.
I will wait. I have to wait until I graduate, unless my parents allow it before then.
I turn 21 on Good Friday next year.
It's a good thing I have a bad attitude about the way most people approach Christian holidays.
(But that's another post.)
I am opposed to drunkenness, not drinking.

Umm...yeah. That's what I've got.
I know there are some holes in this post.
They can probably be explained, but I'm tired.

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