i wouldnt usually ask anything like this to a forum like this. i respect you guys, and i need this help because my friend could be seriously damaging themselves.

in the part of the uk i live in, research chemicals are the most commonly used recreational drug as well as weed. maybe even more so than weed. my friend, who will take virtually anything someone offers him. im actually talking about a friend here. took a pill called a red devil.

its a legal high, he wasnt even able to put in words the effects. i think it mimics ecstasy or meth.

basically, how can i convince this guy not to take these legal highs. he doesnt believe me that they are bad because he was fine after taking it.

how can i talk him oout of falling into this stuff? at the smoke shops they have hundreds of these things, and i know it can, and might become an issue.

also, do you have any information on these "red devils"

thankyou, sorry traveller if i broke forum rules, but this is the one forum i can actually trust for reliable information

Hi remediosvaro,

I think the best thing you can do is give your friend good information. The thing is that if he is in a phase of his life where he just doesn't care about risks or positivity it might be hard to convince him.

I would start with the same reasonings we use on this website to discourage the use and talk of RCs: they are not studied full yet so we don't know what the long term effects of these susbstances are. Who knows if habitual use of whatever new psychoactive chemical will result in some kind of organ damage - like ketamine does for exampe? Also who knows how close to overdosing you are when you take these? what if you take a little bit too much and this substance is like bromo-dragonfly and you lose your fingers or worse, your life? If the substance is not at all studied you are risking your health and life by taking them.

The thing is, they might not be bad, but you don't know. So why would you want to risk it? Why would you want to test it on yourself if it could give you lasting damage?

On the other hand most of the classic psychedelics are quite thoroughly studdied at least in terms of physiological safety and long-term effects. Aside from having low addiction potential and very little health-risks they are suggested to have very positive impacts on the lives of those that take them - and this statement is even backed by several scientists that are working in this field these days (see http://www.hopkinsmedici...sting_personality_change).

Things like mushrooms can be easily cultivated with little effort and just a bit of patience to give you a practically endless supply of mushrooms for whenever you want. Plants containing DMT are all over so this too should not be too big of a problem - so if he really wants to alter his mind there are ways to do it the "good" way, rather than doing just "whatever".

However if he's not interested in these arguments there won't be much you can do. Everyone is free to destroy their own lives if they feel they should. We don't have to agree with it, but I'm not sure we should force our will upon others just because we don't like their choices. You can offer arguments, reasoning with him and even offer help - like having a positive psychedelic experience with the person and showing him the value of such a thing. But if he doesn'T want to, you can't force him to change. At least I don't believe in such a intervention. Perhaps enter into a very open dialogue with him and let him explain to you why he is being so reckless?

Just some suggestions. Obviously I'm no professional councilor. Good luck.

he himself is not very smart. not trying to be mean, but he actually is not smart, just lack of common sense.

its not that he is reckless, but he doesnt have self control, so if someone offers him a drug he will take it. and since he was fine after this experience, he thinks now that all of them are safe.

and he wont listen to me otherwise.

frankly, im gonna just ignore it. one day he can stumble upon salvia and that might freak him out enough for him to stop.

idk. honestly, im gonna leave it up to him

Your friend reminds me a lot of my self or, well, who I used to be. I would use any drug anyone offered me and often pride myself for taking more of it. All my real true friends would tell me that I was messing up but I never would listen. Luckily some of my friends stuck it out with me and encouraged me so that i didn't lose them all.

so all you can really do is just let people know your care and do your best not to enable them or feed the fire. Maybe they will come around maybe not.