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#1
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Hello all. Thanks in advance for your help. I am trying to determine if my friend is on drugs (most likely speed) or if he is undergoing some sort of manic phase. My friend "Joe" has went to high school with me and my 6 friends and we've known him for about 12 years now. He has depression/anxiety (or so he said) and for most of his life he was taking Paxil. He has been off his meds for about 3 or 4 years now. He has also been very loopy. A lot of his behavior is erratic. He is a very, very fast talker. I never suspected him of doing drugs. However the last 2 months my friends told me that he might be on drugs (I haven't had a chance to hang with him for 2 months now). I hung out with him this whole weekend on a roadtrip and I am starting to think they could be right. His behavior is on target with someone who is on speed. Each day this weekend he woke up 3 hours after he went to bed and started going a mile a minute. He would talk like there's no tomorrow and it's a very nervous talking. Like no one can ever get a word in. His behavior was very bizarre and it's like he's a sociopath. He was walking around my friend's apartment in his boxers half the time, he started drinking early in the morning (he has been abusing alcohol but it's almost like that's not even a factor and just adds fuel to the fire). He's also very very obsessive. He was going bald and that was a tremendous fear and cause of anxiety for him. He started talking Rogaine foam for the baldness and it's almost like an obsession. If he doesn't apply this foam on his head at the exact times he gets very very agitated. He almost has a small case of OCD. When he was drunk this weekend (we were in Boston) he was lost for about an hour and he called to tell us he was in Philadelphia and had gotten a ride there which would be impossible since it's 6 hours away. And then 20 minutes later he shows up at the apartment and had no idea that he ever told us he was in Philly. Almost like he's schizophrenic. I did not see him take any drugs this weekend but he was talking a mile a minute this weekend (in the past he always would talk this way but now it's much much worse). Last night he got lost again after the bar and a cop found him at 4 AM asleep on a sidewalk. From an outsider's point of view, do you think my friend is on drugs (if so what drug, speed?) or is he somehow manic, or does he have another disorder or does this possibly related back to his depression/anxiety that he used to take meds for? We have confronted him about his behavior but each time he denies that he's on drugs and he'll say he doesn't need another father and doesn't want anyone telling him what to do. We are obviously worried as friends. Joe is 25 years old and lives with his mom but the mom is quite oblivious to everything that is going on (she wants to take him for a stress test, i'd say there are much greater forces at work here than stress). Joe's behavior is so outside of what is normal. We are all worried because his behavior has gone way downhill in the last 2 months.
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#2
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The part about the cop finding him passed out on the sidewalk reminds me of finding my boyfriend passed out in the garage/back yard and I could not awaken him. My boyfriend was using meth.
The rapid speech and odd behaviors you describe could very well be drug induced but it could be mania. Either way if he doesn't want intervention he won't accept help and won't get better. It sounds like a bad situation.
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The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well. anonymous |
#3
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Could be a lot of factors involved. Could be mania. Could be drugs. Only a doc would know for sure. He definately would benefit with that. I hope you all able to get him looked at. Good lvck to you and your friend.
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#4
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i understand your concern here and rightfully so. it sounds like your friend is under a lot of stress. it's stressful being that age and knowing you're still living with your mom when most at that age are already out on their own. this can be causing a lot of insecurity on his behalf thus more anxiety. which to me it sounds like he's attempting to bury through alcohol amongst other issues likely.
i used to do drugs myself, speed specifically and while i wouldn't rule out that he could be using speed i'm not strongly leaning towards it as really the case. almost everyone, ok everyone, i knew who used admittedly used it not only for its effects but it is strongly considered to be a social drug. people while using enjoy the social interactions with others. where as in this case it doesn't sound like he leans strongly in this direction. i say this because he doesn't want his friends trying to be his parent and whatnot. it sounds more like he's trying to push others away from him, but maybe at the same time trying to maintain it even though he's becoming less comfortable with having others around. i'm leaning more towards the possibility that there's something else going on. also for most of those who use the drug like to stay awake as long as possible, and most of them prefer to do this during evening hours. again interacting with others as they do this. even though his periods of sleep appear to be brief this doesn't totally indicate it to be drugs especially this one. for those i knew who did it would crash (or sleep) for hours and hours often to the extreme after they used them. i'm leaning more towards the idea of maybe some bi-polar issues going on for him. although i'm not clear about his up's and down's, and i'm definately no expert by any means of the word. i've just been around the block a time or two is all. the hair loss issue is of obvious concern to him as well. it makes sense he doesn't like it. i mean after all who would at such a young age? it sounds like his fear associated with this is growing and growing to becoming the obsession you speak of. i'm merely guessing here, but i'm curious if there isn't some paranoid feelings beginning to really surface here via through the hair issue which could easily turns in more directions than just this if it hasn't already and you're just not aware of it yet. if this is the case you will encounter this probably soon too. i'm sure this is hard to see, and i'm sure you don't want him to be feeling like this. i wouldn't want any of my friends to feel this way either. i would just try to encourage you to encourage him to just maybe look into it. maybe just tell him that's it just look into it. it can be his choice after this if he chooses to deal with it or not obviously, but it never hurts to just check it out. it could help him understand a little better the feelings he's experiencing with all this, and again his choice if he wants to deal with it, but at least he could just know. at the same time whether he chooses to see it now in his heart he's going to see that you do care, and would like to try to see him get some help in the matter. please make it clear to him though that the choice is his, and that you're not trying to parent him or telling him what to do you're simply encouraging this. you're just concerned and would like to see him get some help is all. there's one more thing i just thought of when it comes to people using speed. they tend to build a lot of confidence while they're using. they will feel like and more often than not be willing to do just about whatever strikes their fancy. they're trying to get all sorts of things accomplished. they will take on projects they've been putting off, or things of this nature. they're very very busy people and can't tend to sit still at least for too long. confidence is very high while they're high, and when they come down they crash very very hard. this is one of the things that keeps people going back to the drug. they don't want to go through the down side of coming down or off of the drug so they continue to use to maintain everything this drug falsely offers. this tends to make them very outgoing people. i didn't really get this impression from what you shared here that your friend is anything like this. maybe he is and i just don't know. so again i'm not leaning too strongly towards the idea that he's actually using speed. i learned a long time ago to never say never, but this is just my impression based on the little i do know. hope it's helpful to some extent. i hope for the very best for you, your friends, and this gentleman foremost. please take care and keep us posted if you don't mind. i'd be curious to hear how this developes. Last edited by bachir; Jun 14, 2010 at 01:30 AM. |
#5
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Thanks for all of your help. I am leaning towards thinking that it's more mania. He could very well be on speed but he's always been talking a mile a minute but now it's just more so but to the extreme. Speed or not, he needs serious help. And if he is taking speed, he needs to solve his problems as to why he's taking it in the first place. But I believe it's mania or a manic disorder. What exact classification would this be, manic depression? As to the solution, I have emailed all of my friends and we are determining what to do. Our friend Joe refuses help so we are thinking we need to tell his parents. His parents have accused him of being on drugs but they do not know the full extent of his behavior. For instance, his mom wants to set up a stress test. Obviously stress is the least of his problems now. It contributes to his behavior but the stress just adds fuel to the fire. Thanks for your help.
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#6
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I have been researching "mania" and bi polar disorder a lot today and this is my friend to a T. He fits all of the criteria and I guess the best way to help him now is contact his dad.
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#7
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Have your friend go for this stress test. Find out the docs name before the appointment. Make this doc aware of your concerns. Maybe send him a letter and drop it off at his office. Short of that? I think his behavior will speak for itself when he visits the doctor.
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#8
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hi. i think it's great you are so concerned and want to help your friend, but i think it is best to leave the diagnosing up to the professionals. you can certainly tell them what you have observed in your friend's behavior if he agrees to see someone and allows you to contact them. that would be helpful. PC does remind us not to engage in trying to diagnose someone over the internet since we're not professionals and we're not present with person. i do hope he will go see someone and things improve for him whatever the diagnosis is. he is very lucky to have such caring friends.
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