Sheffield student Robert, 19, started taking drugs four years ago, experimenting with cannabis and a medicated cough syrup which gives you a brief high.
“In some woods near my house I took a hit of weed from a makeshift bong. I felt a bit dodgy and all my friends were completely out of it.”
“The next drug after that was ecstasy, which I still use quite regularly for parties. After that I tried cocaine. Then MXE, which is like Ketamine…really trippy. I did LSD in the Peak District recently, which was quite spiritual.”
I've done drugs 100 times
The Chemistry student says he has done drugs (including laughing gas; “it’s legal but it’s good fun”) nearly 100 times. “I’ve probably taken MDMA about 15 times, which is a lot more than you should because it’s neurotoxic (alters the neurones in the brain). LSD I’ve only taken once, but I’ve got quite a bit left so I plan on taking it again in the future.”
“I don’t know when I’ll stop until I feel I’ve got everything I want from drugs. At the moment they’re still fun. I’m still enjoying them and I’m still up for trying new things. Obviously if I have a family in the future I’ll stop.”
I write up my trips on Reddit
A year ago, Robert started to share his experiences with other like-minded individuals on the shadier side of the massive online social network Reddit. “I started writing trip reports the first time I took the cough medicine. The trip was so interesting. I found it so fascinating I wanted to write it down and I ended up posting it there. You can learn a lot from reading other people’s reports.”
Despite Reddit’s huge popularity, he doesn’t worry about influencing people who can’t handle drugs. “I hope that people trying new drugs have the common sense to research it past one trip report online. You’d be stupid to take something without knowing what to expect. There’s so much information out there if you know where to look.”
"Cough medicine was my worst experience"
With more studies coming out about the harmful effects drugs can have on the brain, Robert says he is concerned about it’s effects on his mental development. “I always take precautions, like with MDMA I preload with supplements which reduce stress on your body, and I focus on balancing my diet around it, which reduces harm.”
His worst experience happened on cough medicine. “I took it with friends once and the high seemed to last about 16 hours, if not longer. By that point, I wanted it to stop.”
"I've bought drugs on the 'deep web'"
He admits to being worried about drugs being cut with other dangerous chemicals but gets past these problems by buying on the ‘deep web’; the internet’s seedy underbelly inaccessible by normal internet users. “They’re reviewed by people and come straight from the production line so they’re not going to be cut with anything. With the reviews system you can trust certain venders.”
Are there any drugs he hasn't done? Robert refuses to do crystal meth, or heroin. “They’re really addictive and will just fuck your life up. I’d also stay away from bath salts and other research chemicals as well."
Robert says people’s attitudes to drugs should change, and the so-called War on Drugs is a mistake. “All it’s doing is making it harder for people with problems to find help.”
“People are always going to find ways to take drugs, whether they’re illegal or not.”
If you have any questions or are concerned about drugs, talk to FRANK.