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Weekend time

Lost weekends?

Does your weekend seem to end before you realise? Is it a blur of mashing ‘refresh’ on Grindr, with one sleepless chillout blurring into the next?

It’s easy to feel like you don’t have time to see people or do things you’ve planned and then beat yourself up for it come Monday morning for not stopping sooner. Keeping control over how long you spend doing drugs can be really difficult once you start, and before you know it that’s where all your social time seems to be going.

If you want to get the balance right, here are some tips to help reclaim some of your Friday-Mondays.

Cut down

If you’re losing whole weekends, cutting down the amount of time you’re trashed can help you do other things and limit how bad the comedown is. The fun you have on drugs will often have diminishing returns – the longer you do them, the less bang you’ll get from your buck – as your body gets tired and runs out of the feel-good chemicals.

Here are some tips to help you stop in good time:

  • Stopping can be really difficult, so try to fill your weekends early on to make sure you don’t start on Friday and finish Monday morning. This may mean making sure that you have something non-trashy to do on Friday or Sunday nights.
  • Make plans with friends in advance on when you want to stop, then work out an exit strategy. This might be hanging out together once you’ve finished and having some food or watching TV together while you start to comedown – and not letting each other get lured into another party.
  • Make it harder to get more drugs on the fly. Use a dealer who can’t come at a moment’s notice and don’t keep any other contacts. Don’t take lots of money out with you so you can’t buy any more drugs if the opportunity comes up.
  • When you leave somewhere, try and come if you’re horny. Avoid going online as this can keep you in the cycle.
  • Having food can help bring you back down.

Have a break

Having a weekend off drugs can give you some proper time to do other things and avoid a comedown that week. Work out a schedule to aim towards. How many weekends do you want to spend partying each month or year?

While it can be great getting time back after cutting back on drugs, it can also be really difficult suddenly having to fill the time. You might feel bored, worry that you’re missing out on partying and feel like you’re climbing the walls at home. Making plans to do things you love can be difficult at first, but will make it a lot easier to stick to your plans to reduce the amount of drugs you take.

  • Book in things you have been wanting to do, which could be a new hobby or sport or going to see places or people. A change of location can really help your mental health and help you avoid any temptations.
  • Volunteering can be a great way to meet new people and feel like you’re doing something worthwhile.
  • Be wary of trigger points. Going out for drinks or to a mate’s house for a meal might be a great idea, but it could lead to you ending up doing drugs. Pick situations which are less likely to lead to drugs, or put some plans in place to break the cycle.

Here’s a few places to start with finding some ideas for your weekend off:

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Published: 05/09/2018
Next review: 05/09/2021