189 - Perry - Struggles with KRATOM and the anxieties that surrounds it

“Kratom feels like an opiate, you get strong feelings similar to opiates.’” -Perry

Today, Ben and I are talking to Perry, a 24-year-old from Maryland and started smoking marijuana at age 16. He lost everything that he owned and had to drug and alcohol abuse in a short period of time. We talk with Perry about his experience with Kratom and how it negatively affected his life.

Kratom and Kava

Kratom is sourced from an Asian variety of pine trees and works the same as an opiate drug in your body. Kratom is addictive and you easily get hooked. Kava is a root herb from the Polynesian islands that is not addictive and is mostly used by people for relaxation and sleep. In many states, Kratom is illegal because of its addictive side effects. In low doses, Kratom is a stimulant. In higher doses, it’s a sedative.

Perry’s Experience with Kratom

After taking Kratom, Perry quickly realized that this legal street drug has very similar physical and mental effects to opiate drugs. He thought he had found the answer to his addiction issue and felt he would be able to continually use Kratom without negative side effects. What he soon learned is that he could build tolerance and that Kratom has the same effect as addictive drugs.

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Show Notes:

[01:33] Perry talks about his backstory and history of addiction.

[04:11] How he became interested and addicted to psychedelic drugs.

[06:55] Social aspect of doing drugs and participating in raves.

[11:47] Ben talks about what Kratom is and why it’s a bad choice to get off of drugs.

[14:44] The first time Perry tried Kratom and how he became addicted to this drug.

[22:09] How Perry decided to get back on Kratom after he was clean for a year.

[31:57] Different phases of Kratom use when taking it daily.

[36:07] Life became unmanageable once he was addicted to Kratom.

[41:57] How Perry decided to get off Kratom and his plan for his future.

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