A Time for Drugs

Proverbs 31:6-7

"Let beer be for those who are perishing,

    wine for those who are in anguish!

Let them drink and forget their poverty

    and remember their misery no more."

There is a good time to drink or take prescription drugs, in moderation. This passage says if you are dying, or in anguish mentally, or in extreme poverty, that is the time to numb yourself. My mom used to point this verse out to me often. She didn't drink, but she did take meds, which is pretty much the same thing. I think she felt that she was in anguish, so that made her justified to take medication. She did marry my dad and he molested me and messed up our whole family. That was certainly something to feel anguish about. She was somewhat in poverty when he went to jail. She had to get food stamps for a while. 

We are all dying in some way, if you think of it. So we all could justify numbing the pain of that. 

When I was a manager at Papa John's, I felt like I needed a drink every evening to solve my feelings of anguish. It is hard to lead any group of people. It is hard to try running a store. Also when I felt like I was dying due to having gall stones, I got more into drinking wine. Mainly I would just drink it when I had the pain. 

I will deliver a baby in 2 months. I fully hope to get a pain med of some kind so the labor will be less painful. 

I used to smoke for 3 years. I reasoned with myself that I could have a cigarette anytime I wanted to cry over giving up my daughters to my ex. It did help me to feel less of the pain of that. 

There is good timing to medicate yourself, if you genuninely think it will make your life better. No one wants to live in mental or physical pain forever. If you need some relief, medication makes sense for a season. Hopefully it will help you recover and get back to normal life at some point. When you are able to sleep normally and feel less pain, try weaning off the meds or try quitting smoking or giving up drinking. Maybe you will realize you don't need any of that anymore.