Do Drugs Inspire Creativity?

Post Reply New Topic

I'm not saying drugs are right but I hear it a lot.

I don't want to get too personal about my life but sometimes I wonder if I wasn't more inspired by "images" I'd see as opposed to now.

What are your thought on this?

most drugs just amplify what ever creativity you already have. They also distort.

Samuel Taylor Coleridge was looped on laudanum when writing the "Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner" and someone rang the door bell and he could never get back into the groove.

lots of writers drink alcohol. I have no idea if they were good writers or not before they drank, or they would have been excellent writers if they hadn't drank.

but you gotta have it in you before drugs can 'inspire' it out of you.

even psychedelics work off what is already in your head.

Merle

I would say yes, they probably do.

However in the same way that using meth-amphetamine may initially give a neuro-typical the feeling of being sharper, more intelligent, socially adept etc the knock on effect can be catastrophic.

The drug of choice becomes a crutch and the person starts to become consumed by it, as does their art and they literally crash and burn.

On the other hand, getting up at 6:00am and meditating for an hour and watching the sunrise, will also inspire creativity.

FYI According to some sources Samuel Taylor Coleridge may have faked the whole drug experience thing to appear more switched on among his peers.

Bottom line is it is all about perception.

Your perception of your own abilities while you are on drugs vs. the art buying public's perception of your work.

Having tried it every which way I would say 'being there' when you are making your art is the best career move LOL

I'm not even using methamphetamine and I'm still up and drawing....

I just feel like some of the stuff I was on, helped me envision what I was seeing.

Sinsboldly is right. One must have creative tendencies to begin with. drugs don't make creativity. The might enhance creativity to begin with (or so the illusory story goes,) but the reality is different in my view.

Pretty soon the drugs take over, and instead of writing or painting or sculpting, your energy will be consumed by robbing, raising money for the next hit or basically hocking yourself. Then you have a shot, do little except try to work at getting more money for more drugs so you do not have to face a come down, and the sculpture lies dormant in the corner, the paintbrushes sit in the turps and a flim of dust builds over the surface of the solvent and the pen stays uncapped, and sleeps soundly on the half-complet manuscript. (the latter examples assume one still has a roof over one's head, which may or may not be the case.)

Creativity is fun. It is also a lot of hard work and requires the perseverative tendencies many of us here on WP have.

I think it can. But I don't know if it is predictable enough to put to good use. A few years ago, I was really loaded on both speed and weed. My brain was going crazy, and I thought "I have to write some of this stuff down". Well, it turns out that I thought I had discovered a cure to cancer, and some other of lifes big mysteries, and I did write it all down. When I read it after I was sober, I realized that drug really can put you into a hyper-creative state of mind. No, I don't think I cured cancer, but the stuff was really interesting(to me anyhow). I still have those papers somewhere, and if I can dig them up, maybe I'll scan them so you can all see what drugs can do to a brain.


I know this is a different type of creativity, but drugs definitely put my mind in a place that isn't normally accessible to me. There is no reason why it couldn't do the same for any artist.

"Mind Expanding" drugs alter the chemistry of the brain and body. Sooner or later, either the physical or emotional aspects (usually both) will become dependent upon drugs just to feel normal. After that, only an ever-increasing amount of the drug - with a concurrently ever-increasing toxicity - will be required. Eventually, the amount needed to feel creative (or even normal) will coincide with a fatally toxic dose.

Every junkies starts out thinking that they are in control of their need for drugs. Every one of them ends up in rehab, a psych ward, or the morgue.

Every one.

I am listening to Guns N' Roses at the moment, they are a good example. Axl Rose using Heroin, Slash being a alcoholic, they say this is what lead them to achive such great songs, but it is also what brought the end to the band.
Another example would be Jimi Hendrex, one of the greatest guitar players ever, who died before he could burn out. Heck, I cant think of a classic rock band that didnt use drugs, also is why most of them are not around anymore.

yes.

but not cus they "expand" your mind or anything, but trick your mind into thinking into new directions.

a brilliant example would be mushrooms or acid. eat some, and poof, you see/think stuff thats brand new to you.

While you're brain is expanding you're also killing it.

no, when I smoked weed I'd just stay up all night listening to ABBA tripping balls lol
and all I could write was the lyrics to the songs lol

I use caffeine at dangerous levels sometimes. Occasionally I need a week to recover just from the damage it does to my heart. I also use the anti-depressant citalopram and vyvanse, though only when I've already plotted my story out because both of those will hamper my creativity a bit. I drink alcohol when I'm writing romance or comedy in order to get into the mood, though only a shot or two of a hard liquor.

This sort of behavior is not safe. I'm always hesitant to pull out the big guns because I've researched the side effects enough to be fully aware of the health risks. In short, I'm practically killing myself to try and push the envelope. You really need to ask yourself if your art is really worth dying for.

This coming from someone who's admittedly irresponsible, I know.

This is all b*ll*cks of course...

We are pumping ourselves full of some sort of sh*t or another every day.

Human beings have the most amazing constitutions.

We eat wheat, refined sugars and food additives and yeh sure a few of us get cancer and die, but mainly we adapt.

Look at real junkies if you want to see how long human beings can survive while ingesting/injecting damaging substances.

Provided they don't OD an addict can survive years, even decades on the stuff.

In fact someone addicted to heroin with a pure source of the stuff will live longer than the average human being because of lower stress levels.

Heroin itself won't kill you.

It is the stuff they mix it with on the streets, the dirty needles of the OD that will.

Then take a look at alcoholics.

Someone I know has drunk two bottles of red wine every day for twenty years, more at parties.

It is amazing how much sh*t you can put in your system and survive.

Okay...

It only takes about 5 minutes to die...

But as long as you are breathing and your heart is still beating!! !

Now as to creativity?

I think having AS makes me more creative than an NT.

So it does.

Whatever you believe will be true for you.

There are up sides and down sides to everything!! !