Why is 29 too old to do drugs but not older?

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My boyfriend has a 29-year-old nephew who has a history of doing drugs on and off, and he reckons he still does drugs. But everyone says that he shouldn't be doing drugs any more at his age, as though drugs are only expected if teenagers do them. But I know of some people in their 30s, 40s, 50s and even 60s who are drug-addicts and nobody criticises them about their age. My mum knows of some 50-somethings that have been doing drugs since they were young.

Why do people exactly my age get criticised about for doing drugs, but not older people? If 29 is "too old" to do drugs then surely 49 must be too old too. But nobody says that.

EVERYBODY should be criticized for doing drugs. No matter what age.

I think it's more like people give up on older people---because they can't be "changed," anyway.

When people are in their 20's or younger, people still think there's "hope" for them--so they criticize and advise.

Drug use is a symptom of an underlying problem. People have issues at any age, although typically when an older person abuses drugs, it suggests that they have failed to find healthier ways to cope with their issues and they are unable to break those particular unhealthy patterns.
I do think 29 is a little old to still be taking drugs. Has his life progressed at all in the past 10 years? Or is he still in the same place he was 10 years ago - same work/relationship/living situation etc?
Also...what drugs is he taking exactly, do you know?

I think he does weed but not sure. He done cocaine in the past but not sure if he still does. He's got his own place and lives with a flatmate, he was in a relationship with a girl but they recently split up. He works hard and earns good money, but apparently he has always been shy. I hate drugs and I've never touched drugs in my life so I am not defending him, but I don't think there is an age limit for drugs.

Well I mean its the human condition that people do drugs. There isn't really an age limit...I certainly was more prone to 'abusing' drugs in my early 20's. Now I drink beer and smoke pot...thats pretty much it and I'd like to do more psychedelics. Since shrooms were decriminalized in denver it should be easier to find some to trip on and I look forward to taking some shrooms. But anymore I would certainly be more cautious about the experience and I don't care about just getting high for the sake of it anymore.

Maybe people do drugs less frequently and with a different mindset than younger people when getting older...but its not like everyone 30+ stops using drugs. Granted from what I have observed seems the older drug users are more into psychedelics and weed than things like popping pills or taking MDMA.

Well weed is certainly not as bad as some people say it is, I find it certainly helps me relax. And well I have done some cocaine before....and I can see how a lot of it would put someone off their rocker. But I really have no desire to seek it out or anything...its a drug I have tried, I don't hate it but IDK why anyone would want to do it all the time.

I mean if he is doing ok for himself then occasional drug use probably isn't that big of a deal. If he was abusing drugs and harming himself noticeably that way then there would be cause for concern...but contrary to some popular belief some people can use drugs with moderation and not to the extent it harms their life much more than living life harms them.

I have 2 friends who both have smoked weed for a really long time; both are 28 years old.
1 of those friends has a stable job and has been promoted several times. He's doing well for himself, despite the fact that he still smokes weed on the weekends and occasionally after work, if he's especially stressed. He is also able to go for prolonged periods of time without smoking it. I'm not worried about him at all; he seems to have it under control and it's no more harmful to him than a glass of wine for some people.

Weed itself isn't considered an addictive substance (unlike alcohol, which is. Alcohol is also considered more harmful to the human body than weed AND you can die from alcohol, but not weed), but it can certainly negatively affect those who have substance abuse issues.

That brings me onto my second friend - he smokes a lot of weed daily; both at work and after work. He has lost several jobs over the years. He also has problems with alcohol abuse and despite talking about quitting drugs, has failed to do so for over a decade. He's essentially stuck in the same phase of life and the drugs are a real problem for him. He is someone I'm definitely worried about.

So yeah, I agree that there isn't an age limit for it. I don't see either of my friends quitting any time soon tbh, but whilst it's a problem for one of them, it isn't for the other.

This is probably due to the fact that until 25 years your brain is developing.

I think that most of the doctors/counselors agree with that (from what I usually read) and they will tell you that during this period it is "easier" to shape the person's mind towards an anti-drug attitude.

I'm not saying that it is impossible for an individual to quit doing drugs even after being an adult, but it is less likely.

People do drugs and drink too much when they're younger because they're experimenting and are still "growing up." If they keep doing it once they get into their thirties, that's a problem because it changes from cute young person going wild to someone who looks like they might be starting to develop a problem.

Are you also an asperger? or just a NT lucrating on a ND forum?

You can see diagnosis status on peoples' profiles.
[source: I'm the creator of this site]

29 years olds are at the prime of health and work background

60 year olds are on the decline

60 year olds have less to lose than 29 years old


All things being equal



Not all things are equal




Criticism doesn't make anyone stop doing drugs


Drugs have pros and cons


Medical marijuana



Prescription and over the counter drugs



As long as nobody bothers me about drugs (try to sell or buy dogs from me), I have no problem with anyone doing drugs

Doing drugs at any age is never a good plan. It does no long term good and harms your health and even if it doesn't, why does spending a fortune on a habbit seem like a good idea? It isn't.
I have heard of so many precious people who die or who are never with it, which causss so much pain for those around them. And those who end up committing suicide because they find they can't break the habbit.
Someone I know and used to work with had a teenage stepson. He decided to get involved in drugs. I told his stepdad it wasn't such a good idea but his stepdad just thought I was old fasioned. He said "Everyone does drugs at that age". Just a few years later he was really struggling to break the habbit, and he died as he had overdosed. So sad.

Basically what Alex said.

In my parents day (parents of the Boomers) guys college age all drank huge amounts of beer just because its the thing to do. And most guys began to level off and drink less and less after 24. The few that continued to drink the same amount were the problem drinkers.

With my generation, and younger, the same applied. You just add "drugs" to "beer", and make it a little more coed (both sexes), and its the same notion. Young folks like to rebel and experiment with stuff. And then after a while real life sets in and you stopping boozing and using. And the minority who continue are the ones with the addiction problems.

So if you're 29 you're expected to be done with the youth drug culture.

In fact when I was around 29/30 I had the same attitude. Pot became kinda a bore, and folks I knew who still did pot, and other drugs were all either sleazeballs, or outright addicts, and losers.

But later still in life things got more complicated. I still know a guy I knew from my crazy youth who is still a druggie, though doesn't use certain things he used to,but I became friends with a whole circle of productive home owning middle aged 50 plus folks who still got high on a regular basis (though they don't use other harder drugs). So I, and others I knew, did go through a curve of thinking of putting aside pot as being part "putting aside the things of youth". But pot is becoming normalized in society, and even better thought of than alcohol. So society seems to be moving toward "pot is ok, but other drugs are not". So its a little more complex than that.

As a big believer in the massive social cultural economic and political failure of the war on drugs in the states (since it's beginning almost 50 years ago under Nixon) it TOTALLY depends on the individual doing them what they're taking why they're doing them for how long what dosage etc. First off pot isn't a drug it's an herb that's basically good for you. Every part of the plant is good for you and that's why most people in this country at least think it should be completely legal as it is in half or more of the states. But I bet public opinion in the UK is similar. So if we're talking pot f**k that it's not a drug go take it if it helps you but yes moderation (as w/anything) is probably a good idea.

Magic mushrooms. Again not addictive and not harmful for you and good if you want a psychedelic experience as I do some day (I've never had anything but booze but I'm resolved to try shrooms and pot both at least once before I expire) they're the safest way to do it. Again in moderation.

Harder or actual drugs I wouldn't know and will leave it for others more knowledgeable to say. Just be really careful w/those.

Another point since some of you mention prescription drugs. That's what opioids are. And look where that's led millions of people in the States? Big Pharma pushes that crap on patients to get them addicted and they're able to do so b/c of the power of their lobby in Washington and the states. They're basically a corporate narco-mafia that's f****d alot of people's lives up (if not ended them) while healthy and often medically necessary alternatives like pot are still at the center of the War on Drugs in the eyes of the Feds and unfortunately alot of states and localities too. Putting aside the 100000s of people behind bars for just possessing something like pot all of whom should be released.