Chapter 24, Page 38
The following is an except from REV Magazine, an underground publication that covers alt-politics, independent news, the arts, drug culture, and various counterculture movements. [Article originally published three months ago.]
CONFESSIONS OF A EUPHORIA USER – PART II
Last issue we spoke with “Claire” who gave us an in-depth interview about her experiences with pleasure substances, particularly Euphoria. The article received such positive feedback and reader interest, that we invited Claire back to answer readers’ questions.
Could you describe a typical Euphoria experience? For example, how quickly does it take effect, what does it feel like to be on it, etc?
Euphoria is a fast-acting substance and most people begin to feel it almost immediately. Your body gets hot, your heart rate increases, and your sex drive goes into orbit.
There is no “typical” experience on Euphoria—the process may be similar, but your body can often react differently. In general, you become extremely sensitive to the slightest touch and any pleasure that comes from sexual stimulation reaches heights far beyond what can be achieved naturally.
After taking Euphoria, I’ll usually start to feel massive “jolts” of excitement—like an electric spark, shooting through every part of my body—and I often close my eyes just to feel that pulsing rhythm more vividly. Then comes the desirous “hunger”, pushing every fiber of my being to the edge, aching to satisfy my body’s most primal instincts and needs. Imagine every sensation kicked into overdrive. I feel every strand of hair on my hair, each drop of sweat on my body, the radiating warmth of my partner’s touch on my skin—even tastes and smells are intensified, and everything takes on a purplish haze, causing the world to seem dream-like—it all comes together like an explosion, making me feel more alive than I’ve ever felt.
Those sensations only get better and better when engaging in sexual activity, until reaching a point where it’s all suddenly released—followed by wave after wave of the purest ecstasy imaginable. When my body eventually relaxes, it gives me an overwhelming sense of fulfillment and bliss.
The substance is appropriately named—because it is nothing short of euphoric.
For some people, one of the scary aspects of Euphoria is the feeling that you lose complete control of your body. This is especially true for first-time users or those who don’t take it on a regular basis. You really have to fully “give-in” and embrace the drug for it to be the best possible experience.
After an orgasm, does Euphoria completely work its way out your system? Or do you still feel it for a while?
If you take Euphoria, expect it to stay in your body for a number of hours, regardless of how many orgasms you have—but every orgasm will definitely reduce the effects of the drug (to an extent). After each bodily release, the drug wanes a bit—I think of it as a “cool down” period— until you get hit with another “pleasure surge.” Each surge is slightly less intense than what came before, but “intense” is a subjective word, since these follow-ups can still be exceptionally strong.
If you take Euphoria and find it to be more than you expected, the best thing is to have sex with your partner or stimulate yourself as soon as possible to get over the initial waves, which is when the drug is at its absolute strongest. The worst thing you could do is try to hold out and deny your sexual urges when it hits.
How bad are the withdrawals?
They can be very bad and unpredictable. Withdrawals might start soon after the drug wears off, or could take hours (sometimes longer) before they kick in. Either way, it’s not fun. I’m not going to sugarcoat it—the withdrawals are hell. At times you think to yourself, “I’m never taking this shit again!” But you eventually get over it and move on. If I’m lucky, they’ll only last an hour or two, but other times they can just go on and on. One occasion, when I took Euphoria on a Friday night, it got so bad I was basically sick for the entire weekend and even had to call out of work on Monday.
Withdrawals are no joke and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise.
Have you ever tried taking Euphoria in pill or “lick-it” form?
No, I’ve only taken Euphoria as a liquid. The other methods are still new, and I’m not sure if I’d feel comfortable trying it any other way. Also, as a liquid, I can gauge and monitor the exact amount I’m consuming.
Danger Zone One. Story by Midnight. Art by Salaiix.
Obv. the comments section will go nuts for the illustration, but that aside…
What kind of a dystopian hellscape is it that a substance that has this kind of effect proliferates with such a quantity that people can just get regular access for recreational use, despite potential risk of cardiac arrest, and such high-impact withdrawals? Is the FDA entirely out to lunch, or the police force so utterly incompetent that all sorts of drugs like these are everywhere, and nobody knows where to start to get them off the streets?
Then again, considering that Reena’s fast-tracked through things and has somehow, lucked her way into not suffering a bad end, while Madison goes through all sorts of awful things, and has so far kept from breaking either mentally or physically, it seems the cops are indeed completely incompetent. Which begs the question why anyone would still live in Pallad City, AKA Danger Zone One, instead of it becoming a decaying wreck.
Then again, we definitely have some examples of this kind of decay already, between the shitty parts of San Fran, the history of Detroit, and the “fent bent”…but shouldn’t a local security arms manufacturing billionaire at least try to make a marketing pitch by disposing of drug runners en masse with lethal force?
Basically, plots to set up gratuitous situations aside, what else is there in this near-term cyberpunk world?
It’s been mentioned in the entries that euphoria is highly illegal, so there’s no way it’s FDA approved XD
At this point I doubt it’s as simple as the PCPD being a completely incompetent police force. Understaffed, being defunded, and having low morale probably plays a role. Actually, that’s starting to sound more and more like the real world. Like you said, there are real examples of cities going down the crapper. Could be due to a mix of politics, funding, crime and about a dozen other factors. It’s rarely ever just one reason. The poor can’t afford to move out and the rich live in areas where they aren’t bothered by the issues plaguing the commonfolk.
This being cyberpunk, I also wonder if some of these drugs aren’t winding up on the streets thanks to seedy corporations, governments, or related individuals.