IN!
Great OP Mags! It's hard to overstate the importance of friends on SR. Unless you have friends IRL who are also in recovery then they will not understand what it's like in the way people on these threads do. The same applies to medical professionals too in my opinion, they understand the physical impact and they are aware that it is caused by a malfuntion in our brain but they do not quite "get" it. For example my impression is that most GP's here in the UK suggest tapering. To a non addict that would seem totally logical but as regards to the two drugs I have personal experience of, alcohol and tobacco, tapering simply didn't work. (just to clarify, i'm not suggesting anyone disobey their doctors advice). Although I have never met them I have made some important friends on SR.