This is not a straight-edge preaching post.

It is, however, one begging you to consider who else you're hurting when you abuse yourself.

I am tired of not being able to sleep. I am tired of seeing people cry. I am tired of wearing black. I am tired of carrying around copious amounts of Kleenex. I am tired of buying sympathy cards and sending fruit baskets for something so flagrantly avoidable.

I am tired of my friends dying of drug overdoses.

Yes, it can happen to you. And when it does, it also happens to everyone who loves you. Think about your parents, your grandparents, your boyfriend, your girlfriend, your husband, your wife, your friends, your children, your colleagues, and how much they're going to suffer because you wanted to have a little more energy to party the night before.

And to those of you who are too scared to call an ambulance when you're witnessing your friends having seizures and OD'ing? Get over it. You can get a slap on the wrist, or you can live the rest of your life knowing you watched someone die. It shouldn't be a difficult decision to make.

With that, I will step off of my soapbox and pray someone sees this and declines a line tonight.


*By Jess, who, on a lighter note, is obsessed with Jay-Z's American Gangster album.