Steroid stigma: Why it matters, and what we’re doing about it

A recent study of men who access anabolic steroids found the same barrier again and again: stigma. Not just what others say, but what people expect to hear before they’ve even opened their mouths.

That anticipation – the look from the pharmacist, the lecture from the GP, the label of “junkie” – is enough to keep many away from healthcare and harm reduction altogether.

What stigma looks like

• At the pharmacy counter: asking for 75 pins in line with everyday shoppers can feel exposing. Some said they’d rather order online than risk the looks.
• At needle exchanges: services are often shared with people who use heroin or crack. Some lifters feared being lumped in – or saw themselves as “different” and didn’t want the association.
• At the GP: many avoided talking to doctors about side effects like gyno, low libido, or mood swings because they assumed they’d just be told to stop, or that it would end up on their medical record.
• With visible harms: conditions like gyno carried extra shame – delaying treatment until surgery became the only option.

The result? People hide, self-manage, and go to online forums or mates for health advice. Sometimes it works out. Often it doesn’t.

Why it sticks

• Media narratives: decades of “roid rage” and “cheating athlete” headlines make it easier to dismiss than understand.
• Moral hierarchies: some steroid consumers see themselves as different to “drug addicts” – but that same logic makes them fear being tarred with the same brush.
• Self-stigma: shame and guilt get internalised. Even when no one says anything, people still anticipate judgement.

What we’re doing about it

At Anabolica, alongside Tim Piatkowski, PEDTest, and RoidSafe, we’re building resources that chip away at this barrier instead of reinforcing it.

• Talking openly about stigma. Sharing findings like these helps normalise the experience of discomfort and show that it’s not an individual weakness, it’s a system issue.
• Creating non-judgemental health pathways. Through PEDTest and RoidSafe, people can access confidential testing, safer injecting info, and harm reduction support without needing to “confess” first.
• Making services more approachable. We’re working on practical guides for both users and providers – what labs to run, what red flags to look for, and how to ask (or answer) questions without loaded language.
• Amplifying lived experience. Peer voices matter. When someone says “I felt the same, here’s how I dealt with it,” it cuts through far more than a top-down campaign ever will.

Where we’re headed

Stigma won’t vanish overnight. But every time someone can pick up a clean kit without feeling like they need to explain themselves, or book a blood test without worrying about being judged, we’re moving the needle.

The study is clear: anticipated stigma delays treatment and worsens harm. Our job is to build the spaces, language, and pathways that break that cycle.