Cocaine

Cocaine, also known as Coke, Dust, Snow, Flake, Blow, Toot, Nose candy, Her, She or Girl produces a carefree feeling, relaxation, a sense of being in total control and such an intense “high” that nothing and no one means anything to the user but that feeling. Cocaine “high” causes the user’s behavior to change radically. He or she may become more sociable but will also become more arrogant and domineering. Its use can make the user aggressive, both verbally and physically.

According to scientists involved in neuroscience, cocaine use negatively affects the functioning of neurons (cells located in the brain and spinal cord), primarily in the prefrontal cortex, but also in a number of other areas in the brain.

The result is a reduced ability to weigh benefits versus drawbacks and a reduced ability to control behavior.

Cocaine has recently become the drug most frequently involved in emergency room visits. Major affects that usually cause a cocaine abuser to go to an emergency room include severe headache, seizures, loss of consciousness that can be caused by not breathing or bleeding in the brain, stroke, hyperthermia (increased body temperature), coma, loss of vital support functions such as low blood pressure, slow heart rate, slow respirations, and death.

Cocaine hydrochloride, distributed on the street, looks like a fine white powder. It is frequently “cut” or mixed with crystalline vitamin C, which has a similar appearance. “Crack” cocaine is hydrochloride cocaine “cooked” with ammonia or baking soda and water. It resembles white chips, chunks or rocks and is usually delivered in a thin glass tube that may look like a cigar or laboratory test tube.

Now for the glamorous part. The effects on the human body:

Cocaine in powder form is sniffed up one’s nostrils. We’ve all seen this demonstrated in films and television shows that often claim to be anti-drug messages. Anyone who believes that still believes in the tooth fairy. It’s “show and tell” for our kids – and to add insult to injury, we pay to support these “messages.” Hello?

All this sniffing of highly irritating chemicals down the nose not only helps the cocaine to reach the brain very quickly, thereby inducing an intense “high” but it burns out the mucous in nostrils. Constant snorting can eventually cause the nasal septum to collapse. Red nostrils and seemingly unwarranted nosebleeds are one sign of cocaine abuse. Needle “tracks” or red raw-looking scars on ones arms – or legs – can be a sign of injecting cocaine. Sharing needles to inject cocaine offers the added risk of acquiring HIV infection/AIDS. Cardiac arrest or seizures related to cocaine use can cause death. Incidentally, cocaine is considered both a narcotic and a stimulant.

Since cocaine is a very expensive “high”, it’s usually connected with large sums of missing moneys, theft of expensive jewelry, household items or electronics, cash, negotiable checks, and/or criminal behavior including shop lifting, muggings, burglaries and prostitution among both genders.

Most cocaine addicts are over 26 but some are only 15. That said, cocaine abuse and addiction continues to be a problem that plagues our nation. For instance, from 1965 to 1967, only 0.1 percent of youths surveyed had ever used cocaine, but rates rose throughout the 1970s and 1980s, reaching 2.2 percent in 1987. After a brief decline, lifetime prevalence rates peaked at 2.7 percent in 2002.

The worse news is that while we worry about the health and safety and life expectancy of users, we sometimes ignore the impact of drug abuse on the innocent non-user.

Those not so wise folks who use cocaine live on the myths they embrace about cocaine. Let’s share some of them with you.

Myth: Cocaine is NOT addictive.

Fact: Cocaine is highly addictive, especially in its “crack” or condensed form. The addiction is physical and psychological. In studies, animals addicted to cocaine preferred the drug to food, even when it meant they would starve. Some users report being hooked after one use.

Myth: Cocaine is a safe drug.

Fact: Common physical effects include damage to the inside of the nose, increased heart and pulse rate or irregular heart and pulse rate (arrhythmia), sweating, nausea, paranoia and hallucinations, increased blood pressure and strokes. Sniffing cocaine can and does damage the nasal septum and nasal passages. That’s why “coke heads” have violent nosebleeds.

Myth: There is no hangover.

Fact: The “crash” or “low” that follows the “high” can be so bad, it can lead to depression and suicidal thoughts.

Myth: Cocaine really makes you swing on your job or in the arts, and sexually. Maybe at first that may seem to be so.

Fact: Long time use eliminates interest in jobs, sports, school or sex. Long term use can cause loss of concentration, energy, memory, and can cause anxiety, irritability, paranoia, and loss of interest in sex. A cocaine habit can cost thousands of dollars a week to maintain.

Myth: Using cocaine is glamorous.

Fact: It can cost you everything you own or hope to own and your future. It often leads to criminal acts like prostitution, theft, burglary, and worse. It can destroy your health, your professional life, your sex life, and your financial security.

Paying through the nose is not just a saying if you use cocaine.