Cocaine Overview

Cocaine is a white powdery substance that is made from the coca leaf. Cocaine is usually inhaled, but can be smoked, or injected as well. Cocaine is widely hailed as the worlds most powerful stimulant. The cocaine user feels euphoric, powerful, experiences racing thought, and allows the user to stay up for much longer to continue the party. By some estimates cocaine is the second most widely used drug behind only marijuana.

Cocaine users develop a tolerance to cocaine very quickly, sometimes within hours. More cocaine is needed to maintain or reach a high. Since cocaine is one of the more expensive drugs this can quickly lead an addict into a several hundred dollar a day habit.

Cocaine Side Effects

• Increased pulse and blood pressure
• Hyperactivity, irritability, and anxiety
• Increased core body temperature
• aggressive behavior
• Depression upon stopping use
• Heart attack
• Death

Cocaine Addiction

Cocaine is a powerfully addictive drug and some users report becoming addicted extremely quickly due to the fact that a tolerance for cocaine develops within hours of using. Cocaine can become so addictive that the user will not be able to stop on their own. Stopping use can lead to severe depression, the inability to stay awake, loss of mental acuity, suicidal ideation, psychosis, paranoia, and fatigue.

Cocaine Treatment

Due to the fact that withdrawal from cocaine use can be extremely severe many users opt for inpatient treatment as opposed to quitting at home. Inpatient treatment is usually a better option because not only can a hospital manage withdrawal symptoms they can also offer group programming that will empower the addict to quite. Therapy and twelve step programs are usually part of a successful cocaine rehabilitation. Anti-anxiety drugs such as lorazepam may also be used to help with anxiety and the worst of the withdrawal symptoms.

Cocaine Links

If you would like more information about cocaine use, prevention, or side effects please visit the following web sites:

http://drugeffects.org/cocaine.html http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cocaine http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/drugfact/cocaine/index.html

Heroin Overview

Heroin is a powerfully addictive derivative of the prescription painkiller morphine. Heroin is an extremely addictive substance and can often lead to life long effects on the user. Heroin is usually taken intravenously by needle, but can also be inhaled, or smoked. In fact many users believe that snorting heroin is less likely to result in becoming an addict, but this is a mistaken belief.

Heroin makes users feel euphoric, makes everyday worries disappear, and is also a potent painkiller. The thing that makes heroin an especially addictive drug is that the user needs to take it just feel “normal” again. The high that heroin users seek becomes more and more difficult to obtain as their tolerance increases.

Heroin Side Effects

• Addiction
• Collapsed veins
• Exposure to infectious diseases such as AIDS and Hepatitis
• Pneumonia and other respiratory difficulties
• Risk of accidental overdose and death

Heroin Addiction

Heroin is an extremely addictive drug as pointed out above. Tolerance to heroin can begin to increase in as little as three days of use. The painful withdrawal from heroin also contributes to the users addiction. They know how difficult the withdrawal will be so continue to use heroin in order to avoid the withdrawal symptoms. The symptoms of withdrawal from heroin include, cramps, chills, fever, abdominal pain, muscle spasms, anxiety, severe depression, aching joints, insomnia, itching, and muscle spasms. Heroin addiction is so powerful that many users will chase the drug to the exclusion of everything else in their life. They will become disinterested in other activities. Many heroin addicts also have extensive legal troubles that are due to them committing crimes in order to support the cost of their habit.

Heroin Treatment

Admission to an inpatient facility is recommended for someone who is seeking to quit using heroin. The reason for this is that hospitals can help the addict with the painful withdrawal symptoms. This is often done by giving methadone. Methadone is a longer acting opioid which allows the addict to avoid withdrawal. The methadone dose is then tapered to the lowest dose the patient can stand. Addicts often stay on methadone for months or years to avoid relapsing into heroin addiction. Intensive group therapy and twelve step programs are also recommended for a heroin addict to kick the habit.

Heroin Links

If you would like more information about heroin use, prevention, or side effects please feel free to visit the following sites:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heroin http://www.vistabay.com/blog/?p=17 http://www.heroindrugtreatment.com/

Shrooms Overview

Psilocybin mushrooms are mushrooms that are taken as an illegal drug because of the hallucinogenic properties the mushrooms possess. They are more commonly known as magic mushrooms or shrooms. The mushrooms are eaten to produce the desired effect and can also be brewed into a potent tea. Users report seeing things that are not there, distortion of spatial relationships, inability to tell the real world from fantasy, and auditory hallucinations. These effects vary greatly from person to person depending on the mindset of the user and the amount of mushrooms that are eaten.

A potentially lethal problem with eating mushrooms is that if a person mistakenly ingests a poisonous mushroom they may have a fatal reaction. Since there are obviously no controls in place for shrooms since they are illegal this can pose a serious danger.

Shroom Side Effects:

• Loss of Appetite
• Nausea and vomiting
• Increased heart rate
• Loss of muscle control
• Coldness in the extremities
• Swollen features

Shrooms Addiction

Shrooms have not been shown to be physically addictive, but as with any euphoria producing drug the potential for psychological addiction is very real. Shroom addicts do not typically need to be in a hospital and the best treatment lies in therapy and a commitment to quitting shrooms.

Shroom Treatment

Since shrooms are not physically addictive there is not usually a painful withdrawal in store for a shroom addict who wants to quit. There are no approved medications to treat shroom addictions. Shroom addicts should speak with a therapist in conjunction with attending a twelve step group to begin on the road to recovery.

Shroom Links

If you would like to know more about shroom use, prevention, or side effects please feel free to visit the following web sites:

http://www.clearhavencenter.com/addictions-research/additional-substances/magic-mushrooms/ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrooms#cite_note-shroomery-15 http://www.drug-rehab.ca/mushroomaddiction.htm