Illegal Drugs
Heroin
Hallucinogens
Marijuana
Methamphetamine
In general, most of these drugs have limited medical uses and are not available by prescription. Nevertheless, they are widely abused and available on the street from illegal drug dealers.
Heroin
Heroin was once a popular painkiller, widely accepted by the medical profession. Because it is so highly addictive, however, the government first regulated it in 1914 and has made it illegal ever since. Today, it is the most abused opiate product and has no recognized medical use.
According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, most heroin comes into the United States through South America and Mexico. South American heroin is usually sold on the East Coast, while the Mexican variety appears more often in western states.
Heroin usually comes as a white powder. However, the street version is not pure heroin, and is laced with sugar, starch, quinine and other substances. Users are never sure what they are putting into their veins. If their heroin is laced with Fentanyl or other poisons, addicts have been known to die within hours.
Most heroin addicts inject their drug, although some sniff, smoke or snort it.
Dangers of Heroin Use
Heroin addicts often suffer from collapsed veins, infections of the heart lining and valves, abscesses, cellulite and liver disease. Many addicts develop lung disease. They are also at risk for HIV-AIDS, hepatitis and other diseases transmitted when they share needles.
Constipation in heroin users can be so severe that addicts often limit their diet to sweets and other easily digested foods. Their general health tends to decline, and they are frequently malnourished.
Heroin addicts are often desperate for money to support their drug habits. This frequently leads them into criminal activity.
Treatment of Heroin Addiction
One treatment available to heroin addicts is methadone. Instead of heroin, they take daily doses of legal methadone, usually in liquid form and administered in front of counselors. The government operates methadone clinics because it improves the lives of heroin addicts.
With methadone, a user’s emotions become steadier. After there is less drama in their lives, many are able to hold down jobs and restore family relationships. One study found that for every dollar spent on methadone, the government saves four dollars in reduced crime, decreased need for prison cells and increased tax payments through new employment.
However, methadone itself is highly addictive. People who are in methadone treatment can switch into a heroin rehabilitation program.
Chemical withdrawal from heroin it is not easy and should never be done without medical supervision. People who have withdrawn from heroin too suddenly have died.
The phrases “kicking it” and “cold turkey” refer to heroin withdrawal symptoms of kicking legs and chills and sweats. Other symptoms might be restlessness, muscle and bone pain, insomnia, diarrhea, vomiting and drug cravings. These flu-like symptoms start 48 to 72 hours after the last use of heroin, and they can remain up to one week.
After chemical withdrawal is complete, an addict is further helped through residential treatment, where he or she can learn the skills needed to remain drug-free. Former addicts often need intense counseling in order to get back into everyday life. They have often lost years to their heroin addiction, and need to set new goals and clarify their values.
Hallucinogens
The government classifies several drugs in this category, although not all of them actually produce hallucinations.Lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), Ketamine, phencyclidine (PCP), peyote and Psilocybin do produce visions and distortions. Methylenedioxymethamphetamine, or Ecstasy, is in this category, but it does not produce hallucinations.
These drugs are not necessarily addictive, although some people have become so psychologically dependent upon them that their drug use displaces other important activities in their lives. Many teens and college students plan their week around “rave” or “techno” parties where these drugs are available.
Hallucinogens are commonly abused by young people.One government report found that about 10 percent of all high school students had tried Ecstasy, and that more than 1 million Americans try them for the first time every month.
Dangers of Hallucinogens
The main danger of hallucinogens is that there is no way to predict how someone will react to them. Even a person who is a frequent user of LSD can experience a “bad trip.”
Most people obtain these drugs from illegal sources, so their drugs are often contaminated with other substances.One study of Ecstasy found that most pills sold at dance clubs contained adulterants such as cough medicine, diet drugs, cocaine, caffeine or methamphetamine. Ketamine is a prescription drug used as anaesthesia, and widely abused as a party drug known as “Special K.”
Bad reactions to hallucinogens can include sudden death, paranoia, anxiety and violence. Some people believe they can fly and have other such delusions that cause them to have serious accidents. People with underlying but undiagnosed psychiatric problems have developed full-blown psychoses using them.
People who use hallucinogens frequently have problems talking about their “wonderland” experiences except with other users. They may develop problems dealing with everyday life, and lose interest in work or school, often because using their drugs takes up so much time. An LSD trip, for example, can last 12 hours.
Treatment of Hallucinogen Use
Many hallucinogenic users benefit from entering residential treatment and going through intensive counseling to reset their goals and integrate back into normal living.They often need help understanding the implications of their “out-of-body” experiences.
Treatment for abusing hallucinogens is mostly counseling and behavioral interventions.
Marijuana
Marijuana is the most commonly used illegal drug in the United States. About 40 percent of all Americans over age 12 have tried the drug at least once. At any given time, there are probably about 15 million active users in the United States. More than 12 percent of drug-related emergency room visits are related to marijuana.
At a time when California and other state legislatures are considering the legalization of marijuana, scientists are finding new evidence that it is a more dangerous drug than formerly thought. The marijuana in use today is about twice as strong as that used 25 years ago. The active chemical in marijuana is the same chemical found in hashish, and it produces its effects by binding to receptors in the human brain. Unlike alcohol, which passes through the body quickly, traces of marijuana can linger in the body’s fat cells for up to 30 days.
Dangers of Marijuana Use
New research is indicating that marijuana use might cause permanent brain damage. A 2009 report in the Journal of Psychiatric Research found that teenagers who are heavy smokers of marijuana suffer abnormalities in the areas of their brains involving memory, attention, decision-making and executive function. Researchers in Australia recently found that marijuana not only causes structural brain abnormalities, but also short- and long-term memory loss. Another study found that marijuana increases the risk for the most dangerous form of testicular cancer by 70 percent.
Marijuana is a carcinogen that may increase the risk of cancers of the lung, head and throat more than tobacco does. It also increases the risk for heart attacks by raising blood pressure and heart rate, and by reducing the oxygen-carrying capacity of blood. A 1997 study concluded that marijuana suppresses the immune system. It can also alter a woman's menstrual cycle.
About one in every nine people who try marijuana becomes dependent upon it, according to research from the University of Michigan. Because marijuana is so widely abused, it is the number one reason why people enter drug rehabilitation centers.
Marijuana use is associated with increased risk of acute toxic psychosis, hallucinations, delusions and episodes of depersonalization. Depersonalization is the loss of a sense of personal identity. This does not mean that marijuana causes these problems -- it is simply associated with them.
Treatment of Marijuana Use
People who have become dependent on marijuana need to enter drug rehabilitation centers for professional help. When they stop using the drug, they often feel anxious and depressed. Often they need to address underlying psychological problems that led them to use marijuana in the first place.
Methamphetamines
Methamphetamine is an extremely dangerous drug to abuse, and it ranks second only to marijuana as the most widely abused drug in the world. About 30 million people worldwide are using it at any given time. The National Survey on Drug Use estimates that 1.4 million Americans are currently using meth, and most abusers are under age 25.
Meth is a highly addictive stimulant. It “revs up” the central nervous system, increasing energy and the ability to concentrate, while decreasing appetite. It makes many people feel euphoric and powerful. Under its influence, people have gone for days without sleep, suffered extreme mood swings, and made such poor judgments that they have been killed in automobile accidents, falls and engaging in criminal activities.
Most meth is made in kitchen laboratories from common cold medications and household products. Legal authorities have tried to regulate the manufacturing of meth by restricting the amount of cold medications people can buy. However, a new, cheaper and simpler method of making meth, known as “shake and bake,” now allows people to manufacture this drug in very small batches. This makes it harder for police to stop the practice.
Dangers of Meth
Methamphetamine abusers face many health problems beyond addiction. This drug can cause permanent brain damage, including memory impairment and loss of the ability to perform tasks that involve reasoning. Meth abusers age quickly and develop sores from picking at imaginary bugs. Their teeth often decay. Many become dangerously thin and malnourished, and some develop symptoms similar to Parkinson's disease.
Treatment of Meth Use
Most meth addicts do not want to enter treatment because they enjoy the feeling of energy and euphoria that their drug produces. Without their drug, they often become depressed and tired, and they might have to face underlying feelings of low self-esteem, lack of self-confidence and their inability to achieve their goals – feelings which their drug has covered up. Meth addicts need to enter drug rehabilitation treatment centers to help them through both chemical and psychological withdrawal.
Physical withdrawal from meth takes two to four days, although people can experience symptoms for up to two years. Withdrawal symptoms include sadness, depression, irritability and problems sleeping.
The main problem with meth addiction is relapses. Meth addicts have the highest relapse rates of all drug abusers, which is why they need professional counselors to guide them through the process. Residential treatment might include group and individual counseling, education, family therapy and relapse prevention training.
