It would be best to remember that cocaine abuse is a severe problem that affects millions of people in the US alone.
According to statistics, more than seven hundred thousand people over twelve years old have tried it at least once.
Generally, it is one of the most addictive illegal drugs you can find on the market, leading to severe physical and mental health issues.
Watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=62FYNwd-8Jo to understand more about addiction and how to fight it.
Still, you can prevent potential problems and cure addiction by visiting the right rehabilitation center.
What is Cocaine?
When it comes to cocaine, you should know that it is a derivate from the coca plant in white powder or crystals. Addicts consume it through smoking, snorting, or injecting, which gives them energizing and euphoric feeling that can last up to an hour.
Even though it has some medicinal uses, it is a potent and addictive drug that can affect your body and central nervous system. It is an anesthetic for therapeutic benefits, while it is a Schedule II drug by DEA.
It comes with a significant abuse potential, which makes it highly popular among people of all ages. Since it is a stimulant, it means that it affects the sympathetic peripheral and central nervous system.
It can quickly boost your physical and mental performance and self-esteem, allowing you to reach high activity levels. The most common effects of this drug include:
- Extreme energy
- Dilated pupils
- Mental alertness
- Euphoria
However, it comes with severe side effects as well, such as:
- Aggressive behavior
- Decreased appetite
- Sensitivity to touch, sound, and light
- Paranoia
- Restlessness and irritability
- Irregular and fast heartbeat
- Nausea
- Elevated blood pressure and body temperature
The euphoric feeling is short-lived, which means you should repeat the dosage in the next few hours to avoid significant crashes that will leave you depressed, anxious, and exhausted.
As mentioned above, cocaine comes with addictive properties because it directly affects dopamine, a chemical in the brain associated with emotion, motivation, and reward.
Therefore, you will get short-lived euphoria, but if you consume it for a long time, it will affect how your brain functions. Research has shown that cocaine abuse boosts stress levels, which will interfere with your brain.
Dangers of Abuse
If you continue consuming, you will experience severe risks and side effects that affect all body functions, especially the heart and cardiovascular system.
The common problem includes heart complications such as heart attacks and irregular heartbeat, leading to inflammation, deterioration, and ruptures.
At the same time, people who consume cocaine will neglect a healthy diet, affecting their gastrointestinal tract and cause tears and ulcers. It can also lead to severe kidney and liver issues and failure.
Other severe side effects are:
- Problems with attention and other cognitive functions include making decisions, memory, performing motor tasks, and punishments
- Stroke
- Acute coronary syndrome
- High blood pressure
If you consume it repeatedly through snorting, your nasal cavities will suffer significant damage, which may cause chronic runny nose, nosebleeds, and lack of sense of smell.
On the other hand, if you consume crack too much, your lungs will suffer, leading to fever, labored breathing, respiratory failure, and coughing blood.
The most dangerous method of consumption is intravenous through injecting because it may easily lead to overdose and other infectious diseases and complications. We are talking about skin infections, abscesses, HIV, endocarditis, and hepatitis, among others.
It is challenging to recover from cocaine addiction, but you can undergo rehabilitation treatment to ensure you do not relapse.
As mentioned above, cocaine consumption can lead to overdose and fatality, becoming more common in the US. In most cases, it happens due to cardiac arrest, heart attack, seizures, and stroke.
Addiction Treatment
Even though this substance use disorder is problematic and dangerous to handle, we recommend finding a good rehab center to take everything under strict supervision.
The process starts with detoxification, which will last up to a week. However, it is just the start of the process and treatment because you must deal with the reasons you started consuming in the first place.
The main goal is to remain in the program for a particular amount of time, between thirty days and even a year, depending on circumstances.
Keep in mind that medical treatments for cocaine abuse are something you should consume for years afterward. We cannot differentiate FDA-approved meds for long-term treatment of this disorder.
Still, some methods are helpful for this problem, such as:
- Motivational Interviewing – It is the first step in therapy soon after you start with the rehabilitation process. We are talking about motivational interviews that will help you understand the way addiction affected your life, relationships, and other aspects you wish to maintain. At the same time, it is an effective way to help addicts deal with apathy and other problems caused by addiction. Still, it is vital to ensure an addict feels optimistic and motivated to recover and prevent relapse.
- Managing Contingency – Since stimulants are addictive, they will affect your brain’s reward center. Therefore, it is vital to repair these aspects, which will ensure you can feel rewarded in case of positive behavior.
You should check out more about Skyward Treatment in Houston Texas, which is the best way to prevent potential overdose.
- Group Therapy – By sitting around with people with the same problems, you will learn to identify yourself with others and create a solid social network. Of course, it is all about counseling and dealing with potential issues you are experiencing along the way.