DRUGS:
Additional drug information will be added to this page soon.
Drugs, defined as:
A change in: friends, dress, attitude, personality, activities, grooming habits.
Lack of interest in: family, old friends, school, work
Evidences: paranoia, oversensitivity, forgetfulness, bouts of anger, irritability,
moodiness, clumsiness, giddiness, dishonesty, insomnia, loss of
appetite, sniffling.
METHAMPHETAMINE (speed, meth, chalk)
Meth can be injected, snorted or smoked. Meth releases high levels of dopamine, a neurotransmitter. Frequent users need larger doses to get high. Using meth causes a high which is fleeting.
The "rush" (oral use) or "flash" (by injection) lasts only a few minutes. Frequent use of methamphetamine can cause brain damage.
LSD (speed, tabs)
Often LSD is applied to absorbent paper and then sold in small squares. The square are often colorfully decorated. LSD can also be sold in tablet, capsule or liquid. It is odorless and colorless with a bitter taste.
Users may ride an emotional roller coaster Large doses can cause hallucinations and delusions. Although some LSD "trips" may give the user sensations that are pleasurable. Other users have bad "trips" that can be terrifying with no escape until the drug has worn off. Even then, flashbacks can occur.
Side affects of LSD may include sleeplessness, sweating, appetite loss, a rise in body temperature, dilated pupils, dry mouth, tremors and an increase in blood pressure and heart rate.
STEROIDS
(Anabolic Androgenic)
Steroids are only legal when prescribed by your doctor. They are legally used to treat patients who need to build muscle mass due to illnesses such as AIDS and other debilitating diseases. Steroids are also used to treat individuals who are unable to produce normal amounts of testosterone.
Some athletes and others who wish to build muscle illegally abuse steroids. Some abusers "stack" steroids. That is, injecting or orally combining different types of steroids. Steroid abusers typically use for a specific period of time, take a break and then resume the cycle.
For those who abuse steroids over a long period of time, the damage caused is often irreversible. Cancer, liver and kidney problems, high blood pressure and trembling are a few of the problems these abusers may cause to their bodies.
HEROIN (H, smack, junk, skag)
Heroin is highly addictive and depresses the central nervous system. It is usually a white or brown powder. It can be snorted, smoked or injected. Heroin is processed from morphine. Morphine occurs naturally in the seedpod of the Asian poppy.
The "high" from heroin lasts for a few hours. The abusers experience a feeling of euphoria. When the "high" begins to diminish, the user goes on the "nod," a state of wakefulness and sleepiness.
Because regular users of heroin develop a tolerance, abusers must increase their dosage and if they cannot get their "fix," withdrawal can occur causing serious side affects.
Addiction to heroin causes veins to collapse, liver problems, infection of the heart valves and lining of the heart and other life threatening complications. Despite the obvious dangers associated with heroin, once addiction exists without the fix the addict will experience withdrawal.
Withdrawal causes bone and muscle pain, vomiting, diarrhea, insomnia and other symptoms.
MARIJUANA (weed, pot, herb, grass)
The hemp plant Cannabis Sativa is dried and the leaves and flowers are shredded. Users place the "weed" in rolling paper to make joints (marijuana cigarettes). Some users empty the contents of a cigar and fill it with "grass" to make a blunt.
Pot can also be smoked using a bong (a water filled device) or any kind of pipe. Others cook with "herb" or make tea.
THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol) is the main chemical in marijuana. Recent studies have determined that smoking marijuana does more damage to the body than cigarettes smoke. Users feel laid back and mellow. Their memory both short and long term suffer.
Concentration and learning are difficult tasks. Perception and coordination are affected. Some users get the "munchies" and uncontrollable desire to eat.
INHALANTS (huffing, poor man's crack)
Virtually anything in an aerosol can be "huffed." Users inhale the fumes of paint, paint thinners, hair spray, and cleaning products to name a few.
These products contain dangerous substances such as nitrous oxide, ether, propane, amyl nitrate, butyl nitrate and cyclohexyl nitrite.
Users spray fumes into a bag or balloon. Others spray a rag and stuff it into their mouth. Some simply spray the fumes directly into their nose or mouth. The high last a very short time causing abusers to repeat the process frequently.
This abuse can cause brain damage, unconsciousness and sometimes death. Frequent headaches are a common result. Heavy users become delusional.
Huffing these chemicals results in feelings of euphoria, hallucinations, dizziness, slurred speech, lack of coordination, lightheadedness and drowsiness.