Crystal Meth
From Drug Rehab Wiki
Crystal meth is slang for a solid form of methamphetamine, which is a synthetic chemical that acts as a stimulant in the body. Highly addictive and almost never pure, meth is extremely dangerous. It can be made from drain cleaner, antifreeze, lantern fuel and battery acid. Crystal meth looks something like broken glass or pieces of ice. Odorless and colorless, crystal meth is considered a very pure form of the drug. It is usually smoked in a glass pipe, but some people grind it up and snort it (breathe it in), mix it with a liquid and inject it in their veins, or insert it into a lower body cavity.
Methamphetamine is a drug that stimulates the central nervous system and most often prescribed as an appetite suppressant. When used legally for medical reasons, the drug comes in pill form. Crystal meth is strictly an illegal street drug.
Methamphetamine is one of the most highly abused drugs in the United States, second only to marijuana. Besides being addictive, methamphetamine can cause brain damage, similar to Parkinson's Disease, stroke, coma, and sudden death. Those who become addicted to it often become emaciated to the point of starvation, and experience suicidal thoughts, anxiety, severe mood swings, paranoia, and insomnia. Methamphetamine affects the cardiovascular system, causing increased blood pressure and irregular heart beat. People who abuse it often pick at their skin, causing sores all over their bodies, and develop "meth mouth," that is, tooth decay.
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Common Street Names
On the street, crystal meth has any number of names, including: batu, biker’s coffee, black beauties, blade, chalk, chicken feed, crank, cristy, crystal, crystal glass, glass, go-fast, hot ice, ice, L.A. glass, L.A. ice, methlies quick, poor man’s cocaine, quartz, shabu, shards, speed, super ice, tina, trash, tweak, uppers, ventana, yaba and yellow bam.
Why it’s Used
Most users of crystal meth go for the long-lasting high that it gives. Methamphetamine caused numerous neurotransmitters to be released in the brain which produces a euphoria that may last as long as 12 hours.
Meth is also a popular stimulant that is taken to improve concentration, alertness and energy while, at the same time, decreasing fatigue and appetite. Many women originally take crystal meth because it can produce rapid, albeit temporary, weight loss. The body builds up a tolerance to meth so that weight loss tapers off and then stops after about six weeks of taking the drug. The user then usually regains the lost weight. Because crystal meth is highly addictive, it is not generally prescribed by doctors for weight loss.
How Crystal Meth is Used
Most crystal meth users smoke the drug in glass pipes. This is very similar to how crack cocaine is used. Crystal meth may also be injected dry or dissolved in water, swallowed, snorted, or inserted into a body orifice such as the anus or urethra.
Effects of Crystal Meth Use
Crystal meth produces immediate effects in the user. After the initial euphoria, some of the common effects include:
• Agitation
• Compulsive fascination with repetitive tasks
• Confusion
• Constriction of the walls of the arteries
• Increased energy
• Diarrhea and nausea
• Excessive sweating
• Loss of appetite
• Increased blood pressure
• Increased blood sugar levels
• Increased body temperature
• Increased heart rate
• Increased libido
• Insomnia
• Irritability
• Jaw-clenching
• Tremors
• Violence
In addition, in pregnant and nursing women, methamphetamine crosses the placenta and is secreted in breast milk.
Effects of Chronic Crystal Meth Use
Long-term effects of chronic crystal meth use include:
• Anxiety
• Brain structural and functional changes: emotion and memory
• Confusion
• Dental problems (severe)
• Heart attack
• HIV/AIDs risk (for users who inject drug and/or engage in risky sex)
• Hyperthermia (overheating of the body)
• Increased blood pressure
• Increased respiration
• Insomnia
• Liver, lung and kidney damage, potentially leading to death
• Mood disturbances
• Overdose
• Psychotic episodes (paranoia, auditory and visual hallucinations, delusions)
• Severe crash after drug’s effects wear off
• Stroke
• Violent behavior
• Weight loss (severe, unhealthy)
Addictive
A Schedule II drug under Federal classification, crystal meth (methamphetamine) is highly addictive and illegal. Users can quickly develop a tolerance and need larger amounts to get high.
Withdrawal symptoms include severe craving, disruptions in sleep patterns, depression and confusion.
--Suzannekane 18:06, 1 July 2011 (MDT)
