Author: John Carter

What are the long-term effects of methamphetamine misuse? National Institute on Drug Abuse NIDA

But you may not think clearly when you’re high or make the same decisions as when you’re sober. That’s why it’s a good idea to plan for how you’ll avoid impulsive or risky sex before you use drugs. You probably won’t be able to tell if the drug you take has dangerous stuff in it, so try to buy meth from someone you trust.

Other NIDA Sites

It’s a free online tool provided by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Your loved one might deny having a problem at all or refuse to seek help. If that happens, consider seeking out additional resources or find a support group for family members or friends of people living with addiction. Although an intervention may motivate your loved one to seek treatment for an addiction, it could also have the opposite effect.

When it’s used, dopamine floods your brain to boost feelings of pleasure. You may also feel a lot more confident, social, and energetic. If you use meth on a regular basis, it can change your brain’s dopamine system.

Methamphetamine Addiction Treatment & Rehab Options

But their creation turned out stronger than they expected — too strong for most people to use safely without the risk of overdose or addiction. Methamphetamine, or meth, is a powerful stimulant that can make you feel more awake and active. You’ll soon start receiving the latest Mayo Clinic health information you requested in your inbox. Barbiturates, benzodiazepines and hypnotics are prescription central nervous system depressants.

Tweaking occurs at the end of a drug binge when a person using meth can’t achieve a rush or high any longer. Tweaking can cause psychological side effects, such as paranoia, irritability, and confusion due to the desperation to use again. Tweaking from meth can also cause people to experience hallucinations and become prone to violent behavior. You can have a toxic or deadly reaction when you take too much meth. The risks of overdose are higher when you mix the drug with opioids or other stimulants such as cocaine, ecstasy, or amphetamines. You can have physical and psychological symptoms when you stop using meth.

Like amphetamine, methamphetamine causes increased activity and talkativeness, decreased appetite, and a pleasurable sense of well-being or euphoria. Sometimes called the “opioid epidemic,” addiction to opioid prescription pain medicines has reached an alarming rate across the United States. Some people who’ve been using opioids over a long period of time may need physician-prescribed temporary or long-term drug substitution during treatment. Drug addiction can start with experimental use of a recreational drug in social situations, and, for some people, the drug use becomes more frequent. For others, particularly with opioids, drug addiction begins when they take prescribed medicines or receive them from others who have prescriptions. Another telling symptom of meth use is “tweaking” – a period of anxiety and insomnia that can last for 3 to 15 days.

Meth Addiction

As time passes, you may need larger doses of the drug to get high. As your drug use increases, you may find that it’s increasingly difficult to go without the drug. Attempts to stop drug use may cause intense cravings and make you feel physically ill. Withdrawal can make you feel so bad that you can’t stop using meth.

If your health care provider prescribes a drug with the potential for addiction, use care when taking the drug and follow instructions. Use of hallucinogens can produce different signs and symptoms, depending on the drug. The most common hallucinogens are lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) and phencyclidine (PCP). Two groups of synthetic drugs — synthetic cannabinoids and substituted or synthetic cathinones — are illegal in most states. The effects of these drugs can be dangerous and unpredictable, as there is no quality control and some ingredients may not be known. People use cannabis by smoking, eating or inhaling a vaporized form of the drug.

Signs of Methamphetamine Addiction

Drug use can have significant and damaging short-term and long-term effects. Taking some drugs can be particularly risky, especially if you take high doses or combine them with other drugs or alcohol. Substituted cathinones, also called “bath salts,” are mind-altering (psychoactive) substances similar to amphetamines such as ecstasy (MDMA) and cocaine.

1. Makers of illicit meth synthesize the drug by isolating the elements of highly reactive products.
2. Meth use can also increase your risk of Parkinson’s disease, a progressive neurological condition that can make it hard to control your movements.
3. Attempts to stop drug use may cause intense cravings and make you feel physically ill.
4. Crystal methamphetamine usually looks like glass chunks or shiny bluish-white rocks.
5. This can cause you to think scary things that aren’t true.

Examples include methylenedioxymethamphetamine, also called MDMA, ecstasy or molly, and gamma-hydroxybutyric acid, known as GHB. Other examples include ketamine and flunitrazepam or Rohypnol — a brand used outside the U.S. — also called roofie. These drugs are not all in the same category, but they share some similar effects and dangers, including long-term harmful effects. Substances such as alcohol, marijuana and nicotine also are considered drugs.

Methamphetamine Use and Addiction: Signs, Effects, and Treatment

The symptoms of abuse are quick to manifest and easy to spot. Your withdrawal symptoms will be strongest during the first 24 hours or so and typically last about 7-10 days. Unlike medication regulated by the government, there’s no way to know what’s in drugs made in illegal labs. And meth makers commonly “cut” their products with strong chemicals or medications (such as fentanyl or other opioids) to save money. Dependence refers to a physical state in which your body is dependent on the drug. With drug dependence, you need more and more of the substance to achieve the same effect (tolerance).