Cocaine – not many people can afford this; hence, the nickname, “the caviar of street drugs.”
The duration of its effects depends on the method used. Some people inject and smoke it while others snort and rub it on their gums for a lasting effect.
While it provides a high that many look for in a drug, the impact it has is evident when a person comes down from the high. It affects the brain – emotions included – and the heart. David Dardashti from Ibogaine Clinic shares an overview of the drug and a summary of a recent study on how cocaine is an addiction that’s difficult to break away from.
Cocaine: An Overview
From the Erythroxylum coca bush comes the purified extract used to form cocaine. Once chemically processed, the drug comes in two forms: in powder or in “crack” or crystal form.
This drug prevents dopamine – a hormone released by the hypothalamus that transmits signals in the brain and other areas – from recycling, which causes the build-up of nerve cells. This build-up disrupts the transmission and causes the high.
The Difficulty That Comes With Breaking the Habit
One study finds that even with consequences such as fines and imprisonment, cocaine addicts find it difficult to avoid the negative outcomes that come with using the drug.
Out of 125 participants, Dr. Karen Ersche and her team from the University of Cambridge concluded that while addiction does not happen immediately, it stems from the behavior done repeatedly until it turns into a habit and makes people lose control.
Compared to when you tell a person without an addiction that with addiction comes the risk of being locked up, users are not motivated to do anything about their condition even if they know something bad will happen to them.
Whether it is you or someone you know who is using cocaine, get help while you still can. Remember that you don’t have to go through this alone. Cocaine addiction has adverse effects that will not only affect you, but the people around you as well.