A Little "Meth" Will Go a Long Way (Video & Photos)

What is Meth?

Meth may also be called “common street names for this illegal and highly addictive drug” ice, meth, speed, crank, quartz, and crystal

Methamphetamine is an addictive stimulating drug that strongly activates certain systems in the brain. Methamphetamine is closely related chemically to amphetamine. Unlike the chemical amphetamine, methamphetamine affects the central nervous system far greater.

Amphetamine - is a prescription CNS stimulant commonly used to treat attention-deficit disorder (ADD) and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in adults and children. It is also used to treat symptoms of traumatic brain injury and the daytime drowsiness symptoms of narcolepsy and chronic fatigue syndrome.

Where Does Meth Come From?:

Illicit drugs are manufactured under hazardous conditions, using inadequate or makeshift equipment by persons with little or no chemistry background. The demonstration or ingredient is usually passed down by established cooks or even downloaded off the internet. The chemicals utilized by clandestine lab "cooks" can fit into a suitcase and are easily transported from location to location. There have even been cases where drug has been manufactured in a “rolling lab”, such as a rented U-Haul truck. Meth is produced in what are referred to as clandestine laboratories, which can be set up anywhere as long as there is power or generators. In other words Meth labs can be found in any public locations such as residences, hotels, motels, and storage facilities. Small meth labs, which are the most common, using glass beakers and countertop burners, they can be set up and taken down in hours and are notoriously hard to detect.

Who Uses Meth?

All types of people use meth. There are no boundaries. It includes all classes and all professions. Anybody and everybody, from soccer moms to hard core bikers...Meth is not a respecter of persons.

Why is Meth abused?

Like most drugs, there is not one defined reason for picking up the drug. Some of the reasons users have report abusing the drug is the increased feelings of self-esteem, confidence, and sexual pleasure. This increases the likelihood of high-risk sexual behavior due to the lowered inhibition and libido boost.

Studies: in lab experiments done on animals, sex causes dopamine levels to jump from 100 to 200 units, and cocaine causes them to spike to 350 units. "[With] methamphetamine you get a release from the base level to about 1,250 units, something that's about 12 times as much of a release of dopamine as you get from food and sex and other pleasurable activities," Rawson says. "This really doesn't occur from any normally rewarding activity.

The use of Methamphetamine is associated with many serious health consequences including, but not limited to; memory loss, aggression, violence, psychotic behavior, cardiac and neurological damage.

Meth and the Brain

Methamphetamine is highly addictive, effects the brain and central nervous system upon all forms of use; injected, snorted or smoked,. Methamphetamine increase levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine, which stimulates brain cells, enhancing mood and body movement.

• Meth releases a surge of dopamine, which causes an intense rush of pleasure or prolonged sense of euphoria.
• Over time, meth destroys dopamine receptors, which make it impossible to feel pleasure.
• The pleasure centers can heal over time, but researches have suggested the damage to users' cognitive abilities may be permanent.

 - Cognitive abilities - are the brain-based skills and mental processes that are needed to carry out any task – from the simplest to the most complex. Every task can be broken down into the different cognitive skills that are needed to complete that task successfully.

• Chronic use of the drug may lead to psychotic behavior, including paranoia, insomnia, anxiety, extreme aggression, delusions and hallucinations, and even death.

Psychotic Behvior:

Those who abuse Meth will go days without sleeping or eating causing severe to deadly insomnia and malnutrition. Research has shown going long periods without sleep will often cause hallucinations. The hallucinations experienced under the influence of Meth have been compared to the psychotic state similar to paranoid schizophrenia. The most commonly spoke of hallucinogenic effect, is the sighting of “shadow people”. Shadow people are outlines or dark images that are seen passing quickly under the hallucinating eyes. Also considered a form of paranoia, “shadow people” have also been described as someone standing far away or even waiting as close as behind a door, which continues to glare or cause a threat to those under the influence.

These hallucinations may cause the user to become violent, thinking they have to defend themselves from a direct threat. The hallucinations are real to the users that see them, causing reactions such as; swerving a car to avoid colliding with the image or locking themselves, as well as those around them, down in a space with the users idea they are creating a safe perimeter. Rolling Stone reiterates by stating, "Where meth thrives, so does David Lynchian violence. After zooming, levels of dopamine and serotonin, two of the brain's regulators, plummet; paranoia takes over, and shadow people appear. A lurid meth-related murder happens somewhere around the country every few months."

The paranoia increases with use and lack of sleep, creating danger for not only the user, but those around. The paranoia can become so great the user can experience auditory hallucinations. In many cases, the user has accused those close to or physically around, as creating plots to harm or even kill them. This creates a very dangerous situation for those who are being accused. “Tweakers” have gone as far as kidnapping or holding those accused hostage. The situation they believe is accruing is as real as real can get.

Tweaking ?:

Meth, like other stimulants, also causes the brain to release high doses of adrenaline, the body's "fight or flight" mechanism, used when a person is in danger or fighting to survive. This high dose of adrenaline induces anxiety, wakefulness and intensely focused attention, called "tweaking." Tweaking creates a high focus or prolonged attention on anything the user may feel needs or wants to focus on. Some example are; rummaging through junk draws or trash, compulsive cleaning, scribbling or profuse drawing, picking at facial blemishes, as well as putting together and taking apart objects that are not in need.

Psychotic behavior, such as paranoia, aggression, hallucinations and delusions usually appear at the end or after this “tweaking” period. Some users have been known to feel insects crawling beneath their skin. The mental disorientation eventually surfaces to show its toll on the body’s surface. Such hallucinations of crawling insects, as well as concentration on a non excitant blemish, causing the face sours you see on the users above.

Superficial Affects:

Along with the facial soars mentioned above, meth use creates an image of a much older person. Depending on the amount used, a fully fledged meth addict can look forward to aging 6 rough years to the average persons one. Those who live with or manufacture meth can look forward to aging 10-12 rough years, to the average persons one year.

•          Meth abuse causes the destruction of tissues and blood vessels, inhibiting the body's ability to repair itself.
•        Acne appears, sores take longer to heal, and the skin loses its luster and elasticity, making the user appear years, even decades older.
•        Poor diet, tooth grinding and oral hygiene results in tooth decay and loss.

How Meth Damages the Mouth

The damage meth use causes to the users teeth has earned its self a special name, “Meth Mouth”. "Meth mouth"- characterized by broken, discolored and rotting teeth. The exact causes of "meth mouth" are not fully understood. Various reports have attributed the decay to the corrosive effects of the chemicals found in the drug, such as anhydrous ammonia (found in fertilizers), red phosphorus (found on matchboxes) and lithium (found in batteries), which when smoked or snorted might erode the tooth's protective enamel coating; however, it's more likely that this degree of tooth decay is brought on by a combination of side effects from a meth high. The form of Meth mouth’s relation to the high is more so the likely cause, due to the evidence in those who use the drug intravenously developing the problem in the same numbers of those who smoke or snort the drug.

 How the Meth Use Damages Dental Health

•  During the “high” produced by this drug, users usually experience cravings for sugary carbonated beverages, which is bad for teeth.
• The “high” from this drug lasts about 12 hours, during which time users will probably not brush or floss, therefore leaving the sugary substances on their teeth for long periods of time.
• The acidic contents of this drug can damage teeth. Ingredients can include battery acid, lantern fuel, antifreeze, hydrochloric acid, drain cleaner, lye and over-the-counter cold medications containing ephedrine.
• Users of methamphetamines usually tend to clench and / or grind their teeth.
• Methamphetamines dry up protective saliva glands around the teeth, which allow the mouths acids to eat away at the tooth enamel, causing cavities.

 What Can Be Done For Meth Mouth?

 Unfortunately, there is not much that a dentist can do for a patient with "meth mouth." The dentist may choose to educate the user on the effects of the drug and offer resources such as drug counseling services. As for repair or saving the teeth, the only option really available, is to have the rotted teeth pulled and the patient fit for dentures.

A pregnant woman who uses methamphetamine even one time can cause long-term neurodevelopmental damage to the baby, including reduced motor co-ordination. Not only does the use of this drug affect an unborn child, but it also puts children of meth addicts in serious danger. Check out the hub page below.

http://hubpages.com/_1csbjb5cfwzyv/hub/Scum-of-the-Week-June-14-Kayla-Neighbors

Withdrawals:

Methamphetamine Withdrawal Associated with Brain Changes Similar to Depression and Anxiety Brain Changes Similar, Researchers Suggest Results of a new study indicate that people who have recently stopped abusing the powerfully drug may have brain abnormalities similar to those seen in people with mood disorders

 Treatment

Preliminary test show that the use of the antidepressant Bupropion (Ingredient in Suboxone) can help in the treatment of methamphetamine addiction by reducing the meth "high" and reducing cravings prompted by visual cues.

New research findings indicate that methamphetamine abuse may result in functional changes in the brain that are similar to those seen in people with degenerative brain diseases.

When addicts use meth over and over again, the drug actually changes their brain chemistry, destroying the wiring in the brain's pleasure centers and making it increasingly impossible to experience any pleasure at all. The area where lack of please is widely noticed for those who have abused the drug is during sexual intercourse and orgasm. Although studies have shown that these tissues can re-grow over time, the process can take years, and the repair may never be complete.

Meth's Other Effects on the Body

• Increased heart rate
• Disorganized lifestyle
• Lowered resistance to illness
• Liver damage
• Convulsions
• Extreme rise in body temperature, which can cause brain damage
• Stroke
• Death

Good Resources that provide more information on Meth addiction:

VIDEO’S: "Tweaked" and "Tweaked: A Generation in Overdrive", which present a warning of the real dangers associated with Meth abuse growing in America. The first film, "Tweaked", presents the problem with little hope or solution. Running 20 minutes, the length and graphic content send a devastating wakeup call to any addict or potential user that SPEED KILLS. Designed for use in the classroom or counseling session, it will, without a doubt, stir the viewer toward a more realistic viewpoint of the drug and its potential danger.

"Tweaked: A Generation in Overdrive" is a 50 minute film with the same message as "Tweaked" plus the intimate details of a family who struggled through meth addiction to recovery. This longer, more detailed version is informative and should be viewed by youth, parents and community leaders in order to fully understand the problem and see the potential for escape.