Cocaine Abuse Signs & Symptoms

Interventions refer to carefully planned, non-confrontational meetings between an individual struggling with addiction and their family and friends who are concerned about the individual’s drug use. Some interventions are mediated by professional interventionists. Spontaneous or poorly planned interventions can worsen the situation. If someone feels attacked or isolated by their loved ones, they may turn to cocaine or another drug for a sense of comfort and familiarity.

When you ingest cocaine, you typically experience a powerful but temporary boost in energy, mood, and motivation. The intensity of these effects, and the emotional crash that occurs when they wear off, can compel you to use the drug again and again. Deaths due to cocaine overdose increased at a startling rate between 2015 and 2016. Cocaine works as a stimulant that affects the central nervous system by increasing the levels of dopamine, a neurotransmitter, in the brain. Dopamine is usually released in response to a potential reward stimulus – such as looking at a great meal – then recycled back into the brain cell that released it. Cocaine, however, disturbs this process, preventing dopamine from being recycled back into the brain cells.

Withdrawal From Cocaine, Treatment, And Next Steps

For example, you may see extreme mood swings , paranoia , nose bleeds , and hyperactivity . Chronic users will experience withdrawal symptoms if they stop taking the drug abruptly. Executives and professionals can find confidential help to recover from cocaine use in the private setting at Headwaters. Cocaine provides users with a short high, usually lasting no longer than 30 minutes.

Continuing to take the drug in spite of mounting problems the drug is causing in one’s life. Cocaine is a purified extract of theErythoxylum Cocabush which grows in the Andes region of South America. Through different chemical processes, there are two primary types of cocaine created each of which affects the intensity and duration of the high experienced. A treatment facility paid to have their center promoted here.

Cocaine Abuse & Co-Occurring Disorders

Illegal cocaine, often termed “coke,” “snow,” and “blow,” is distributed on the streets as a fine, white powder that is often diluted by dealers to maximize profits. Some dealers will cut cocaine with inert substances like cornstarch, talcum powder, or artificial sweeteners. Others cut their cocaine with other types of drugs such as procaine or other stimulants such as amphetamines. Certain people who abuse cocaine will combine it with heroin to create a speedball – a potent and highly dangerous mixture of a CNS depressant and CNS stimulant. Cocaine addiction is a long-term chronic problem that is caused by changes in the structure and function of the brain. Cocaine affects the central nervous system by increasing the levels of the neurotransmitter dopamine.

• Cocaine is often abused with opioids, amphetamines, alcohol, Xanax, heroin and marijuana.
• A pivotal thing to know is thatthere are excellent treatment options in existence that can help men and women cease their abuse of cocaineso that healthier, sober lives can be achieved.
• If you or a loved one struggle with cocaine addiction, contact The Recovery Village Palm Beach at Baptist Health to speak with a representative about how treatment can help.
• Additionally, it has been reported that more men abuse cocaine each month than women.
• Continued drug use can cause sleep deprivation, loss of appetite leading to weight loss, and cognitive function decline.

The cocaine addiction treatment Association of Addiction Treatment Providers is a nonprofit professional society designed to offer support to organizations across the continuum of care. Being “in the know” is extremely important and often ties to the longevity of success. That’s why, at Options, communication and transparency are the backbone of our relationship with patients, loved ones, and professional referral sources.

Recognizing A Cocaine Addiction

Crack cocaine is another form of white or pink-colored crystals mixed with baking soda and heat to create a dangerous drug. It is estimated that 1.9 million people use cocaine each month; 359,000 of those used crack cocaine. Adults between the ages of report higher rates of cocaine usage with 1.5% reporting cocaine usage in the last month. Additionally, it has been reported that more men abuse cocaine each month than women. The body and brain do not suffer the effects of cocaine addiction alone. A loss of employment or career status, divorce, custody of children, and financial hardships can all result from long-term cocaine addiction.

• This includes a hybrid approach that folds clinical treatment into a plan with adventure therapy and holistic healing.
• This is the highest rate of past-month cocaine abuse among all age groups.
• Cocaine is considered to be the second most abused illicit substance in the United States.

I am so thankful to all of the amazing staff that helped me break free from my cocaine addiction and am now about celebrate my third year of sobriety. Since it’s an illegal drug, an abuser often doesn’t know the dose, source, or if even it’s cocaine they are snorting or injecting. Just as often, dealers contribute additives like allergy medicine to increase their profit margins. The Association for Addiction Professionals represents the professional interests of more than 100,000 addiction-focused health care professionals in the United States, Canada and abroad. Certain combinations, like cocaine and alcohol or especially cocaine and heroin, make a fatal overdose much more likely.