What are the ways to use Cocaine?
Cocaine is a drug that is generally used in three forms: white powder, where it is snorted or dissolved in water to be injected; Paste, where it is smoked in pipes, called crack and, Merla, which is cocaine in base form, where users smoke it pure or together with marijuana.
See where Cocaine is extracted from
It comes from a plant called Erythroxylon coca, found in Central and South America. Its leaves are used by the Andean people, for chewing or as tea, to relieve symptoms resulting from high altitudes.
For cocaine to be found in the forms mentioned above, two processes occur: when the leaves are pressed in sulfuric acid, kerosene or gasoline, a paste called cocaine sulfate results. In a second process, hydrochloric acid is used, forming white powder.
What does Cocaine do to our body?
Cocaine acts on the central nervous system, where it causes euphoria, well-being and sociability. Due to its pleasant effects, the individual who uses this substance tends to want to use it again. As it loses its effectiveness over time, called tolerance to the drug, the user increasingly uses higher doses, seeking to obtain the same pleasant effects that they achieved at the beginning of its use.
The identification of a user becomes noticeable through the symptoms: racing heart, increased pressure and dilated pupils. Oxygen consumption also increases, but the uptake capacity decreases. These factors, together with the arrhythmias that the substance causes, leave the user predisposed to heart attacks.
See what excessive use does to our body
Excessive use, in frequent doses, ends up causing tactile, visual and auditory hallucinations; anxiety, delusions, aggression and paranoia. The consequences include: muscle pain, nausea, chills, lack of appetite and long-term use can compromise skeletal muscles.
In addition to the serious health problems he is at risk for, there are problems in his interpersonal relationships: separation from family and friends, which also leads him to participate in robberies or robberies to obtain drugs.
Other diseases that the use of Cocaine can cause
The way an individual consumes the drug also brings problems: injectable cocaine can cause contamination by infectious diseases, such as hepatitis and AIDS, among others. In the case of inhalation, it can compromise the sense of smell, with rupture of the nasal septum and respiratory complications, very typical among smokers, including bronchitis, persistent cough and severe dysfunctions. Pregnant women may have stillborn babies, with malformations, or neurological impairment.
Upon discontinuing use, the individual feels depressed, irritable, and has insomnia. Therefore, stopping being dependent requires support and encouragement, as well as medical help for the detoxification process and after this stage, which is your integration into society as an independent individual.
