The last few weeks at The House have been exhausting and emotional and tough. With Colin's death and a mass exodus of many residents, there has been a shift is The House. This winter has been challenging. I won't deny that. Now, there is a sort of peace in The House. It seems as though this is the beginning of finding some balance after weeks of chaos dealing with so many drugs and issues with alcohol. Of course, there are always those issues, but the past couple months has been so insane with the amount of drugs and alcohol in The House.
I have learned an INCREDIBLE amount lately. Especially about drugs and heroin in particular. And probably more than I've wanted to know, but when I think about it, it's good that I'm learning these things. Not only about the drugs themselves, but also about addiction.
When I worked in a nursing home with residents with Alzheimer's I carried around a booklet on the disease and ways for the family to cope. Now, I carry around a drugs pamphlet. And no, not every person at Bethany House has addictions issues, but I just wanted to share a bit about some illegal drugs (there is much more information). Truthfully, I wish I had a "If you're a human, you could encounter a million different things" pamphlet, but those don't exist so I'll have to stick with the ones that do.
You may know these facts, but if not, then hopefully you'll learn something new.
Marijuana (Cannibus)
Street names: Weed, Blunt, Grass, Hash, Mary Jane, Dope, Pot, etc
Tolerance builds up with cannibus, so it can often lead users to consume stronger drugs to achieve the same high. Of course, marijuana itself does not lead people to other drugs, but people take drugs to get rid of unwanted feelings or situations.
Short term effects: loss of coordination, distortions in sense of time, vision, and hearing, reddening of eyes, sleepiness, etc.
Long term effects: lung damage, heart damage, reduce the body's ability to fight lung infections and illness.
Ecstasy.
Street names: X, E, XTC, Hug, Love Drug, etc.
Ecstasy is a synthetic drug made in a laboratory. It has similar effects as hallucinogens and stimulants. It is usually taken orally in pill, tablet or capsule form. The pills are often different colors. When mixed with alcohol, it is extremely dangerous and can be lethal.
Short term effects: impaired judgement, confusion, depression, severe anxiety, paranoia, blurred vision, chills or sweating, etc.
Long term effects: permanent damage to the brain, affecting the person's judgement and thinking ability.
Cocaine and Crack Cocaine.
Street names: Coke, Crack, Snow, Sniff, Rocks, etc.
They can be taken orally, through the nose (snorted), injected with a syringe or through inhalation of the fumes from heating it (only for crack). The powder form is referring to cocaine and the crystal form is referring to crack. next to methamphetamine, it creates the greatest psychological dependence of any drug.
Short term effects: cocaine causes a short-lived intense high that is immediately followed by intense feelings of depressions and edginess and craving for more of the drug. The user can often not eat or sleep properly. It can make people feel paranoid, angry, hostile and anxious, even when not high.
Long term effects: mood disturbances, restlessness, paranoia and auditory hallucinations. Tolerance develops so that more is needed to produce the same high.
Crystal Meth and Methamphetamine.
Street names: Speed, Meth, Ice, Tweak, etc.
They are inhaled, smoked, or injected. Low doses are in pill form. It is highly powerful and addictive. It is a man-made stimulant that causes aggression and violent or psychotic behavior. Many users report being "hooked" after the first use. It is one of the hardest drugs to treat.
Short term effects: disturbed sleep patterns, hyperactivity, delusions of power, irritability. Can cause decreased hunger and bring on weight loss, etc.
Long term effects: increased heart rate and blood pressure, damage to blood vessels in the brain, can lead to strokes or irregular heart beat and cardiovascular collapse or death, etc.
Inhalants
Street names: Whippets, Laughing gas, Rush, etc.
Chemicals found in such household products as aerosol sprays, glue, paint, etc. They are sniffed or "huffed". They affect the brain and can cause permanent physical or mental damage. They starve the body of oxygen and force the heart to beat irregularly and more rapidly,etc.
Short term effects: they can kill a person by heart attack or suffocation. Some can even suddenly react with extreme violence.
Long term effects: can lead to muscle wasting and reducing. Can permanently damage the body and brain.
Heroin
Street names: Junk, Snack, H, Brown Sugar, etc.
It is usually injected, snorted or smoked. It is highly addictive. It enters the brain rapidly but makes people think and react slowly, impairing their decision-making ability. Heroin causes difficulty in remembering things.
Injecting can create a risk of AIDS, hepatitis and other diseases by infected needles. Heroin is one of the three drugs most frequently involved in drug abuse deaths. Violence and crimes can be linked to its use.
Short term effects: nausea, vomiting, pregnant women can suffer spontaneous abortion, cardiac functions slow down and breathing is severely slowed, sometimes to the point of death.
Long term effects: scarred or collapse veins, diseases, lung complications, blood-borne viruses, etc.
LSD
Street names: Acid, California Sunshine, Tab, Dots, etc.
Sold in tablets, capsules or in liquid form. It is commonly added to absorbent paper and divided into small decorated squares and each square is a dose. One of the most potent mood-changing chemicals and is derived from the extremely poisonous ergot fungus, a mold which grows on rye and other grains. A tiny amount can produce 12 hours+ of effects.
Short term effects: dilated pupils, higher body temperature, loss of appetite, sleeplessness, dry mouth, tremors, etc.
Long term effects: The "trip" itself usually begins to clear up after 12 hours, but some users manifest long-lasting psychoses.
Prescription Drug Abuse.
It has become a more serious problem. Painkillers, tranquilizers, antidepressants, sleeping pills, and stimulants can be just as addictive and potent as street drugs.
Legal Highs
These are substances that produce the same or similar effects as street drugs, but are not covered by current misuse of drugs laws. They can cause serious health risks and can contain substances not meant for human consumption. They can cause reduced inhibitions, drowsiness, comas, seizures and even death, etc.
More importantly than the drugs themselves, I believe it is important to understand or try and understand addiction.
"Many people do not understand why or how other people become addicted to drugs. It is often mistakenly assumed that drug abusers lack moral principles or willpower and that they could stop using drugs simply by choosing to change their behavior. In reality, drug addiction is a complex disease, and quitting takes more than good intentions or a strong will. In fact, because drugs change the brain in ways that foster compulsive drug abuse, quitting is difficult, even for those who are ready to do so. " -National Institute on Drug Abuse.
With a mixture of treatments and therapy, a person can overcome addiction. Another important piece, I think, is to not give up and have hope in that person. We've all needed someone to believe in us even when we didn't, right? Working through every up and down with addiction is important. There is always hope. We have to believe that. Otherwise, what is the point? That is something I have been reminded of the most in the last couple of weeks. So if you learn anything from this post, I hope you can walk away with a little bit of information on drugs as well as an opening to understand addiction and just how much of a battle is truly is.
In a world where we're called to love, I believe one of the biggest parts of this is working to empathize and understand and have hope that anything is possible.
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