Methamphetamine

1
Methamphetamine

• Stimulant, synthetic
• Originally intended for nasal decongestants and
  asthma inhalers
• Limited medical treatment weight control, ADD,
  narcolepsy
• Smoked, snorted, ingested, injected
• Powder, pills, or rocks (white to yellow to brown
  to red)
• Rock form crystal meth or ice
• 4 hour high

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Methamphetamines - effects

• Can last up to 12 hours
• Increase energy, alertness
• Decrease appetite
• Side effects
• Convulsions
• Dangerously high body temperature
• Skipping heart beats
• Stomach cramps
• Psychotic behavior
• Intense paranoia
• Visual and auditory hallucinations
• Out of control rages (violent episodes)
• Addiction
• Crank bugs - scratches

3
Methamphetamines Effects Long Term

• Inflamation of the heart lining
• Damaged blood vessels, skin abscesses (injectors)
• Lead poisoning
• stroke,
• Increased blood pressure
• Loss of friends, family, job
• Chronic organic depression (damage to nerve
  cells dopamine)
• HIV/AIDS
• Death

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• Meth use pregnancy
• Premature birth
• Babies have abnormal reflexes and extreme
  irritability at birth,
• May be linked to deformities
• Meth Labs
• Materials cooked
• Severe impact on environment
• 1 pound of meth releases 5 to 7 pounds of
  poisonous gas (toxic waste) into environment
• Portable (garages, apartments, hotel rooms
• Meth labs booby trapped cookers well armed
• 2001- 12, 715 meth labs found by gov.
• CA second highest area for meth labs that year

5
Meth Withdrawals

• CRASH RUN CYCLE
• Ingest, smoke, or snort meth
• RUN 3-8 days of using (awake the whole time)
• CRASH stops due to exhaustion
• Hallucinations make take depressants to sleep
• SLEEPS 18-48 hours
• AWAKENS depressed and hungry
• Take more stimulant drugs then goes on a RUN
  again

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Fatigue
• Paranoia
• Aggression
• Intense craving for drug