Cocaine use in Australia keeps escalating. A worrying trend has also emerged where more and more employed Australians are increasingly turning to cocaine.
If you or a loved one are in the clutches of crack cocaine, it is important to know how your addiction is harming your body. The more you use it, your body and organs will suffer and eventually shut down.
The following are the parts of the body most affected by crack cocaine.
The Brain
When someone smokes crack cocaine, the drug travels to their brain very fast. This is what causes the intense feeling of euphoria. If you are addicted to cocaine, you are also addicted to the increase in your dopamine levels. Dopamine is associated with reward and pleasure, and any dopamine surge will encourage you to keep using cocaine.
As you continue using cocaine, your brain’s reward system will become altered and less sensitive. This means you will have to use more crack cocaine to get that same feeling of euphoria. Soon, you will consume large amounts of the drug to try and get that same feeling, but it will feel like it does not work anymore.
When you continuously consume crack cocaine every day, you will damage your brain extensively. You will start losing your memory, make bad decisions, and be unable to focus on anything.
Moreover, you will likely develop frightening mental health disorders that can devolve into paranoia and hallucinations. You may also experience psychosis as you lose touch with reality.
The Cardiovascular System
Crack cocaine is a stimulant that also affects the central nervous system. This means that
even if you use it once, it can give you heart palpitations and raise your blood pressure.
If you or a loved one carries on consuming cocaine, the persistent cardiovascular stimulation will put a strain on your heart and blood vessels. Over time, this can result in an irregular heartbeat and heart muscle inflammation.
If your addiction gets worse and you use cocaine every day, you are increasing your own risk of a heart attack or stroke. This is because constant, elevated blood pressure weakens blood vessels and can even cause them to rupture.
The Respiratory System
Your lungs and respiratory system also will not escape unscathed if you are addicted to crack cocaine. Smoking the drug will irritate your lungs, causing you to cough or struggle to breathe.
If you do not stop consuming cocaine, you may develop a lung infection or a chronic cough. Long-term cocaine abuse can result in severe lung damage, as well as fluid in the lungs. If you are not treated, you can go into respiratory failure.
You may develop other chronic respiratory conditions even if you do not suffer these extreme consequences.
The Gastrointestinal System
The longer you consume cocaine, the less you will want to eat. This is because the drug suppresses your appetite. If you do not eat properly, you will lose weight too fast and potentially suffer malnutrition.
When this happens, you will likely notice problems with your gastrointestinal system, including pain and nausea.
Chronic crack cocaine use can eventually cause you to develop severe complications. This includes a weakened immune system (because of malnutrition), making you more susceptible to infections.
It is also possible that you will suffer from bowel gangrene due to reduced blood flow throughout your gastrointestinal system.
The Skin
At first, you or your loved one may not notice any effects of your drug use on your skin. But, as time passes and your cocaine use increases, you will inevitably have track marks or scars, if you inject yourself.
Chronic cocaine injections can lead to painful skin infections, ulcers, and abscesses. If you are already neglecting your hygiene and health because of your addiction, it will only make these conditions worse.
The Kidneys
As with the skin, you may not notice any issues with your kidney function right away. As you continue to take cocaine, you make it harder for your kidneys to filter toxins from your bloodstream.
This leads to increased strain on these sensitive organs, which means you can go into kidney failure. This is especially true if you already have high blood pressure.
Furthermore, if you develop rhabdomyolysis, it will further harm your already damaged kidneys. Rhabdomyolysis is when muscle tissue continues to break down, releasing harmful proteins in the blood.
The Psychological and Social Impact of Crack Cocaine Use
If you or a loved one is addicted to crack cocaine, you may initially feel like you can conquer the world. This is literally ‘the drug talking.’ You will feel more energetic and even more sociable.
Still, these are very short-lived effects. Soon, you will experience an increase in anxiety. Paranoia usually follows as the drug seeps out of your system.
If you keep using it, your dependence on the drug will grow stronger. With stronger dependence comes mood swings, irritability, and more paranoia.
Your relationships with family and friends will take a nosedive, as your only priority will be to get more cocaine. You will likely also become financially unstable as you keep paying for more of this illicit drug.
Should you still not get help for your addiction, you will very likely experience psychological distress. This includes suicidal thoughts, depression, and episodes of psychosis.
You will become more socially isolated as you shut everyone out. You may also turn to criminal activity to sustain your drug use. The damage done to your professional and personal life will eventually overwhelm you, making you believe that recovery is out of reach.
Recovery Is Possible With HARP
The devastating effect of crack cocaine on the body is undeniable. But, the right treatment and therapy can help you or your loved one break the cycle of addiction and get back to a life without cocaine.
Hills & Ranges Private (HARP) offers comprehensive rehabilitation programs specifically created for each patient. At HARP, you or your loved one will receive the medical and psychological support you need to recover from your addiction.
HARP provides a serene environment to calm the body and mind as you recover. You will receive science-backed treatments and therapies to address the root causes of your addiction. You will also receive psychological treatments to address any co-occurring mental health issues you may experience.
Understanding how detrimental crack cocaine is to the body and accepting that you need to stop using it is the first step toward long-term recovery.
If you or your loved one are ready to get the help you need, take the following easy quiz: Assess Your Level of Substance Addiction.
Sources:
https://americanaddictioncenters.org/stimulants/cocaine/effects-on-the-brain
https://nida.nih.gov/research-topics/cocaine
https://nida.nih.gov/research-topics/parents-educators/lesson-plans/mind-matters/cocaine
https://americanaddictioncenters.org/stimulants/cocaine/long-term-side-effects-of-abuse
https://www.legacyfreedom.com/does-cocaine-suppress-appetite/
https://rehabsuk.com/blog/how-cocaine-affects-blood-pressure-and-heart-health
https://americanaddictioncenters.org/health-complications-addiction/permanent-effects
https://rehabsuk.com/blog/what-smoking-cocaine-does-to-your-lungs
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1360478
https://americanaddictioncenters.org/health-complications-addiction/drugs-skin
https://americanaddictioncenters.org/health-complications-addiction/renal-system
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0196064405812156 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC181074/
