Drug Profile Research Paper

Drug Profile Paper
Shamrock/JW
Chemical Dependency in the Workplace
April 20, 2011

Drug Profile Paper

This paper will summarize some aspects on the psychology and physiology of cocaine addiction as well as other particular drug substances that causes hallucinations and depression In addition illegal and legal drugs that are widely used by young adults like stimulants, cannabis and narcotics will be discuss as well. No doubt, crack cocaine surfaced to the Los Angeles street in the early 80’s this small but power drug took control of thousands of lives, destroyed multitudes of families and brought back gang related deaths in the thousands. To understand how cocaine drug use became so popular one would have to go back and
research the very beginning of how it was used. The American people have always abused some type of substance, from the early beginning drugs were used for medical cures. Colonial residents and their predecessors relied on derivatives of natural substances to cure ailments, increase sexual potency, and relieve pain, and to provide pure old fashioned pleasure (De Quincey). Rumors states that Cocaine was used for medical purposes, and was the main ingredient in Coke Cola products back in the 1800’s.
Men, and women both used cocaine, but women used it far, more often than men. These women would snort cocaine for energy. These tough pioneer women had a strong belief that cocaine increased their sex drive, improved coordination and concentration. In addition cocaine was administered by doctors and dentists to patients for pain and used for local anesthesia. Cocaine is an acid hydrochloride, and has three major effects. First effect is the euphoria (a feeling of excitement and joy). Second effect stimulant (a temporary increase in functional activity), and third local anesthesia (induced loss of sensitivity to pain in all or a part of the body for medical
reasons). However, the short and long term effect of cocaine use never enters the minds of most people that drug abuse cocaine or any drug legal or illegal.
The short term physiological effects of cocaine are increase heart rate, blood pressure, vertigo; dilated pupils, block blood vessel, and paranoia. The long term effects of cocaine are: heart disease, heart attacks, respiratory failure, strokes, seizures, gastrointestinal problems. Other physical symptoms include convulsionsokes, seizures, and ga failure, strokes, seizures, a coma nausea, blurred vision, chest pain, fever, muscle spasms, and coma (NIDA). In addition; irritability, mood swings restlessness, auditory hallucinations, paranoia, and addiction. In the same way crack cocaine affects the brain. The brain release a fluid called dopamine it connects to the nerve cells in the brain and the feeling of euphoria is felt. The brain stores its own dopamine, but crack speeds up the process of the release with a fast flush causing a feeling of great pleasure. Crack cocaine is smoke in a glass pipe the smoke enters the lungs and the travels quickly thru the body, and rushes to the brain this is where the short term euphoria feeling comes
from. The come down from the psychology15second crack cocaine rush is very emotional it leaves the abuser in the state of depression, and a tremendous urge for more crack cocaine. Some crack abuser have shown schizophrenic tendencies, and hallucinations, example: Randy a twenty-three old black male smoke crack cocaine for two years straight one evening after a three day binge Randy started to hallucinate he saw rats running around his feet where there were no rats at all. From that point on Randy saw rats every time he would smoke crack cocaine until his death one year later from a seizer while smoking crack. Example two: Debbie a; thirty-eight year old white female who had been force to smoke crack cocaine under gun point at the age of twenty-five would hear marching soldiers every time she would smoke the crack pipe. Debbie kick the habit on her own, but she still has the strong urge to smoke, but thought of her hearing marching soldiers and that she might not regain her sense has kept her drug free. Example three: Thomas a thirty –six year old black male started snorting at the age of nineteen for an athletic injury. Snorting wasn’t strong enough after six months he started smoking, his habit grew, so large that he lied, and stole from his family just to feed the crack habit. Thomas crack cocaine abuse has caused him to lose his family, and friends he still smokes today while battling cancer of the throat. At this level, other drugs might not seem, so bad well don’t relax the new drugs are on the rise, and they are legal to have. Yes, legal cough syrup the new drug is called promethazine with codeine syrup; Promethazine/Codeine Syrup is a phenothiazine antihistamine and narcotic cough suppressant combination. The antihistamine works by blocking the action of histamine to reduce the symptoms of an allergic reaction, such as runny nose and sinus drainage. The cough suppressant works in the brain to decrease the cough reflex (Kluwer). In addition there’re two other drugs Oxycontin and Vicodin these pain killers have a higher health, and death rate for abusers. A study was done from a data base of Medicare recipients. The recipients were issued five different kinds of pain killers from 1996-2005. The researchers study 6,300 patients who took Vicodin, Darvon, Oxycodone, Ultram, and Oxycontin. The patients who took the Vicodin suffer some type of heart problems or intensify the heart condition they already had in a 180 days period: Example, Mary 85 year old black female has congestive heart failure takes Vicodin everyday for the last six years by her taking this drug she is able to walk and move her body with minimum pain. Every five months mucus, and water builds in the heart arteries and it has to be flush. Yes, Ms Mary is addicted to Vicodin and will have to have it for the rest of her life (Tillman). In addition the patients who took Oxycontin were prone to some kind of fracture to their bodies. The study show that all five drugs cause death to patients in small numbers, but after 30 days, those who took Oxycodone were 2.4 times more likely to die than those taking hydrocodone, and codeine users were twice as likely to die (Kluwer). Certainly, the new strains of Marijuana can’t be left out. The new marijuana strains consist of eight types and 95 different brands. These new strains are highly potent with THC factors ranging from 20% to 30% and not deadly. It will take a few more years to know the results of the affects the new strains of marijuana will have on people that smoke marijuana. To conclude with all the different kinds of medication on the market and easy availability of illegal or legal it would be easy for anyone to be a abuser of drugs without knowing. Each person that uses any type of medication illegal or legal should research their drugs of choice that includes prescription for the short and long terms affects that the drug will have on their bodies and health.

Reference

History of Drug Use Retrieved April 25, 2011 from: http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/history/casey1 De Quincey, Thomas. Confessions of an Opium Eater. Preface to the original edition of 1822; revised 1856. London: Oxford University Press. 1902; reprinted 1960. Retrieved April 25, 2011 from:http://books.google.com/books? National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Retrieved April 25, 2011from: http://www.nida.nih.gov/researchreports/cocaine/effects.html
Wolters Kluwer Health, Inc. Issue Date: April 6, 2011Database Edition 11.2.1.001Copyright © 2011 Retrieved April 27, 2011 from http://www.drugs.com/cdi/promethazine-codeine-syrup.html Diana Tillman UOP student Retrieved April 25, 2011from personal notes files