She stares at herself in the mirror, examining every self inflicted scar from picking scabs. Her skin tone is grey and dull. Her hair has gotten oily and unkempt. She stopped caring about her looks and was not aware of it. There are age spots on her face that seem to have appeared over night. She touches her face and strokes the bags under her eyes with her finger tips. She looks now at what used to be a beautiful smile and cannot believe that her teeth have decayed, they are almost gone. It saddens her and she looks away. She feels ashamed of what she has become. She looks back at the mirror only to be looking into her eyes. With a hoarse voice she utters the words, “How did this happen?”
Even though Methamphetamine (Meth) is not as popular as other drugs, it is a fast growing form of addiction because it is a drug that affects all age groups and social classes; it is extremely harmful to the human body. Some may have heard of Meth in a different way. This is a drug that has many names. Meth is an Illegal drug and the names are always changing so that the authorities do not catch on. Common names are: speed, chalk, tweek or it is sometimes referred to as crank, ice, crystal, glass, shards or sparkle. These names are common for the crystallized form Meth takes when smoked (What is Methamphetamine, NARCONON, 2005). Meth has become one of the easiest drugs to develop because of the common over the-counter ingredients used. Ingredients commonly found are Ephedrine and Pseudoephedrine. (Meth: Chemistry, by Erowid, January 2005) Meth labs have been found in basements, hotel rooms, abandon trailer homes, or even in the trunk of someone’s car. The crystallized form of Meth (shards) can be used in many ways. Shards can be swallowed or chewed. One can crush the shards to snort, one can dissolve the shards in water to inject, or one can freebase the shards to smoke.
Meth gives some people “the best feeling they have ever had”. Early in the